We began the year with a celebration of ceramics by awarding Cassie Hansen with first place in the Shelley Simpson Ceramics Prize for her series of architectural wall tablets inspired by the ancient clay tablets of the Mesopotamia period of 3200 BC.
Mud continued its commitment and passion for sustainability with the release of a captivating lighting exhibition developed by Tom Fereday and Shelley Simpson, repurposing a variety of large second pieces into repeating rhythmic one-off lighting pieces. We also launched a limited edition collection of Pebble Bowls using rescued clay, further demonstrating the variety of ways we can recycle, reuse and reduce waste.
The inaugural #bakedinmud campaign received hundreds of entries from people sharing their snaps of sweet and savoury treats all cooked in Mud porcelain, with winner Lorrie sharing a combination of moody lighting and home-cooked dinners, that made us want to be at the table with her.
A key highlight of the year was the launch of our first collection of porcelain lamps designed by Shelley Simpson in collaboration with Zachary Hanna. Debuting at Melbourne Design Week, the collection was revealed at the iconic Walsh Street residence designed by Robin Boyd.
The Lamp Collection was then showcased internationally during London Design Week and during Shoppe High Point, North Carolina in October.
To finish off the year on a high, we opened our 12th store - this time in Brisbane - and the third one for the year following the opening of Marylebone in London and a showroom in Marrickville that sits adjacent to our production studio.
Alongside all of this activity, and a lot of global devastation, we continued to focus our energy inwards, doing what we love the most – producing thoughtfully and sustainably, enjoying the process and taking care of our team of over 100 employees globally.