Art in the everyday

‘Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or find to be beautiful’. It’s an oldie, but it really is a goodie. As I get older I see more clearly how much of an impact the things that we see and use every day have on our happiness and quality of life.

Sometimes the best result is the absence of stuff. I am more sentimental than I like to admit and really struggle to let go of things. Especially those that belonged to people I love, or that they gave to me. And it’s taken me a remarkably long time to realise that it is more upsetting for me to open a cupboard and be confronted a wave of guilt over something that I was given but I don’t, in all honesty, like or use than to move it on to someone who WILL use it, or to send it to be recycled.

As as result of this, I am now in a perpetual state of decluttering, to repair the damage of too many years of mild hoarding. I’m trying to regularly assess the contents of my cupboards and clear them back to the real essentials. And let’s not talk about the loft…

The other side of this coin is that I now take more and more care when bringing new things into my home. As powerful as the negative feelings associated with something that feels cheap or that looks ugly are, the feelings associated with something beautiful or lovely to use are equally strong. I have a little collection of pots on my mantlepiece, some mine, some made by my friends. I often find myself gazing at the shelf while I’m watching tv, or even just passing through the room and it does bring me real happiness.

Encountering something handmade with real care and skill is an experience like no other. Not necessarily ground-breaking, or thrilling, but a slow, steady drip feed of pleasure that you might only truly understand the next time you pick up that mug you got at IKEA and find it wanting.

Exhibiting alongside other amazing makers at shows like the Contemporary Craft Festival and Made London has sharpened my motivation to invest in fewer, better things; things that have been lovingly made with form and / or function at front of mind, from the best quality materials in the best possible way. I try to buy something from every show, which brings me pleasure in the support of a fellow maker and in the everyday use or encounter with their object.

I am excited to see what I will pick up at my next couple of fairs! I will be at Contemporary Craft Festival Cheltenham (my first time!) and Handmade in Highgate, both in March.

My mantlepiece with lidded jar from Adam Frew, bud vase by Olivia McGill, tea light holders by me and little bowl by Sue Mundy.

5 unexpected tools in the pottery shed!

It always surprises me how often everyday items are used in a professional or expert setting.

I find specialist tools fascinating and usually the more niche (but importantly, effective) the better. I relish an excuse to visit a hardware store and can never resist wandering around for a bit longer than is strictly necessary, just seeing what magical tools and bits of hardware are available; one of which is sure to change my life, if only I can find it.

This love of tools does mean I have complicated feelings about using everyday objects to do something specialist, it can be a bit disappointing! However, I hate waste and can be a bit stingy, so when I can use something I already have, or that is cheap and easy to get hold of, it does give me a hit of satisfaction.

Ceramics is one of those professions which has a lot of highly specialist tools available (kilns, wheels, pugmills etc etc) but can actually be stripped back to a bit of mud, a hand and a fire.

I was working in the studio the other day and it occurred to me how many household items I actually use in my everyday work so here are my top 5:

1) Kettle - Racing to the top spot because it’s absolutely freezing in London right now. I don’t have running water in my studio, let along hot running water. So every morning I boil a full kettle and use it to top up my buckets of throwing water and also the water I wash my hands in. Unfortunately this doesn’t eliminate the necessity of plunging my hands into freezing liquid (clay reclaim and glaze for example), but it definitely helps fend off the chilblains.

2) Credit / oyster / loyalty card - These are unendingly useful. Mostly for scraping clay off things like the wheel-head, splash tray or worktop, but they are also useful when throwing lidded jars to create the gallery - after heavy use, the cards wear down making the corners nice and sharp, perfect for this task.

3) Bum cream - When my son stopped using nappies I found myself with several half-empty tubes of nappy rash cream. Having run out of hand cream in my studio one day (pottery makes my hands extremely dry) I thought I’d just use a bit of the left over bum cream and I’ve never looked back. I try and apply it before I do anything else in the studio - it’s designed to keep water out of skin so on reflection it is perfectly designed to keep your hands as soft as a baby’s bottom!!

4) Baby-monitor - So it seems babies come with all sort of useful items. When I was still on maternity leave and my son eventually leant to nap, I would run out into the studio to try and get a bit of work done while he was sleeping. I quickly realised that as well as letting me know when he had woken up, the monitor was also picking up the doorbell so I could pop back into the house to open the door! It worked so well I’ve continued to use it for this purpose and have it permanently set up in our hallway with the other end in the studio. It works a treat. Who needs a Ring doorbell anyway?

