Who am I?

 

I am a potter, artist and educator living and working in London. I have a workshop in the Pullens Yards, a community of artists and makers who have lovingly restored these unique and beautiful Victorian workshops in South London. From here I make and sell functional hand-thrown pottery and run clay workshops for children. I am also a tutor in Ceramics at Morley Adult Education College
in North Lambeth. In my classes I create space for children and adults to use clay as the vehicle for self-expression. I approach my work with optimism, enthusiasm and buoyancy. I love clay and love to facilitate others’ love for pottery too.

 

What I do

 

As a potter there are so many different ways of using this amazing, malleable quality stuff we call clay. My work combines wheel-thrown, altered and hand-built sections. I throw, build and decorate using slips. I choose the slip-trailer method as my tool with similarities to icing through a nozzle.
In my youth I decorated cakes for all occasions to earn pocket money at the same time as eating the creations. From piped icing to slipware, there is continuity there. The late Mary Wondrausch’s book on Slipware inspired me immensely and connected me to tradition and the diverse ways slip can be used. I became fascinated by her nonchalant attitude towards perfection in line work and I’m still captivated by her technique today. When I arrived in London I went to the V&A and the sixth floor had me. I drooled over all the Staffordshire wares and the 17th century English slipware, particularly in awe of Thomas Toft - the skill, draughtsmanship and scale! Incredible! Considering their lack of modern tools the results are remarkable. 

 

The inspiration I’ve gained from these earlier potters and the patterns created in nature, textiles, architecture, man-hole covers and the retro designs of the 50s & 60s continues to inspire me daily in my work. My goal, in my work, is to integrate form, function and surface in a manner that brings a sense of excitement. I’m continually exploring the relationship between decoration and form.
I strive for lively expression of line, pattern, colour and their juxtaposition in the surface treatment.