Francis

Ceara Metlikovec’s work is inspired by her natural surroundings in Shoalhaven, New South Wales. “My making is inextricably linked to the earth,” she says. “I work very hard to quieten my mind each day to sense the frequency of the earth through my hands.” Working in her home studio, her practice encompasses ceramics, drawings, and sculptures, where timeless forms such as circles are a common thread. “I’ve always been intrigued by ancient architecture and archaeology. I think our past and futures are interwoven, and mediums and shapes can connect us. I like using something that may appear quite abstract or simple, like a circle, to reach all peoples and times – at some level, it means something to everyone.” 

Metlikovec received a BA in fine art from the National Art School in Sydney, and a BA in art education from the College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales, and went on to teach high school visual arts before returning to her personal practice. Her work has been shown at Art Basel Hong Kong, Auckland Art Fair, and Sydney Contemporary. A large scale drawing from her 2018 show Maya was acquired by the Art Gallery of New South Wales, which has been on public display since 2022. 

In the same year, Metlikovec showed her large scale sculpture Ik Tara for the first time in a forest near her home. The piece is a ceramic circle measuring three metres in diameter, made up of over 5000 clay bricks, each made by hand by the artist. “I hope this kind of art draws people in and welcomes them,” she says. “I’m motivated by the possibility that someone might come to a forest and find one of my works, and feel calmer for stepping out of their busy life and sitting in nature for a while, like I’ve done since I was a kid; my work can be an invitation to go outside and find this moment of quiet. The simplest things are often the best things for us.”