5) Yogurt pots - I eat a lot of yogurt (got to keep that gut healthy) and I live in a part of London with a lot of Turkish and Kurdish people so our corner shops are filled with lots of amazing delicious products, including GIANT yogurt pots. Once the yogurt is gone, the containers are such a useful size. They’re mostly used for holding liquid, usually water, for throwing, sponging, glazing etc. They also have a good tight seal when the lid is on so I use one for storing the old scraps of clay I use to hold pieces in place when trimming - I’ve used the same lump of clay for this purpose for years - I give it a good spray after I’ve used it, pop the lid back on and it’s ready for when I next need it.

Mid-November

Winter does seem to be well and truly here doesn’t it?

It feels especially damp right now, and damp is not really the potter’s friend. It amazes me every year, how much longer things take to dry in this weather. I left some mugs completely uncovered over the weekend and they’re not much drier than when I left them two days ago… So I’ll be bringing some work into the house to dry this week.

I’ve mostly been making mugs and espresso cups lately, having totally run out, which means a lot of trimming and applying handles. It’s a simple, methodical process, and a combination of throwing and hand building, which I really enjoy. There’s an argument to say that I should stop making mugs because they are so time consuming and it’s hard to charge enough for them, but I enjoy making them so I’m keeping on for now!

The pressure is starting to gather now for my next show, which is is Handmade in Highgate on the first weekend of December. Unfortunately it clashes with my son’s birthday so I’m going to have a representative on my stand on Saturday 2nd, but I’m looking forward to being at the show for the rest of the time.

But that is my only winter show and I’m realising that I have probably under-committed myself in terms of in-person shows this year, so next year I hope to fit a few more in. However I will have to plan very carefully how and when to make enough work since that is my current issue that I’m desperately trying to fill my shelves!!

Work in progress

It’s summer, and I’m busy preparing for a couple of upcoming shows.

First coming up is Potfest Suffolk. To my shame I have to admit that I have never even attended a Potfest as a visitor… but I have longingly followed their shows for years. I was particularly excited to find, when I finally decided the time had come to apply, that they were launching a new show a mere hour from where I grew up!

So I am delighted to share that I applied and was awarded a spot at the new show and I have been busy behind the scenes preparing for it.

I have even pulled my usual trick of developing a couple of new shapes at the last minute, which if they don’t work will put a bit of a hole in my collection… so here’s hoping!!

One of which is a smaller version of my angled jug, without a handle to become a little sauce pourer. I am absolutely loving the shape at the moment but decision time for decorating them is looming and the undulating patterns don’t work with the sharp lines so my brain is working overtime for what I’m going to do.

I have also found out that I will be exhibiting at Ceramics in the City, which is coming back!!! I loved this show and I can’t wait to see it in the newly renovated Museum of the Home (it was the Geffrye Museum when I last did the show). I am absolutely thrilled to be part of its return.

The beginnings

Well, April hasn’t gone quite as planned. It is always a bit full-on with 6 immediate family birthdays within a couple of weeks, but with my son’s stomach bug hitting all of us in the house in turn it was extra disruptive.

However, I did manage to visit Ceramic Art London with my sister, who is also a potter. It was so lovely to see makers and their work in real life after such a long time! It was a really inspiring visit and gave me a lot of confidence for the time ahead.

I have focused the last couple of weeks on some long overdue admin, including updating my web shop and applying to exhibit in a few places, so watch this space for news on that.

I have also made myself a making plan for the next couple of weeks, I’ve populated the studio whiteboard with a list of priority items, the clay is ready, I’m so excited to start throwing again!

Exciting times

I just read my last post and realised how much has happened since then! I did go back to my part time job, which was great at the time, but in the last 6 months or so I increasingly found myself saying no to opportunities in my ceramics career, and finding that with only one day a week in the studio I didn’t have time to build any momentum or do any sort of marketing. All this meant that I was beginning to get frustrated with not being able to move forward.

So at the start of the year, I took the plunge and handed in my 2 month notice and a couple of weeks ago I started on my new adventure! Of course things never run quite smoothly. I have been busy with a few admin tasks and general sorting out projects which I had been putting off for months, and then this week my three-year-old got a stomach bug and has been at home for the last couple of days. Self-employment suddenly got a bit real.

However, I have had a little time for thinking and planning (as well as tidying up my accounts) while my son watches non-stop TV… And I am VERY excited, if a little nervous, about the next few months. More to come!

