The Boab Adansonia gregorii, indigenous to the Kimberley region of North Western Australia, is a large spreading tree with branches that radiate from the top of the swollen barrel trunk that soaks up and holds water. The tree is a source of nourishment and sustenance in a harsh environment, also providing food in large woody capsule-like nuts. In Pippin Drysdale’s pots the promise within is evoked by the rich orange interiors while the etched surfaces echo the tradition of Indigenous Australians who decorated the nuts and used them as items of exchange. There is also the resonance of the name captured in the relationship of the forms like a hollow play between two drums and so much more.

For the past quarter century Drysdale has been refining her forms, her materials and her language to create a unique body of work that is responsive to the landscapes of Australia. Although an urban artist she seeks out places that have a special character or resonance, like the Tanami Desert in central northern Western Australia or the Kimberley Region in the northwest of the State. Once absorbed the colours, sounds, patterns and ambience of the site are carried back to the studio where she patiently re-creates their ‘hum’ and ‘echo’ in the delicate web of glazes etched into the surfaces of her elegantly shaped forms - lines of sight, of smell, taste and memory.