[27] A Good Death (2026) by Mud Rock Ceramics

Mud Rock Ceramics’ Michelle describes her work and creative process:

It was 2018 and the first time witnessing an actress in a one-woman show, taking on several characters speaking different languages and dialects, all while delivering the heaviness of the subject on inevitable death. It was a subject so close to home, as I had lost my maternal grandma a couple of years before that, and the terms used by Dr Leong were still fresh in my mind. In the midst of the play, I remember being so impressed by Karen Tan as she suddenly spoke in Cantonese, and then jolted into memories of my beloved Cantonese-speaking grandma who was paralysed for 21 years, and how I would pray every evening when I visited her at the home that God would be so merciful to let her go of her physical body. When she finally did pass, I was relieved, but the sorrow of seeing a loved one battle for so long never goes away. A Good Death is a play close to my heart.

This vase was glazed twice in two shades of black. The first layer was painted in large strokes of black that had a high iron content, and the second was fully dipped in matte black.

Specifications:
– Medium: Stoneware, high-iron black glaze, matte black glaze, reduction-fired
– Dimensions: 10 x 10 x 22.5 cm (L x B x H cm)
– Auction winner will receive a physical certificate of confirmation. We will reach out within 5 working days after the event to make delivery arrangements.

About A Good Death:
A Good Death by Faith Ng navigates us through the journey of Dr Leong, a palliative care doctor guiding her patients through their final days. As she listens to the hopes and fears of her patients, her own family argues over what is best for her ageing parents. With the ambiguity between her professional and personal life, Dr Leong then begins to question what truly makes life worth living.

A Good Death was part of Esplanade’s The Studios production in 2018, and is taught to medical students by the Division of Supportive and Palliative Care at the National Cancer Centre Singapore.

“It is its multi-faceted, open-minded and true-to-life quality that marks A GOOD DEATH as Faith Ng’s next signature work since her landmark play NORMAL (2015) about the failings of the Singaporean education system. Ng is adept at tackling such difficult topics, and it’s refreshing that instead of using her characters as didactic spokespersons to address contentious issues, she often allows the situations they are placed in and their interactions to speak about these themes. A GOOD DEATH is no different. This is her first monodrama, and it is a laudable foray into writing for a different kind of performance, and I look forward to more tough and tender works from her, brought to life by stellar collaborators.”

— ArtsEquator

About Mud Rock Ceramics:
Mud Rock is a ceramic studio based in Singapore, founded by ceramics artists Ng Seok Har and Michelle Lim, who have each been practising ceramics professionally for over 17 years.

We are makers of mud and clay who bond over the love of beautiful ceramics that serve us daily. From multiple bowls to a single sculpture, we find a never-ending joy in making, exploring and serving with clay.

With our own kilns, glaze laboratory and equipment, we are able to produce works, glaze formulas and even clay types for specific needs. Though dedicated to our craft, we believe in collaborations to see how our medium can complement others and to learn from those experiences.

Our current clientele comprises restaurants, design companies, architecture firms, government bodies, corporate organisations, and the quirky individual. With over 14 years of experience in the ceramics industry locally and internationally, we provide consultation on various ceramics projects as well.

With tongue-in-cheek, Mud Rock is named in reference to the local sub-culture of ‘Mat Rok’ in Singapore, as ceramic craft too is often teased as a sub-culture of the Arts. Michelle Lim and Ng Seok Har both fell in love with pottery on their individual journeys before coming together.

Driven by a lifelong love for the arts, Ng Seok Har left the banking industry to reinvest and develop her skills in ceramics making. Her journey in pottery started in Tokyo, Japan. Returning to Singapore, she continued her training intensively with a local potter, Jaqueline Low, before taking on an apprenticeship with a Thai ceramics production house under the guidance of the renowned Thai master, Somluk Pantiboon. Since then, Seok has been a full-time potter in Mud Rock and has exhibited locally and internationally as well.

As a professional ceramicist, craftsperson and maker, Michelle is versatile and cross-disciplinary. She has been an industrial designer and educator of youth at risk, for which she has received awards, and has exhibited in several local and international solo and group ceramic shows. During her Ceramics Degree, she was awarded the much-coveted Sir Geoffrey Yeend Scholarship, and completed her Bachelor’s majoring in Ceramics with First Class Honours at the Australian National University. She has been practising ceramics for over 15 years now. As the co-founder of Awaken the Dragon, Singapore’s ceramics festival, Michelle has given TED talks on Ceramics in Singapore and also guest lectured at Art and Design schools in Singapore.

“To hear Ng Seok Har and Michelle Lim talk about pottery is to experience love. They wax lyrical about how a vase is made, from the kneading and throwing of the clay, to bestowing it a form on the wheel, till it’s baptised by fire in the kiln.”

— “Obsessed Much: Ceramics” by Esquire Singapore

Mud Rock Ceramics Founders describe their work and creative process:

“If we can’t appreciate the beauty and craft behind a cup we use and hold to our lips daily, how can we understand fine art cases in museums?” [Mud Rock Ceramics] wanted to show others a connection between ceramics as a functional utility and an artistic object.

— Tatler Asia