Lots of creatives speak about having a ‘gut feeling’ or ‘intuition’ that guides them when it comes to their craft, but being brave enough to following that instinct is another thing altogether. Luckily, when this mysterious ‘inner call’ told Bianca Pintan to ‘get her hands in clay and start exploring’, she listened!
She had just moved from Brazil to Byron Bay in 2017 when she started experimenting with ceramics for the first time. It seems her intuition was right, because she was able to take her newfound hobby full-time about three years ago.
While Bianca has made neutral (and perhaps more traditional) pieces in the past, her recent focus has been on creating pieces with intense and joyful colours. ‘Lots of fun and exploration’ lead to her developing her own ‘recipes’ for the unique glazes that give her works their remarkably vivid colour!
Working from her home studio in Byron Bay, Bianca says she can spend anywhere between six to 12 weeks on a piece. But with the Arakwal National Park in her backyard, she doesn’t mind spending hours on end listening to the native birdlife while she spins, carves, and colours her pieces – sometimes even hearing the waves crashing on the beach in the background.
‘It sounds cliche, but my inspirations come from nature, the places I’ve been and things that I’ve seen,’ Bianca adds. ‘Living in Byron Bay and having Tasmania as a favourite holiday destination has given me so much inspiration over the past few years.’
‘For instance, the textural elements of my pieces are related to sand, sand dunes and how the ocean water creates patterns on the sand as it moves.’ The ocean, the sky, fishes, and corals she recalls from snorkelling at Julian Rocks Nguthungulli Nature Reserve also serve as reference points for her rich, primary-coloured glazes.
Her upcoming solo exhibition at Rainbow Studios in Sydney is a celebration of her masterful use of colour, featuring spectacular tactile vessels, vases, sculptures, and plates. ‘Colours can change completely the vibe of space and that’s what I see with the pieces from Colour As Energy. It’s an expression of myself and how I see the world.’
‘I feel like my pieces speak for themselves and I quite like that each person connects with different shapes and colours. There’s no hiding, you either love it or you don’t like it at all and that’s something I feel like we need more of in life.’
See Colour As Energy at Rainbow Studios from August 6 to August 20. Register for the opening night here.
