Ceramicist Lyndal Moor-Fitzgerald

Ceramicist Lyndal Moor-Fitzgerald confesses
to having two sides to her per-
sonality reflected in her two dis-
tinct types of sculpture.

One aspect is
expressed in porcelain, resulting in
delicate, almost fairy-tale like pieces.
The other produces large, bold
stoneware effigies and busts reflecting
Egyptian and Malaysian influences.

The combination of the two has
created a successful formula for Lyndal
Her recent exhibition at Sydney’s Holds-
worth Galleries sold out before it
opened. She said that although her style
changes frequently, she stays with
porcelain and stoneware because she
can use a different range of techniques
and effects with each.

Lyndal first studied art at the East
Sydney Technical College after mat-
riculating in 1961. She went on to train
as a teacher and taught for a year.
In 1967, she embarked on what
became an extremely successful model-
ling career which culminated in 1969
when she was named New South
Wales Model of the Year, a recognition
of professionalism by photographers
working in the business. The following
year she won the Australian title.

“I was 26, at the top of the tree and
bored,” she said. “Modelling was
terribly hard work. I started to question
what it was about and I realized I didn’t
want to end up just an old model.”

Then much of the equipment she had
acquired over the years – accessories,
wigs, shoes and makeup – was stolen
from her home. “I decided that rather
than go through all the expense and
hassle of building it all up again, I’d quit
while I was ahead,” Lyndal said.

She chose to return to her true loves, art and
history, and became a teacher at the
Presbyterian Ladies’ College, in Sydney.
“The college had two enormous kilns,” Lyndal recalled.
“I became very interested in ceramics and did a lot of
experimenting. I found out how much I
didn’t know, so I went back to tech and
did a two-year course on the subject.”

At the beginning of 1977, Lyndal’s
husband, Dr Ross Fitzgerald, a lecturer
in political philosophy, took up a
position at Griffith University in Bris-
bane, and they moved to Queensland.

For the past three years, Lyndal has
worked in a studio underneath their
house, producing enough pieces to hold
a one-person exhibition each year.

She does make some functional
items. To express her concern about
the senseless destruction of our natural
resources, she created a range of
drink-ware which bears slogans such as
“Save the Barrier Reef,” “Spare the
Rainforests” and “No Mangroves, No Fishes.”

Most of the sculptures are made by casting in moulds.
“Casting fell into disrepute in the late 19th century
because all mass-produced crockery
was made that way and it was regarded
as more creative to throw pots by hand,”

Lyndal said.
“Using a mould has now come back
into vogue as people have realized that
you can extend the form if you make
your own prototypes. I have to use a
mould for the porcelain works to achieve
the necessary fineness.” For her large
pieces, only the basic shape is cast in a
mould and the features and details are added later.

“The only time I use a wheel
is to make a prototype for the mould.”
Lyndal plans not to have another
major showing until 1981. “My aim is to
have something completely new for the
next exhibition,” she added. “Otherwise
my critics will say ‘that old model is
turnina out the same old stuff.”

I – KIRSTY MCKENZIE I 1980
Lyndal is very thorough in her work, meticulously logging the progress of each
item. ABOVE: Carefully detailed porcelain “Bird in House.” LEFT: Intricately
designed hanging dolls in porcelain. Photographs of artworks by Craig Lamotte

Professor Ross Fitzgerald AM