Ceramics

MY CERAMICS JOURNEY

How evening classes became  a passion for sculpture 

In 2014 I started pottery classes at my local Adult Education centre in Guildford. I handbuilt vessels and decorated them with sgraffitto techniques. I ventured into the unpredictable world of glazing and developed my throwing skills.

Then in 2015 I took a course in animal sculpture at the wonderful Phoenix Studio and was hooked. I enjoyed the challenge of observing a subject to create a form that looks right from every angle. More than anything, I loved the feeling of malleable, fudgy clay under my fingertips. After that, I never stopped sculpting. It’s better than therapy!
PORTRAIT SCULPTURE

Pale and interesting

I’ve fallen in love with clay sculpture and my pieces focus mainly on the human form. I work in light-coloured stoneware clays fired to earthenware for a pale, matte finish, but I also enjoy the challenges of porcelain. My style is simple and I enjoy exaggerating features to create a sense of character.

Portraits and their stories

My recent ‘100 heads’ project explored the theme of identity through portrait sculpture. I created a series of small clay heads that fitted in the palm of my hand.

SMALL-SCALE PORTRAITURE

“Who are you and where are you going? “

As I sculpted each head, I wondered: who are these strange characters who have appeared from inside of my head? Do they have real life counterparts? What might their stories be? Where are they from, and where are they going?

Each sculpture is accompanied by a short fictional desciption exploring their past, present or future. BROWSE THE COLLECTION

Larger sculptures

I’ve also been working on larger figurative sculptures: female and male torsos, in a light cream stoneware clay and in porcelain. I’ve found these projects really useful to improve my observational skills.