Working away

As we all keep saying, these are strange times. For me, the COVID 19 crisis has been tough, but has come with some silver linings for my ceramic work. In normal times I have a part-time job (non-ceramic related) which provides very welcome regular income, as well as variety, stimulation and colleagues (!). However, during the crisis I have been furloughed from that work.

Initially my time was swallowed with childcare as my son’s nursery was closed, but I quickly established a pattern of running into the studio during his nap (handily just outside my back door) and getting as much done in 1.5hrs as possible! Which is actually a surprising amount. I had to be very focused and know exactly what I wanted to achieve, but an invitation to send some work to Cambridge Contemporary Art helped provide some of that focus and I managed to get a box of work that I was proud off to them on time!

Since the beginning of July my son has been going back to nursery 3.5 days a week, which means I get that time to spend in the studio - 3 days more than usual! So I am currently working hard to stock my shelves and my website in preparation for Christmas (I know, but I have to start thinking about it now) when I will hope to do some small fairs and get back into the rhythm of making and exhibiting again after maternity leave.

I will return to my job 2 days a week in August, grateful that they are able to take me back, unlike the situation that many will be in. So I am currently counting myself very, very lucky.

Betweenmas

It's one of those through-and-through horrible days in London. I'm looking out of the window at grey skies, soaked slate roofs and big juicy raindrops splashing against the glass. I actually quite like these days, as long as they are relatively isolated and I am in a warm, dry house.

It is 'Betweenmas'; Christmas is over and we're still a couple of days from New Year. I love this bit, it feels like a pause for reflection and rest before we hit the fresh new year as our revitalised and newly (all over again) determined selves.

This year is no exception for me. A bit of fortunate timing has meant that on the 3rd January I will begin a new part-time job which I'm very excited about. The excitement is on several fronts; the job has the potential to be both interesting and satisfying but it will also provide me with some much missed financial security. I'm not sure yet if and how I'm going to talk about it in this blog, but what I can talk about is the anticipated impact on my ceramic work. 

The intention is that having some steady income will free me up to be more creative and take the pressure off trying to pay the bills through selling ceramics. It is a delicate balance trying to make a living from something you love so much and the weights of influence are quite heavy. More than anything I want to make lovely pots. I want people to want and buy these lovely pots, if people don't buy them they are wasted. But I don't want to compromise the work just so that people will buy them. But if people don't buy them, I will have to stop making them, so best to make things people will buy. And the studio rent needs to be paid, and the mortgage and the electric and the clay.... But more than anything I want to make lovely pots. And on we go. 

As I started to try to say in my last post, in this slightly desperate search for income I have found myself jumping from project to project, frantically making work without having time to properly reflect on what I'm making. Don't get me wrong, I'm very proud of the work I've been making and selling I just feel like I haven't had time or mental space to properly consider the body of work as a whole or think about where I want to take it next. I'm also aware that having my head down at the wheel, I have missed opportunities to look around at others' work and find inspiration that way. So I'm very excited to have some freedom to do so.

Progress may be a little slow in the beginning. I am genuinely excited about this new job and want to give it the energy it needs, which at the start will no doubt be extra measures since it's always a challenge starting a new role and this one is new in every sense - they have just created it within the organisation, so there will be some carving out to be done. However, it is only three days a week so there will still but plenty of time for other pursuits. 

But another big project is in the offing - The Shed. I have been talking about building The Shed since moving to Wood Green over a year ago. I should really start to call it The Studio since it's going to be quite a lot fancier than a shed and will in fact be my new garden studio. We have drawings and (since last week) permission from the council but I have done next to nothing about getting quotes or finding a builder to construct it. So that is priority number one now that I have a bit more financial security to pay for the loan needed to build it. 

So, as you can see my new year has a great deal of novelty and potential. Let's see what happens!

Forgive me blog, for I have sinned

It has been two and a half years since my last post... Wow. Where did that go?

It hasn't been uneventful, but that's no excuse. I was always a sporadic diary writer as a child, starting with determined enthusiasm, only to fall swiftly and soundly out of the habit until I was re-inspired by a character in a story, generally in some cheesy American teen movie.

