I first handled clay at infant school in Scarborough but it was always squished and put back in the cupboard. A love of clay is never forgotten, so when living in South London I enrolled in the marvellous Morley College and spent up to 2 days a week in pottery classes, as well as sculpting, drawing and mosaic. Ceramics was taught by Duncan Hooson (pundit on 'the Great Pottery Throwdown) and Jill Crowley. In 2009, at Cleveland College of Art and Design (AA2A programme), I spent time developing glazes, experimenting with porcelain and mould making.
After 20 years of working in London I returned to the North and moved to the North York Moors National Park. I bought an ancient school kiln, a wheel, and dug out my sketch books. After a succession of freezing sheds around Ryedale I found a lovely small studio down the road.
I've exhibited in various galleries including the Ryedale Folk Museum Gallery and the Inspired By gallery at Danby. I also participated in North Yorkshire Open Studios in 2011 & 2012. I'm a past member and Chair of Ryedale ArtWorks.
I particularly enjoy delivering workshops and helping people of all ages and abilities get their hands dirty and develop their creativity.
I particularly enjoy delivering workshops and helping people of all ages and abilities get their hands dirty and develop their creativity.
Bird series
I make very few of these because I don't want the painting to become formulaic. I tend to play with different shapes, shades and formats to keep my interest and favour a round shape because it suggests the infinity of the sky.
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At the raw clay stage the slip colours are hard to distinguish but
this forces the painting to be more free and impressionistic. |
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Ceramics inspired by Chinese paper cuts
I started creating these pots 18 years ago when I used some of my Chinese paper cut collection as stencils. I visited China in 2006. I’ve returned to the theme and use traditional terracotta and slips to develop a collection of ‘one-off’ pieces.
Typically, rural Chinese women make the paper cuts by using a pointed blade which cuts through dozens of layers of flimsy tissue paper into a soft, wax like, back plate. These designs brighten up windows and walls at times of celebration like Chinese New Year, birthdays and marriages. There are paper cuts costing hundreds of pounds produced by celebrated artists but I prefer the traditional modest folk designs made by anonymous women like me.
My pots give the papercut a longevity and a permanence which it’s maker could never have anticipated.
Sometimes a pot’s shape helps me choose an image and sometimes it’s the image which influences the form.
My own paper cut design 'tree glee' combines some English themes - oak leaves, birds, apples and a benign wild pig!
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