PottersOctoberIssueEMERGING29toDecember2022
Front cover: Steve Booton Only Clay show, Sheffield 2022
The sector that offers courses for all abilities of students has managed to survive the pandemic and then suddenly expand due to the high demand, Turning Earth being one of those in London.
Contributions to the gallery of work from makers and students are welcome and will be included wherever possible on a first come basis. Send to the email address paulbailey123@googlemail.com. The editor’s decision is final.
Emerging Potters is produced in association with Aylesford Pottery UK.
In this edition the focus has been on Sheffield which can boast some very interesting makers. It has also tried to look at the work of craft potters as compared to those involved in the fine art production of ceramics.
The magazine is an independent journal. The publishers do not accept any liability for errors or omissions. The views expressed in the features are not necessarily those of the editor. Reproduction in part or whole must be with the consent of the editor. All rights reserved.
October December 2022Emerging Potters 29
TheIntroductiononlinepottery magazine
Welcome to the last edition of the magazine for 2022. The year has seen an improvement in the number and quality of shows being held across the country. The magazine has done as much as possible to bring you examples of the variety of work which can be found from graduation shows to commercial shows. It is always open to new ideas from groups or individuals.
© Paul Bailey 2022
October December 2022 2 Contents Only Clay – Steve Booton 3/4 Only Clay Hannah Staniforth 5/6 Only Clay – Alex Shimwell 7 Only Clay Moz Khokhar 8 Only Clay – Bev Seth 9/10 Only Clay Wendy Kershaw 11/12 Only Clay – Jillian Riley 13 Only Clay Kate Cooke 14 Only Clay – Anthony Dix 15/16 Only Clay Beverley Sommerville 17/18 Only Clay – Ian Morrison 19/20 Made in Sheffield Pottery West 21/24 Discovering Soda Firing – Jo Minnitt 25/27 Potters & Archaeologists 28/29 Book Review – Wild Clay 30/31 The Kiln Rooms Talks 32
Emerging Potters 29 October - December 2022 3
ClayOnlySteve Booton
4
His is a typical story or deciding to have a go at organising a show after many years of attending shows around the country as a maker. Behind Steve is an army of volunteer helpers including family members, all doing it for the fun of promoting the arts. To set up the display area, unload vehicles, sort out endless questions needs someone who has a eye for detail and to be able to organise
The next turning point two years ago was to become an impresario of ceramic shows. The venue is in a historical industrial area of Sheffield, Kelham Island Museum.
October - December 2022
Images: Stalls from year one. Large pot is an example of Steve’s work.
Epeople.merging
the enterprise is Steve Booton, who also lives in Sheffield.
Originally, Steve trained at Wolverhampton Polly and then opted for a teaching career which lasted 14 years. Then following a visit to St Ives he decide to concentrate on making his own work. A small kiln and a kickwheel marked the start of his own pottery.
Previously the show was featured on C5 TV, Our Great Yorkshire Life.
Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield
This is the second year that the ‘Only Clay’ show has taken place. Building on the success of the first show in Sheffield last year, it now had some 60 professional ceramic makers taking part over two days in TheSeptember.manbehind
Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October December 2022
5
Only HannahClayStaniforth
My work is a mix of traditional throwing and hand building techniques. I use coloured slips made from the clay body and by using gestural strokes and mark making I create pieces that are textural and expressive. Every new pot is a new canvas. Decorating my work is the only time my mind is silent as I am focusing on where the next brush stoke will be placed.
After a few years of working in my parents back garden and completing my teaching qualification this year, when my partner and I were looking to buy our first home it had to have the space for my own studio so I can continue to make my work.
I am incredibly lucky to have a great support network around me and even more lucky now I have my own space after moving studios six times in eight years! The first batch of new work made in the studio was completed in August and I am looking forward to seeing what continues to come out of the kiln through ideas
My studio is made up of lots of different people, colleague's who have passed, colleagues who no longer work with clay, family and friends and my Kickstarter wheel.
6 Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October - December 2022
@hannahstaniforthdevelopment.-
hclsceramics@outlook.comInstagram
I have recently finished a studio renovation at my home in Sheffield, help from my Dad, family and friends.
remnantshydratesThistheof the sea shells that did not fossilise into the pot which cleans the pot the calcium swells and falls away as dust. The razor sharp shell edges are then ground smooth with a 400-grit diamond sponge and the base is also given a quick polish to lessen the chance of the damagingfoot any furniture the piece is placed upon.
Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October December 2022 7 Only Clay Alex Shimwell theslightlythepatterninterestingthetheaimconsuming,onPstamp.pottothesheetssomerustwoodsametheglazeeffortcoveringpieceThewhitesmooth).v9aTTheics/https://www.instagram.com/alexshimwellceramwww.alexshimwellceramicsa.s.ceramics@hotmail.co.uk.co.ukpieceshownisasidefiredbottlevase.hrownformamixofequalpartsvalentinesandvalentinesprofessional(blackTheglazeisarutilebluewhichiswherethickandtransparentwherethin.glazeisappliedintwostages,firstlytheisheldonmyfingertips,withthumbthebodystampandmakingeverytokeepthestampfacingtheground,ispouredoverthepotallowingareasofbodytoremainunglazed.Ithenmixtheglazeintoapastewithsievedunwashedashandflakesfromoldmetalandapplymixliberallythebackoftheoppositethelacingobjectsthepotistimetheistolineupstampandshellsintoanandanglepotdowntowardrim.
It is fired to circa 1280 c in a reduction atmosphere. Under these conditions the wood ash mix melts in a guided yet un controlled way, melting the iron flakes which add a streak of iron black blue and purple.
When the pot comes out of the kiln it has the wadding knocked off and is left in a bucket of water for about six hours.
Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October – December 2022
Over the past two decades I have explored the geological qualities of my surroundings The work draws from the fusion of South Asia and South Yorkshire within a multicultural Theupbringing.resulting
work is dictated by the natural elements of earth, fire, and water. When fired in reduction where the presence of or absence from oxygen will determine the patternati on of glaze on the surface. The dramatic (and sometimes unexpected) variations allow me to produce a diverse range of work that embodies this natural process.
As a ceramicist, my approach to making is to trust the process, providing a platform to create a hugely varied body of work unconstrained by predictability. The practice ranges from functional to sculptural ceramics and embraces an extensive range of materials and techniques, including throwing, extruding and slab building combined with the use of natural minerals as colourants. I produce the work in a studio in South Yorkshire.
Only Clay Moz Khokhar
www.mozkhokharceramics.co.ukTwitter:Instagram:Facebook:mozkhokhar@hotmail.co.ukMozKhokharCeramicsmozkhokharceramics@MozKhokhar
Caretakerwww.sethceramics.co.ukBirdsweredevised
First task - getting the bodies and stands made, not worrying too much about perfectly matching dimensions , I make two sizes and somewhere between 15 and 24 cm is about right. Everything is wrapped and put aside, controlling the state of the clay is incredibly important in hand building. Now the attachments, a line of legs and boots, several arms bent into a variety of positions, coils cut, tweaked then press moulded for wing feathers, beaks are cut and shaped. Eventually I have everything I need lined up before me ready to assemble, I love this part.
lot of gentle pushing and pulling into shape, but also a not so gentle hammering and hitting with various spoons and paddles to get what I want. The story is told through the teapot but also the stance and attitude of the bird, I work hard to make it as animated as possible.
to tell a story, to connect with how we feel and possibly reflect a moment in our lives. Mythological creatures, part bird part messenger. Starting life in a group; I’m looking for a sibling like resemblance and as I start the preparation, rolling slabs and coiling, I work out who I am making in this family.
My name is stamped on the bottom and I finally I give the Caretaker bird eyes, carefully considering the angle of its head and line of vision, this is where I think its character comes to life and it is ready for a life of its own.
The Studio: After a bit of a meandering route which included community classed at Yorkshire Artspace and a stint in my garden shed, I very recently I returned to Yorkshire Artspace and a studio of my own at Persistence works. It is very new, unbelievably clean, quite empty and a (very exciting) work in progress.
has its own story, it has an accessory that tells the story but I like a lot of freedom within this to improvise or add as I feel. So, Joseff, with their message about sharing time and friendship has an acorn teapot which is a tiny pinch pot, carved and modelled. It is a delicate job to wrap spindly fingers around a thin handle, to get the angle right against the body and finally ensure the arms and body are telling the same story in movement.Thereisa
Slowly I build the Birds, moving through the group repeating building jobs until I get them to a standing position. Again, I wrap and leave them for a while to bring all the clay to the same consistency.
Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October December 2022 9
Only Clay Bev Seth
I still need to shape and model at this point but at the same time it needs to be a solid self supporting construction. The clay I use is an iron rich stoneware, this reacts well with the dry glaze giving a very irregular surface and a subtle range of col our, which I hope accentuates the carving and modelling of the Eachdetails.bird
Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October - December 202210
Only WendyClayKershaw
Etsy WebsitewendykershawceramicsInstagramwww.etsy.com/uk/shop/WendyKershawCeramicsWendyKershawCeramicsandFacebookwww.wendykershaw.org
Email clay@wendykershaw.org
I love using clay to tell stories, making illustrated porcelain wall panels and clocks. My narratives are inspired from poems, allegories and my own stories, such as the tea, coffee and gin Angels, who fly in just when needed, ready to pour, and the Windy Day Girls, sheltering birds in their hair on those extra gusty days.
11 Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October - December 2022
is in the collection of two museums in China, the International Ceramics Studio, Hungary, and the Aberystwyth Ceramics Collection.
The images are drawn into porcelain with sewing needles, before layers of colour, decals and luster are built up over many Myfirings.work
My ceramics studio is a haven as well as a workspace. It’s part of my home, an old farmhouse in a glen near Lochwinnoch, with views over to Glasgow twenty miles away, and into woods where deer and hares often wander. It’s very peaceful, and I spend most of my time there, illustrating porcelain whilst listening to audiobooks.
12 Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October - December 2022
I work from home in a small Derbyshire town. Currently I make all my work upstairs in a very small studio and then have to take it downstairs and out to the backyard to the kiln shed for firing. However, as I type I have a new ground level studio being constructed in the yard so everything will be in one place, I can't wait!
Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October - December 2022 Only JillianClayRiley onceThe1215theslowstartvesselWhenareindividuallypariantheThegoldporcelainwithusingIRileyDwww.facebook.com/Jillianceramicswww.instagram.com/jrileyceramics@jillianriley.co.ukwww.jillianriley.co.ukesignsmadethevaseblackparianclayacascadeofwhiteflowersand24ctleafliningtheneck.bodyisslipcastthenneckaltered.Oncetheisleatherhardthemadeflowersattached.fullydriedtheisoncefired,theofthefiringisverylikeabiscfiringbutfinaltemperatureisdegrees.Goldleafisappliedthepieceisfired.13
Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October December 2022
14
My studio is a builtoriginallywasSheffield.EdgeingardenconvertedshedNetherItprobablyasa
website: attentioneachproductswithmytexturesBurbageSheffield,inspirationpotteryIemail:eceramics/Instagram:https://kateackroydcooke.com/https://www.instagram.com/katecookkateackroydcooke@gmail.commakecontemporaryfunctionalstonewarethrownonapotterswheel.TakingfromthelandscapesaroundthegritstoneedgesofStanageandandotherwildplaces.Thestructures,andcoloursfoundinnaturehelpinformglazepaletteandhowtheycontrastinfeelthenaturalunglazedpottery.Imakeinsmallbatches,whichmeansthatpieceisuniqueandcraftedwithloveandtodetail.
The studio
wash room but had been used to store coal and other things over the years. I converted it a few years ago, but its still affectionately called 'the shed'.
Only Clay Kate Cooke
The Work
15Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October - December 2022
07806094268mailto:tonydix27@hotmail.co.uk–mobile
Only AnthonyClayDix
It is thrown crisply with no turning and I use steel ribs to make marks that leave linear spirals that will be exploited by the soda. The work also incorporates spiral textured handles inspired by ammonites and other spirals in nature.
The handles are often pressed into enclosed forms when the clay is soft to appear to emerge from the deflated forms. The finished pots are bisque fired then sprayed with a thin layer of coloured slips to create my colour range and surfaces which the soda flux's eats into.
All my work is made for use and while I have worked with clay for over 40yrs as both teacher and potter my work developed extensively on an MA 20yrs ago and I have been dedicated to full time making since retiring from teaching in 2019. I balance making with being a house parent of three of my children.
My workshop is a 12ft x10 shed next to my garage that houses two kilns and family stuff. My bisque kiln is a front loading electric and my soda kiln is a refurbed old electric front loader with 10 cubic foot chamber small but effective with a 10hr firing cycle to 1300. I use liquid soda at 1270 to 1290 and a small amount of salt at 1260/70. The workshop is racked for thrown work around the wheel .
Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October - December 202216
The Workshop
The ‘matter’ collections capture a narrative and story, collected materials are mixed within the clay, creating a tangible connection between personal experience, and moments in time, embedding place within unique pieces of still life, installation, or one-off forms.