So let's try again! A great deal has happened. Ceramic Art York and Ceramics in the City, for which I was preparing, went really well. I was astonished by the positive reaction and the welcome from the ceramics community. Everyone says that they're a lovely bunch. It's really true. Something I have found time and time again since my first shows is that one of the key pleasures of attending a fair or an exhibition is the other exhibitors. As I attend more and more, I add to the bank of familiar faces of potters and crafts people and they have become my friends. So while shows are hard work and exhausting, they are also really fun.

Other key events are moving studios (twice) and moving house (once). The Craft Central building in Clerkenwell where I did my apprenticeship with Helen and then shared a studio with Janet Stahelin Edmondson, has sadly been taken over by the developers. Craft Central is now in a fabulous new space called The Forge in the Isle of Dogs. 

The Isle of Dogs being a long way from Wood Green where I now live, I have moved into a studio in Finsbury Park which I share with the wonderful mother-daughter duo Olivia and Sally McGill. It is a 20 minute cycle from my house and is proving to be a fantastic, creative and supportive space to work. I also work about a day a week for Helen in her new home studio. This is a multi-faceted blessing since it helps to keep the wolf from the door (the pottery career wolf is quite big and menacing) and it means I get to regularly see her which is good because she is my friend, but also because she is still my mentor. She has always been and continues to be incredibly supportive and ambitious for me. I get in trouble if I'm not being ambitious enough for myself! 

Another big happening was having some mentoring from the wonderful Kyra Cane, organised by the CPA and Adopt-A-Potter. She has been fantastically generous with her time, advice and support, going way beyond the bounds of the agreed mentoring structure. I now have a constant Kyra angel on my shoulder, and a real Kyra at the end of the phone, which has really made me pull my socks up and I think (I hope she would agree) that the impact on the improvement on the quality of my finished pieces has been marked.

My aims for next year are to continue to refine my work. I have always been a person to try to do and be a million things but I have realised that too many shapes and patterns and colours just adds confusion to my work. I feel like it needs a bit of clarity and space. So I'm going to try settle on a limited collection and explore some new approaches to decorating and see where it takes me.

For the first time in ages I had a proper day off yesterday. So I hot-footed it down to the galleries. I started with The Cezanne portraits. Like most people I am mostly familiar with his landscapes and it was interesting to see the same approach for a hillside being applied to a skirt. It was also really inspiring to see the bold, immediate marks he made. Something that is bubbling in my mind is a bolder approach to mark making. I've lately been admiring the freshness and liveliness of the work of Katerina Klug, Sylvia K and of course the fabulous Kyra Cane, amongst others, and will try to channel some of the confidence of their mark making in my development work.

I also went to the Women's Hour Craft Prize at the V&A. What a wonderful group of crafts people they chose. I was particularly keen to see Andrea Walsh's work. Her pieces are so calm and contemplative. Her exploration of light and dark and texture is just wonderful and very much chimed for me with the fantastic Breathing Colour by Hella Jongerius at the Design Museum which was so good I went twice. Interestingly, for a person who is a little obsessed with light and generally can't get enough of it, I was in both cases mostly compelled by the dark pieces. The places where the darkness seemed to reflect on itself and intensify where dark, matt surfaces met and faced away from the light were hypnotic.

There is much more to say but I will leave it here for now and hopefully not leave two and half years before the next update.

Decorate, glaze, decorate, glaze...

The last couple of weeks have been consumed with decorating and glazing all of the bisqueware that I've been filling the studio with. I've also been helping Helen with the mammoth job of glazing all of the slipware that we picked up from Katie and Lauren. So it's been quite a hot week in the studio!

We tend to set off the kiln at around between 4-6 in the evening which means that the kiln is ready to open after about 2pm the next day. This always makes for a steamy and tantalising day of open windows and obsessive checking of the temperature gauge to see if we've reached the required 200 degrees to be able to open it up.

As we've been doing a lot of mass glazing of slip cast pieces we've been trying to speed up the process by allowing the glaze to dry overnight. This makes the glaze lovely and soft and much easier to touch up. However our tiny studio is already groaning under the weight of all of our pots so having boards of glazed things hanging around steals precious space.

I have one final bisque fire to do now, which will include a large jug which I'm praying doesn't crack - here it is just thrown

The freshly thrown body of my jug

I've also made some little water beakers but I fear they may be too small. 

The probably too small water beakers, straight from the wheel.

All of the other preparations for Ceramic Art York and Ceramics in the City are coming together, just a few final admin bits to complete this week.

I got some lovely press last week too.

Nerves

It's the start of another week of preparations for Ceramic Art York and Ceramics in the City. 

