Craft / “We are Stardust”, Shannon Garson. At Beaver Galleries until April 9. Reviewed by MEREDITH HINCHLIFFE.

SHANNON Garson is passionate about the environment and draws on the beauty and delicacy of nature for her work.

In this body of work, she explores the commonality between mankind and the universe through cosmic matter – the very atoms present at the origins of the universe.

Garson works in porcelain, and the surface decoration of the pieces in this exhibition enhance the delicacy of her forms. They are vessels – tea bowls, cups and saucers, vases and one bowl titled “The air is delicate”. This bowl balances on a gently curved base. From the interior a bird takes off, as if to set the bowl rocking.

Six tea cups are each decorated with different images and motifs. I particularly liked two cups which had glossy, deep blue interiors, and small white splashes. They evoke the depth of the universe, and perhaps the sparks of the explosion. Other cups are decorated with fungi on the interior, or exterior, with a brush stroke, and one floating leaf enhancing the liveliness of the form.

Three vases – called moon vases by Garson – have swallows swooping on their walls. The blue blush behind the head of each bird accentuates it and gives definition to the movement. Continuing the theme of flying, she is showing moon vases with owls. In “Owl thinking of Wallum”, the eyes penetrate viewers, and follow them around the room.  A second  moon vase “Elements of the Universe” is a little more benign, with the eyes peering into the distance.

Garson decorates her work with delicate, pale colours, and very detailed motifs. Moths, leaves, blocks of faded colours, and astrophysical equations move across the surfaces of the works.

Porcelain is a finicky clay body. Garson is a master at forming it to exactly what she wants and enriches the surface with the gentle and delicate decoration.