As a ceramic artist one's works are generally limited to that of a permanent nature, taking the natural product clay, using it to create, and then firing your creation into a solid and permanent state. The ceramic  artworks for 'Through The Porthole'  have been fired to 1300˚C, at which point they are turned to stone and therefor won't be changing much for the next couple of thousand years at least! For this reason it was very important to find a material for the porthole frames that would look good long term when used to display the ceramic artworks. The material would also have to be suitable for permanent outdoor installation as a foreshore art trail with little or no maintenance…quite an ask of any material! 

After many discussions with local metal worker Gary Palmer at GP Metalworks it was decided to go with plasma cut, mirror finish stainless steel 'porthole styled' frames. This was perfect advice from Gary I couldn't have been happier to see the finished products when I picked them up last week. It was an exciting drive home to see if I had managed to match up the variable shrinkage of the clay artworks with the final dimensions and screw holes of the porthole frames… 

With the seed planted for 'Through The Porthole' to culminate as an'Art Trail' it was time to take it to the people and as predicted the concept was met with an encouraging response from all key community stakeholders on the Capricorn Coast. It was time to gather the artists. I decided to engage a second key artist on the project and invited local indigenous artist Kim Warcon to work alongside myself to make a series of ceramic works. As an artist who primarily paints in acrylic Kim was most excited to explore the possibilities of clay and his traditional styles would broaden the diversity of works and create further opportunity for workshops.

With artists in place we needed content for the works and what better place to look than to local photography groups. An article in the local paper calling out for suitable images from photographers received a huge response, with the first photographer to respond offering access to his 3000+ images…we weren't going to have a problem here either! At this point graphic artist Clare Botfield joined the team to edit the images into suitable formats for transferring onto clay by artists on the project.

The project team was together; one coordinator, two key artists, a graphic designer, a rapidly growing group of photographers, art students from two local high schools and more to come…

Animating Spaces Yeppoon began in mid 2013 with Keppel Coast Arts president Leanne Smith presenting a proposal to Artslink Queensland for an ocean focused theme - " I do love to live beside the sea side'. As with all good art projects this idea developed as time progressed, and by the time we were notified in late 2013 that we had been successful in receiving the Animating Spaces funding the theme had evolved to what was now 'Changing Tides'. Excitement built amongst the Capricorn Coast arts community and when Artslink Coordinator Kerryanne Farrer and filmmaker Harvey Hayes arrived for the strategy and training weekend in late February 2014 things were ready to roll. I felt privileged to be involved in a project with such high quality Queensland artists and professional arts coordinators.

As an ocean loving artist, been given the opportunity to coordinate a public art project in my home town and with a coastal theme was most exciting. After many discussions with my partner Clare Botfield over our morning coffee, 'Through The Porthole' is what evolved. The idea of an 'art trail' with a series of artworks showcasing the pristine beauty of Keppel Bay's coastline in porthole-like vistas seemed perfect on so many levels. The project could involve many local artists, community workshops with students creating their own works and culminate in a permanent outdoor installation as an art trial, potentially becoming a significant cultural tourism icon for the Capricorn Coast. 

…And so the planning began.