Shana James collaborates with Ebony Russell, celebrating female creation through porcelain and printmaking inspired by the myth of Circe.
Coast to Coast, A Collaboration Between Artists
It all began with a linocut retreat I hosted in Ubud as part of Creative Breaks, which I run every January. Ebony Russell, at the time a high school art teacher in Townsville, joined as a participant. The experience sparked a connection; I invited Ebony to return to assist in workshops, and over the next decade, our relationship quietly grew into a creative partnership. By coincidence, we both embarked on master’s degrees around the same time – Ebony in Sydney, me in Perth. This deepened our conversations in Bali and brought added richness to our discussions about art and life. Though we worked independently across opposite sides of Australia, the link we forged through meeting up in Bali has always endured.
When Perth’s Wedge Ceramics Triennale was announced, Ebony contacted me—this could be our chance for a joint exhibition. We reached out to Sherri, director of Stala Contemporary, where I already exhibited. The generous gallery space was the perfect setting for our two-dimensional and three-dimensional works to engage in dialogue, inviting visitors to wander through the show. What’s on view reflects a decade of friendship and professional partnership—brought together with remarkable cohesion and strong conceptual foundations, even as our mediums and approaches differ.
Finding Common Ground in Technique
The conversation between us began with sgraffito, a technique where images are scratched into clay to reveal the layer beneath. For me, it became a bridge between ceramics and printmaking. This shared language drew us to ancient Greek pottery, and eventually to a vase depicting Circe, the famed sorceress from Homer’s Odyssey. One reference led us to another: John William Waterhouse’s Pre-Raphaelite paintings, and Madeline Miller’s contemporary novel, Circe.
While Homer’s epic centres on Odysseus, Miller’s telling puts Circe at the heart of her own journey—marked by exile, transformation, and self-determination. This shift was vital for us; Circe is not simply a bystander in a male narrative, but a force with agency over her own destiny. Here we could see a story that united both of our art practices.
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- Ebony Russell and Shana James Collaborative Piece – Scylla, Porcelain wall Piece, 35 x 35x 5cm
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- Ebony Russell – Urn of Aiaia, Stoneware and Glaze 51 x 28 x 22 cm Ebony’s Urn of Aiaia in the Foreground with Shana’s Linocut Circe in the background
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- Shana James, Circe, How Do You See Your Divinity? (diptych) Framed individually 92.5 x 72cm each
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- Ebony Russell , Divinity Urn: Aeetes, clear column, 2025, Porcelean and glaze, 73 x22 x22 cm Divinity Urn: Circe’s empty Conch 2025 ceramic and glaze 63 x 28 x 23 cm
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- Shana James – Hermes Visits Circe, Graphite on Paper, 96 x 76cm
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- Shana James and Ebony Russell, Circe Owl 1, Sgraffito image on porcelain by Shana James with decorative border black porcelain by Ebony Russell
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- Shana James and Ebony Russell, Screech like an Owl, Sgraffito image on porcelain by Shana James with decorative border black porcelain by Ebony Russell
Reclaiming Circe
Across centuries, Circe has been labelled a witch, goddess, temptress, or threat—names that usually reflect cultural anxieties rather than the character herself. In this exhibition, Ebony and I reclaim her as a symbol of self-actualisation: a woman who, even when exiled and othered, forged her own path.
Making in Circe’s Country
While developing work for the show, Ebony was offered a residency at the Salemi School of Ceramics in Sicily, collaborating with Italian artists Marta Vino and Chiara Zoppei. Being in the Mediterranean basin—the land of the Odyssey—added new dimensions to themes of metamorphosis, agency, and enchantment that run through her practice. This synchronicity became important to the work. We shared photos: Ebony in Sicily, myself in Perth and the artwork developed in conversation, images and ideas crossing continents as our collaboration took shape.
Ebony’s porcelain pieces are defined by intricate, gravity-defying structures —lace-like frameworks that appear impossibly delicate yet hold firm. In this exhibition, her ceramic works serve as compelling counterpoints to my imagery, creating a rich interplay between surface and structure. We traded works in progress, with Ebony designing ornate porcelain frames for my sgraffito slabs alongside her independent pieces. I posted my sgraffitto slabs to Ebony, and she continued to work on them, using her delicate forms to frame the work.
From Drawing to Clay
For me, drawing is where ideas become tangible. The directness of pencil on paper lets me test and shape my thoughts. From there, I move into printmaking and sgraffito on ceramic slabs. In this exhibition, my imagery and Ebony’s elaborate textures speak to one another. My larger linocuts, with crisp contrast and bold graphic energies, offer a narrative foil to Ebony’s monumental vessels and urns.
Transformation as Method
Circe emerges for us not only as a subject but as a powerful symbol; she is a figure of transformation. Her story acts as a lens through which we explore power, creativity, and self-determination. Just as Circe changes her world, our collaboration reinterprets myth through clay, line, and imagination. We invite visitors into a space where Circe’s myth unfolds in tangible form—a true meeting of materials and creative perspectives.
Circe – Witch, Woman, Goddess – Ebony Russell (NSW) + Shana James (WA) Stala Contemporary, 11 Southport Street, West Leederville, Perth WA, 28-September-2025 – 25-October-2025.
About Shana James
Shana James is a Perth-based artist whose work explores visual storytelling through metaphorical imagery. Drawing inspiration from literature, fairy tales, dreams, and the natural world, she uses elements of magic realism to merge the ordinary with the imagined, offering poetic reflections on contemporary life. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Art from Curtin University and a Master of Arts in Visual Art from Edith Cowan University. She has had eleven solo exhibitions. Her work is held in collections including Artbank, Monash University, Kerry Stokes and the WA Ministry for Culture and the Arts, The WA Water Corporation. Follow @shanajames_printmaker and visit Shana’s profile page on the Stala Contemporary:
About Ebony Russell
Ebony Russell is a Sydney-based artist known for her unorthodox ceramic sculptures. Using a technique she developed herself, Russell pipes porcelain in intricate layers to create gravity-defying forms where decoration becomes structure. Her work challenges perceptions of craft and aesthetics historically coded as feminine, celebrating excess, pleasure, and delight. Russell holds a Bachelor of Applied Arts (Honours) from Monash University and a Master of Fine Art from the National Art School, Sydney. She has received numerous awards, including the London Collect Brookfield Properties Craft Award (2025) and the Franz International Rising Star Award (2018), and was a Wynne Prize finalist (2025).Link to Ebony Russell Follow @ebonyrussell.art/ and visit Ebony’s profile page on Martin Brown Contemporary (Sydney, New South Wales).
