Meet the Associates… Foundation Year 2024
JamFactory’s highly acclaimed Associate Program provides outstanding career development opportunities for emerging artists and designers working in the fields of glass, furniture, ceramics or jewellery/metal.
The program is designed to accelerate development of the professional and entrepreneurial skills required to establish and maintain a successful and sustainable creative career.
The program provides a platform for network building and peer to peer learning within a dynamic creative hub that attracts leading art, craft and design industry figures from across Australia and around the world.
Meet our 2024 Foundation Associates!
Ceramics
Belinda Guerin
Belinda Guerin is an emerging ceramicist living and working on Kaurna Country in Tarntanya/Adelaide. She graduated from the University of South Australia in 2023 with a Bachelor of Contemporary Art, exploring a variety of ceramic methods throughout her studies. Belinda's work is inspired by the visual storytelling of medieval art and folk tales. She seeks to communicate the modern human experience through symbolic drawings and sculptural elements.
“I am so grateful to be entering this stage of my career equipped with such amazing facilities and mentors. Finding a home in a multi-disciplinary community of skilled makers will provide so much support as I explore new avenues of creation and expand my practice. I am so excited for all of the knowledge, growth, and relationships I will gain through my Associateship.”
Belinda Guerin is one of the recipients of the 2024 JamFactory x Helpmann Academy Scholarships.
Wee Shiang Tay
Wee Shiang Tay is an emerging ceramic artist from Malaysia and is currently based on Kaurna Country in Tarntanya/Adelaide. Whilst studying a degree in Contemporary Art at the University of South Australia, she discovered her love for ceramics. Creating functional and sculptural vessels using a combination of wheel throwing and hand building techniques, Shiang’s works are playful and bright; her practice takes inspiration from gachapon (capsule toys), animated characters, animals, and figurines.
“To be a part of JamFactory is an experience I am so grateful for. I am thrilled to not only be able to further develop my technical skills, but to also learn from and grow with other creative practitioners across the different art fields.”
Wee Shiang Tay is one of the recipients of the 2024 JamFactory x Helpmann Academy Scholarships.
Emma Franklin
Emma Franklin is a multidisciplinary artist from Mparntwe/Alice Springs, whose practice often centres around collaborative and community arts initiatives. Over the last decade, Em has worked on diverse art projects with remote communities across the Central and Western Deserts, as both a facilitator and technician, working across ceramics, fibre art, screen-printing and illustration. In her solo practise, Em is currently exploring subversive notions of loss, dejection, and failure, incorporating clay, fibre, and discarded metal salvaged from burnt out cars.
“I am awed by the expansiveness of ceramics, the endless possibilities for material exploration and discovery, and the way that working with clay cultivates an acceptance, even celebration, of failure… Having lived in a remote area for the last decade, I feel immeasurably lucky to be working alongside so many skilled and generous makers. I hope to use my time at JamFactory to experiment, play, and ask thousands of questions.”
Furniture
James Walker
James Walker is a Furniture and Object designer focused on blending functionality with sculptural elegance, often drawing inspiration from flowing, organic forms found in nature. He is intrigued by modular solutions for the everyday home, viewing multi-use Objects and Furniture as a pathway to fostering sustainable consumption and promoting long-lasting design.
“I’m a firm believer that nature has the ability to evoke feelings of familiarity and comfort, and it’s something that I strive to make a central part of my work. Throughout the Associate Program, I look forward to developing a more cohesive design language and making the most of such an amazing collaborative environment.”
Nathan Martin
SATURDAY YARD WORK by Nathan Martin is a Tarntanya/Adelaide based practice that aims to find a medium between sculpture, craft, and functional objects, through experimentation of material and processes. Nathan looks to the unorthodox methods of production and through this, seeks to find surprising visual and sensory results displayed through form and texture. In the creation of one-off pieces, Nathan’s experimental and process-led design approach aims to celebrate the offbeat, the ugly, and all nuances of hand produced objects.
“My practice has allowed me to explore unique approaches to making. Through the program I hope to utilise the opportunity to expand on current works and experiment with new methods and techniques to inform future projects.”
Rashmi Subudhi
Rashmi Subudhi, a furniture designer hailing from the University of South Australia in Tarntanya/Adelaide, channels her expertise and inquisitiveness about materials and processes into her practice. Through experimentation, she creates captivating forms in objects and furniture, showcasing her innovative approach.
“I’m dedicated to crafting unique designs, with meticulous attention to detail that are elegant in their simplicity. JamFactory’s Associate Program offers me an invaluable chance to explore my design aesthetics and craft a collection that embodies my passion for thoughtful craft and design while pushing creative boundaries through material combinations.”
Glass
Rory Branson
Rory Branson is an emerging glass artist who has completed a Bachelor of Art in Glass at ANU’s School of Art & Design. Rory's practice is based on a sculptural analysis, informed by the poetic demands of material. This exploration is built around the balance and contrast of biomorphic and geometric structures that inform perception, light, and optics through varying densities. Rory is also investigating and developing art objects that serve a utilitarian focus.
“I am absorbed in pursuing new material applications to my evolving practice to help find processes that compliment my aesthetic language. My time during the Associate Program will help me forge a sustainable career and future as an artist.”
Kathryn Starrs
Kathryn Starrs is a glass artist who was most recently based out of Asheville, North Carolina, USA since 2018. She was born in Auckland, New Zealand and moved to California with her family at the age of seven. In 2015 while completing her Bachelor of Fine Art in Ceramics at California State University of Fullerton she encountered glass and decided to pursue it as a career; and has been doing production and freelance glasswork ever since.
“I am interested in creating both functional and non-functional glass art; objects that you can use in your everyday life such as an engaging cup or something that enriches your life by elevating the spaces we exist in. My time at JamFactory as an Associate is an opportunity to further strive for technical excellence, design new products and hone in on my own unique artistic style in glass. There is a wealth of knowledge and skillsets available in the community surrounding this space that I am here to tap into.”
Mark Penney
Mark Penney is a Tarntanya/Adelaide born glass artist who studied Visual Arts at the University of South Australia. In his practice Mark draws heavy inspiration from childhood nostalgia to explore themes of escapism though whimsical small scale sculptural artworks based on the science fiction and fantasy genres. Through his creations, Mark invites viewers to embark on a journey through imaginative worlds that help distract from the mundane and sometimes troubling activities of every day life.
"I'm thrilled to dive into this new adventure as a JamFactory Associate! I love exploring different glass-making techniques that add texture not normally associated with glass and creating sculptural artworks. During my time as an Associate I am looking forward to acquiring new skills and mentoring from JamFactory staff with their invaluable wealth of knowledge to further assist me in the technical execution of my pieces."
Jewellery and Metal
Menna McAlpin
Menna McAlpin is an emerging jeweller from Naarm/Melbourne. They graduated Melbourne Polytechnic in 2023 with an Advance Diploma of Jewellery and Object Design. They have always loved making things with their hands and are inspired by magic in the mundane, queerness and fluidity of identity.
“I utilise my practice to represent my inner world to the outer. I am driven by a deep desire to share how nature, being queer, and my life experiences have shaped the lens through which I see the world. I want to continue to explore my artistic identity and expand my technical skills in the supportive environment of JamFactory.”