‘matter collection - origins’
Before adding the gathered materials to the porcelain, the slate is processed, crushing, and washing the materials to create a variety of different particle sized inclusions. These are then added to the porcelain at varying stages as I throw, sometimes wedged into the clay before throwing or painted onto the surface. The form is always thrown so that there is as little turning as possible, so I do not disturb the material surfaces created. Feet are thrown directly onto the surface as the last stage, considering the overall form of the vessel.
Contact details: Email: mervilleCeramicsFacebook:Instagram:https://www.beverleysommervilleceramics.studio/Website:beverleyvilleceramic@icloud.comhttps://www.instagram.com/beverleyville/https://www.facebook.com/BeverleySom
Receiving an MA: Ceramics award from Manchester Metropolitan University in 2017, I went on to establish my ceramic studio, based from my home in Cheshire. A studio potter and ceramic artist, my work focuses on wheel thrown ceramics in porcelain and stoneware clays fired in an electric kiln.
‘origins’ is a new collection. I have recently been spending some time in North Wales from where my father was from and so began to reflect upon my own family history. In response to the ideas of roots and heritage, what makes us, us, and what connects us to people and place, I have been gathering slate shards and fragments from my wonderings.
Only BeverleyClaySommerville
A clear glaze is used on the interior and sometimes parts of the exterior, as the materials can react to the glaze in a different way to the porcelain, creating runs or layers of surface texture. The vessels come together with varying forms, material finish and texture, yet are connected by the common language and meaning of the gathered slate.
17 Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October 0 December 2022
Volcanic ashes and lava from Iceland, ashes from the apartments of the firemen’s family apartments at London Road in Manchester, Triassic sandstones from the local quarry to Terracotta brick fragments from warehousing in Taiwan……All have a story to tell.
18 Emerging Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October - December 2022
Walls of shelves are mostly covered with all descriptions of containers housing gathered materials from my journeys.
My studio occupies the majority of our backyard, living in a small 2 up 2 down workers cottage in Cheshire there was no other place to build the flat packed building and my husband encouraged that rather than a small shed a purpose built space was Thereimportant.islots of natural light as most of the walls and ceiling are glazed, and plenty of room for my kiln and wheel.
The pots, heavily salt glazed become incredibly tactile as well as showing my hand at work, as the maker, not hiding but instead highlighting the subtle marks, fingerprints from handling, and attachments in a tasteful
They are then fired for 36-40 hours with propane in a 110 cubic foot hard brick downdraft kiln that I built to produce this range. The long reduction cycle helps to really develop the iron in the clay to give me good color in the clay and the liner glaze.
a country pottery. I focus on line, surface, and balance. I want my pots to convey an honesty about why and how they were made and for me the salt glazing process is a perfect application to achieve this.
Only Clay Ian Morrison
Once a reasonable layer of salt glaze has been achieved on the surface of the clay, I continue so salt the kiln directionally using the strong downdraft and large chamber in order to achieve a slightly heavier orange peel on one side of each pot to give the work varied surface around the form.
I find this process gives me work that is not uniform throughout the chamber and allows me to achieve a vast range of subtle color variations in each firing.
The pots are made from stoneware that has been specially formulated to deal with the stress of salt glazing. The work is thrown on the wheel and sometimes altered. All of the work is lined with a wood ash glaze that gives a good variation throughout the kiln chamber.
Thisway.
The2016.workshop
and office have been created from barn, dairy and stable buildings, making minimal changes to their exteriors. We added a few windows to let in more light, and extended walls to enclose the stables. We've also been working to bring back the natural beauty of the surroundings area, repairing fences and planting trees, hedges and wildflowers.
process allows me to make pots with subtle and clean lines that are very approachable and usable while giving the work that extra durability that comes from the firing process.
The Studio
E19merging
Mywww.knightonmillpotteryoffice@knightonmillpottery.com,.comworkisacontemporarylook
Potters 29 Only Clay Sheffield October December 2022
Work on the studio at Knighton Mill began at the end of 2015. After over six months of cleaning, construction, kiln design and build, we fired the kiln for the first time in August,
Potters 29
Emerging Only Clay
Sheffield October December 202220
Simple,here”.
Potters 29 Pottery West profile October December 2022
functional forms, rich glazes with lots of tonal variation, natural and calm aesthetic are the hallmark of their work . This underlines the high regard the work is held in with some very prestigious retail shops selling the work ranging from London, the USA to Paris.
