Art Chat: Jane du Rand on Birds (26 February 2026)

Art Chat: Jane du Rand on Birds
6–7:30pm Thursday 26 February 2026

Join us online or in person for an engaging chat with master artist Jane du Rand as she reveals her deep fascination with birds and how they feature in her ceramic mosaic art. Jane will also demonstrate the key techniques that she uses to make stunning 3-dimensional birds in all their glory using clay.

This is the first of what will become a regular Art Chat series at Plant Empire. Because it's that time of the evening, we invite you to pack some snacks and drinks and you are welcome to munch and sip during the talk and to stick around or stay online afterwards to chat amongst yourselves.

Birds feature regularly in Jane du Rand's ceramic mosaic work. Since moving from South Africa in 2014 and taking up bushwalking, Jane has developed a deep love of Australia's flora and fauna. Her art celebrates Australian native birds, their beauty and movement, and their botanical habitats. Jane's work explores the exquisite and delicate nature of the bird as a metaphor for the fragility of the environment facing climate change.

About Jane du Rand

South-African born, Ipswich-based Jane du Rand creates three-dimensional ceramic mosaic landscapes inspired by the native flora and fauna she encounters while bushwalking west of Brisbane. Originally trained as an architect, Jane’s intricate designs have been incorporated into the architecture of civic buildings, public spaces and private homes in Europe, the UK, the USA, South Africa and Australia.

Jane's accomplishments include being a finalist in the 2023 Siliceous award for ceramic excellence and she was one of 6 artists showcased in the 2023 Museum of Brisbane exhibition "Clay: Collected Ceramics" with her piece "Brisbane Bush Turkey" now held in the museum's collection. She was awarded "Best of Show" at the 2017 Ipswich Art Award, she was a finalist in the 2020 and 2022 Queensland Regional Art Awards, the 2018 Ipswich Art Award, and the Mercedes Benz Award for South African Art Projects in Public Spaces in 2009. Her solo exhibition "Living in Ipswich" was presented at Ipswich Art Gallery in 2020 followed by a second solo exhibition "Green Red and Black" in 2023. Jane's work features in many public spaces in south-east Queensland, with her most recent large-scale public art installation "All the Birds Singing" being commissioned for the Mental Health Unit at Ipswich Hospital which opened in 2024.

Who Should Attend?

This talk is suitable for both curious art lovers and practising artists. 

How to Join?

Participants are welcome to join in person or join online via webinar: choose from one of these two options when registering. If you have registered to join online, you will receive a link via email on how to login to the presentation.

The formal talk and demonstration will be approximately 1 hour in length, followed by 30 minutes of questions from participants. We will be streaming the talk and demonstration online and projecting the stream in person, and will have a moderator on-hand to assist with facilitating questions online and in person.

This is a live event with no recording. To ensure the best experience for attendees, places will be strictly limited for this event, both online and in person, so register early to ensure you have a seat. 

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Cost

$20

Location

Plant Empire has moved! For those joining in person, this talk will be held at our new premises in Tennyson, Brisbane: 15/55 Lofter St, Tennyson Q 4105.

Reminders

You have full control over how (and how often) you receive reminders for our events. You will receive one email confirmation from us when you purchase your workshop registration and one subsequent email with the online login details if you are joining online; but we won't send any further email reminders, so please ensure that you have the workshop details in your diary. You can also use the "add to calendar" function in our events calendar to add workshops to your digital calendar and customise your reminder preferences.

Cancellation Policy

Please choose carefully before registering for this talk as we do not offer refunds on event bookings. If you need to cancel your place up to 24 hours before the talk, we will provide you with a voucher that you can use to attend a future talk or any other purchase at Plant Empire. We regret that we are unable to provide vouchers for cancellations made within 24 hours of the talk.

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