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2025.5
Siren Grotto Urn (2025.5)
Catalogue Record
Collection
Maker
Ebony Russell
Title
Siren Grotto Urn
Made in
Sydney
Date
2023
Materials and techniques
I work with Lumina Porcelain, a high-quality Australian porcelain produced by Keane Ceramics. Each sculpture begins with porcelain slurry, which I process by hand before loading into piping bags fitted with traditional cake decorating tips. Using this method, I extrude the coloured porcelain—layer by delicate layer—to build the form. The slurry is tinted with ceramic stains prior to piping, allowing me to create rich, vibrant surfaces. Once complete, the pieces are fired to a high stoneware temperature, typically between 1230–1280°C, resulting in durable yet intricate ceramic structures.
The pieces are made completely by hand.
In my current art practice, the techniques and processes traditionally used in cake decorating have replaced ceramic techniques. The saccharine embellishment and delicate layers are intensified and given permanence with the use of high-fired porcelain. The specially prepared porcelain is slowly piped in layers - building up the curvilinear form. The ornament itself becomes the structure, undermining the intention of decoration's original purpose. Creating sculptures that appear to defy their own making; I embrace the decorative, disrupting the boundaries and hierarchies between high and low, art and craft, structure and decoration. Making in this way feels like magic to me, as if the piece forms itself from my wand-like tool.
The pieces are made completely by hand.
In my current art practice, the techniques and processes traditionally used in cake decorating have replaced ceramic techniques. The saccharine embellishment and delicate layers are intensified and given permanence with the use of high-fired porcelain. The specially prepared porcelain is slowly piped in layers - building up the curvilinear form. The ornament itself becomes the structure, undermining the intention of decoration's original purpose. Creating sculptures that appear to defy their own making; I embrace the decorative, disrupting the boundaries and hierarchies between high and low, art and craft, structure and decoration. Making in this way feels like magic to me, as if the piece forms itself from my wand-like tool.
Dimensions
height: 40cm
length: 24cm
width: 17cm
Object number
2025.5
Credit
Brookfield Properties Craft Award Winner 2025. In partnership with Crafts Council Collection. Purchased with support from Brookfield Properties.
On view
99 Bishopsgate
Maker's statement
Siren Grotto Urn (2023) by Ebony Russell captures the spirit of a submerged relic, fusing Rococo opulence with the quiet melancholy of the sea. Piped entirely from porcelain, the urn's form is lavishly adorned with swirling, delicate textures that reference both coral growths and ornamental confectionery. A soft ombré shifts from deep glaucous blue at the base to a pale, watery light blue toward the top, crowned with accents of soft pink that resemble encrusted flowers or sea life. The open, wreath-framed cavity at the heart of the vessel suggests both fragility and transformation, like a relic eroded by time and tide. Russell’s work continues to reframe notions of beauty and permanence, drawing from historical forms while creating her own mythology of tenderness and resilience.