Birdhouses 2024 – ongoing

Collectors Nests

Collectors Nests present a delicate meditation on accumulation, shelter, and adornment. A tangle of grey-glazed clay branches creates an intricate, nest-like structure from which a pearl chain gracefully drapes, suspending a small coral-toned element framed by silver beads.

These wall-mounted sculptures embody the tension between the organic and the precious, the found and the made. The ceramic branches intertwine with architectural precision despite their naturalistic appearance, creating a vessel that is simultaneously protective and exposed. The pearl chain introduces an element of ritual and value—a humble offering nestled within nature’s architecture.

The works draws from the universal human impulse to collect, to treasure, to create safe spaces for what we hold dear. Yet it also questions these impulses: What do we choose to keep? What deserves our protection? How do we distinguish between shelter and display?

The pieces resonate with themes explored throughout van Donselaar’s practice: the dialogue between clay as earth and gold (here echoed in pearls) as stellar matter, the creation of meaning through material transformation, and the persistent human need to build homes—physical and symbolic—that contain our stories.

Tree Trunks

A vertical exploration of dwelling and memory, Tree Trunks reimagine the archetypal birdhouse as a layered architecture of openings and possibilities. Constructed from clay with textured surfaces that evoke weathered wood, this sculptural piece features multiple circular apertures and protruding elements that suggest both invitation and mystery.

The work transforms the familiar into the uncanny—what appears at first as a functional object for shelter reveals itself as a meditation on home, absence, and the spaces we create for others. The raw clay surface bears the marks of making, preserving the artist’s touch while referencing the organic materiality of trees themselves.

Each opening becomes a threshold, a potential nest, a void waiting to be filled with meaning. The piece resists singular interpretation, instead offering a playful engagement with form and function where the boundaries between useful object and sculptural artwork dissolve.