I've kicked it off with a swim which is a glorious way to begin. This week is the last throwing week before the shows, so I'm planning on making some bottles and possibly a large jug as the one I currently have doesn't pour too well which vexes me.

I've also got a bit of glazing to do for Helen and tonight I'm off to meet my friend Anna to photograph some pots for a possible bit of press which I'll share if I'm lucky enough for it to come off.

Last week saw a big bisque fire 

The top layer of a very full kiln

So there's a lot of decorating to do which is equally pleasing and daunting.

I also popped in to Iliffe Yard on Monday to pick up some of the bisque dailyware that Helen's working on. I've never done any slipcasting so the whole process is a bit of a magical mystery to me.

Some slip cast mugs in progress  

More slip cast ware

There were pots at the weekend too! We went to Norfolk to celebrate my parents 40th wedding anniversary and while there dropped into the Sainsbury Centre which has some lovely Lucie Rie on display.

Lucie at the Sainsbury Centre

I also got to hang out with my little nephew Freddie, always a pleasure!

The Fredster contemplating his Poppa

Right, best get to the wheel.  

Making making making!

The development of the Helen's slipware is going really well. We've started getting our first batches of bisque from the slip-casters and we've been glazing and applying the transfers in the studio. We're working out a couple of teething problems but the results are looking really great - I'll post some pictures when we're ready!

My own work is going well, I'm working on adding some larger pieces to the range which is going reasonably well, though I've been suffering with a few cracked bases. But I'm following Helen's advice and making sure that the bases are really well compressed and that I let them dry super slowly before firing. Fingers crossed!!

I also did a talk at the London Potters AGM to speak about Adopt A Potter and went to Hatfield 'Art in Clay' to man the tombola stand which was great fun! It was fantastic to meet so many lovely potters and see such a lot of amazing work. It was also more good research for planning my stand for Ceramic Art York ; )

SUMMER!

Doesn't time fly when you're making pots? 

It's June already and a lot has happened since my last post. Ceramic Art London was a roaring success for Helen and a fantastic experience for me in preparation for York. And also for Ceramics in the City which I am also delighted to say that I got into!

Since then we have been very focused on developing Helen's slipcast range, preparing forms to be cast. They are all with the mould maker now, so while we wait for them to be ready Helen has time to prepare some work for some upcoming exhibitions. We've also just shipped out some collections  of Helen's work to the Affordable Art Fair and the Joanna Bird Gallery for upcoming exhibitions.

My focus has turned to working on making stock for Ceramic Art York and Ceramics in the City. I've sketched a plan of all the items that I need to make for York which makes me excited and terrified in equal measure! 

I'm also preparing for my first talk as a potter! I'm speaking as a representative of Adopt-A-Potter to speak at the London Potters AGM. I'll be alongside Kevin Millward who is going to do a demonstration, so I'm pretty excited to see that. 

Then in a couple of weeks I'll be off Hatfield for the Art In Clay fair where we'll try and drum up some funds and support for Adopt-A-Potter.

The clocks are going forward on Saturday

And I can't wait. I love the light evenings; one of the great pleasures of living in England is the gentle extension of sunset from 3pm in the darkest dark of winter towards 11pm in sweetest midsummer. This mid-progress leap is my favourite bit. And with daffodils and buds bursting all around on my cycle to the studio, and the prospect of forgetting about bike lights for 6 months I'm getting increasingly excited about spring.

We're also bursting with productivity in the studio. Helen has made all of the forms for the two exhibitions coming up and is well underway in the process of decorating.

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Helen's series of little pots for Ceramic Art London in progress

Alongside, we've been planning the logistical and marketing sides of the show, have been developing a new 'logotype' for Helen for use on our marketing materials and on the exhibition display. We've explored packaging options and have settled on a combination of some beautiful tissue paper and a Japanese paper to wrap them in. You'll have to come and buy a pot to see it though!

My focus has been on making some cups for my mum and also for Adopt A Potter, the charity that support me, to sell at their fairs this summer. The main challenge being consistent size and shape - as you can see I don't quite have the consistent height thing down yet...

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I'm also making some espresso cups for a friend and in doing so experimenting with size and a new 'dip' decorative style.

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My big news though, is that I got into Ceramic Art York in September! I'm so excited to be involved in my first ceramics show, though I am not a little bit daunted. Once all the cups are done, development for that will start in earnest, as well as preparations for our open studio in May.