Welcome to winter! I hope everyone is staying cozy.
In April Colin Smith spoke to us on ‘Merric Boyd and Murrumbeena’, covering the tumultuous history and artistry of Merric, Doris his wife, and their five talented children, in ‘Open Country’, the familyhome in Murrumbeena. Colin touched on Merric’s artistic and commercial success in the 1920s,when The Argus called him ‘the king of the Melbourne potters’, the tragedy of his epilepsy, thedestruction and rebirth of his kiln and the extensive engagement of the extended family with the Murrumbeena community. We saw historical and personal photographs, paintings of and by his riotous family and many images of Merric’s beautiful works.

At the end of April the Circle secured a site at the Antiques and Decorative Arts Fair in the Malvern Town Hall, and your industrious committee spent a long weekend promoting the Circle to all comers. This has resulted in an encouraging number of new members and the promise of further visitors to our meetings – so we are planning to attend in 2027 as well.
In May I spoke on ‘Sometsuke: the birth, aesthetics and social meaning of Japanese blue and white porcelain’. We looked at the first century of porcelain production in Japan, from the early 17th century, considered the Chinese and Korean (and European) influences on its development, and traced the evolution of the distinctive, eccentric Japanese aesthetic. We also explored the imagery and its meaning, the creative and decorative techniques, and the ritual and personal roles that the pieces played.

In June Australian pottery enthusiast extraordinaire, Sandra Van Zyl, will speak to us on 'Amusing and enthralling – my post-war Australian figurines'. Sandra’s talk will cover why she collected these figurines, which range from the 1940s to 2015, and include discussion about the potters, such as Hatton Beck and Sylvia Halpern.

Our Winter Seminar at The Johnston Collection on Saturday 27th June will be about ‘Sleuthing, Rarity, Philanthropy: the Great Collector’. We will explore what it is that makes a truly great, world class collector, from the perspective of those who work with them and secure their collections, the institutions that benefit from their generosity, and their fellow collectors and admirers. Add a tour of Fairhall, a delicious lunch, and social drinks afterwards, and this this will be a delightful day. Presenters are Felicity Marno, Danny McOwan, Rob Robertson, and me.

At our July meeting Elspeth Rowell, the winner of the Circle’s annual scholarship in honour of
Patricia Begg OAM and Chris Begg, will present on THINGS. This award winning ceramics
exhibition draws on the historical concept of the Cabinet of Curiosities to challenge the confines of Western classification systems through an installation of objects that defy taxonomic boundaries.
 

                                                                                                            Genine Wallinga
                                                                                                            President,  May 2026