"Since starting to work with clay in 2006, making forms on the wheel has become my passion. There is something so soothing, so meditative about it. I enjoy testing the boundaries of thrown vessels and exploring the limits of clay, carving into my work to see how I can transform it into something sculptural and unique. It is also about the process, the journey I go on with each piece.

I am inspired by nature; things that usually go unseen or unnoticed. I examine plant life: patterns and shapes on bark, shades of colours on flowers, skeletal veins on leaves, growing seedlings unfurling and seeking light.

I like to deconstruct things I see and recreate them in my own way. Each piece is an individual expression of nature; of self. The intent is not to replicate objects, but to simply translate something seen, or experienced in a unique and interesting way.

I also enjoy working with the relationship between internal and external worlds, playing with concealing and revealing certain parts or characteristics. I start off with a traditional symmetrical form and finish with an intricately finished sculptural vessel. Colours and textures are added in layers, and in contrast to most ceramic vessels, attention is drawn to the internal structure and not just the external surface.

In my current works I have been integrating carving, and I am exploring different shapes and scales. These organic vessels take on the forms of the Western Australian land and botanical life, reflecting colour, form and feeling. They have been greatly inspired by my travels around WA including the beautiful bushland and beaches down South in Augusta, Albany, Denmark and Esperance, and the contrasts of colours and vast landscapes of the North in Exmouth, Broom and  Karijini National Park.

My works are there to be explored, to draw you into their own internal worlds, to discover something forgotten, a beauty from deep within."

......Danica Wichtermann Ceramic Artist