Barbara Campbell-Allen OAM

Barbara Campbell-Allen is esteemed as one of the most original and important ceramicists of her generation. She was awarded an Order of Australia for her services to the creative arts as a potter and ceramicist. Trained at the National Art School (Sydney) and the Gippsland Centre for Design and Art, she has innovated wood-fired kiln techniques, producing works that are elemental, painterly, and intensely sculptural. Her works often draw inspiration from expeditions into the Australian landscape, where she researches and sometimes sources specific materials. Engaging with her aesthetic reveals that geology has a soul, the earth has a memory, and natural materials possess both tactile and sensory power. Her work is profoundly linear and visceral. Scars, remnants, and the raked lines of the artist’s hand harness a rough-hewn beauty in her stoneware, evoking the raw power of silent ancient places. Barbara’s sculptures have been acquired by the Manly Regional Gallery and Newcastle Regional Gallery for two consecutive years. The Powerhouse Museum featured three of her larger works in the Clay Dynasty exhibition from 2021 to 2023. Her work is collected locally and internationally.