Made Sheffieldin A profile of Pottery West
21Emerging
There must be something in the environment which makes Sheffield a destination for ceramic makers and buyers. One of the most exciting and important studios making hand thrown production domestic ware is Pottery West, run by Catherine and Matt West.
Catherine explains, “Our business was officially established in 2015, but we've been making ceramics a couple of years longer than that. It wasn't until 2016 (for Matt) and 2018 (for Catherine) that we have been full time here. We work from Sheffield simply because this is where we live, and we love it
Running a business and having a private life has been a challenge. It is something that never seems to part of a degree course at university let alone how to run a business. Survival is for the most dedicated as well as Matttalented.commented,
“When our first son was born. We decided to prioritise the pottery. It was daunting because for a few years our income was much smaller than we had been used to, but we took a risk, made a plan and it worked. I should say it isn't always easy.
They have lots of plans that seem to continually evolve. The aim is to keep to a percentage split between wholesale and direct sales which they set at the beginning of each financial year. At the moment they're trying to establish a few pre order and special edition projects, including BATCH and also dinne rware sets.
Catherine commented, “I know we have extremely faithful customers and clients and our earliest purchasers are still following along and buying our pots today. I would say that we have a greater proportion of overseas clients now, especially in the US”.
Just as their studios have changed over the years to adapt to an expanding business then so have their clients.
22 Emerging Potters 29 Pottery West profile October December 2022
They have always been part of the Yorkshire Artspace a pioneering development making studios available across the city to some 160 makers and started in 1977. Even though they have moved studios many times! They're now in a dream studio, just about big enough for us but it's beautiful, functional and we're part of a really special community of artists and makers.
Emerging Potters 29 Pottery West profile October December 2022
Ceramics is no different. Until recently they haven't had a lot of time to experiment because they've been prioritising large wholesale orders, and having a young family. However this year they've changed things a little and have developed BATCH it's their first pre order collection club and it's like a test bed of experimentation for them where they design and sell experimental collections.
And the future. Matt commented, “It isn't always about making money, because for us the most important thing is to be making pots that we love, we think are good pieces of craftsmanship and that will last a long time. It’s evident to me that despite the power and onus on social media, good old fashioned in person shows is the place where long term relationships are more naturally formed”. Surely, wise words for those aiming to join the profession in the future?
Contact details: Catherine and Matt West, Persistence Works, 21 Brown Street, Sheffield S1 2BS info@potterywest.co.uk
The cost of living crisis is the major concern at the moment. They haven't yet raised prices, but feel that they may have to soon. Throughout their business life they have we've always strived to be able to make affordable functional ware, only more recently experimenting with pieces that are more expensive. Covid has brought about an even greater demand for online sales, and a struggle to meet demand.
It's very important to the business how they communicate with clients and potential new ones, often new audiences. Social media is central to their success. Although it has been a little more labour intensive and time consuming as the business has grown. Instagram in particular has probably singlehandedly enabled them to make a living from making pots in the first place, but now they have a good mailing list and other methods of social media too.
Emerging Potters 29 Pottery West profile October - December 202224
A common challenge for any industry is the need to experiment and develop products ranges.
Swapping Brighton for Portland, Oregon, might seem a bit extreme, but when Jo had the opportunity to join her partner there, she jumped at it. This is her story
SodaDiscoveringFiring
I started out in evening classes at Morley College in London, and then joined the community studio Turning Earth. Since then, along with practice in my studio in Brighton, I do the odd weekend course and learnt glaze chemistry from Ceramic Materials Workshop, online trying to get variable glaze effects in an electric kiln.
When my partner moved out to Portland, Oregon for a job last year, I joined him for six months to see what ceramics opportunities there might be. I'm a part time potter Min Ceramic by Jo (@MinCeramic), working with clay since 2010.
Emerging Potters 29 Discovering Soda Firing October December 2022 25
I signed up to a community studio in Portland, and met Sam (@SuayCeramics) running a soda firing course. I'd never done soda firing before, but jumped at the chance to try. I joined him and a few potter friends in four soda firings in their handmade gas kiln, as well as a visit to a community kiln space called East Creek.
The firing gang at East Creek in May 2022. Below: Kiln opening day
A rainbow mug from the wood soda firing, May 2022.
Jo Minnitt travelled to the forests of Oregon to have a go at wood-soda firing
….
I arrived on the Friday, meeting 30 potters all ready t o help with the firing.
Jo stoking the kiln.
Pots awaiting loading.
The older potters showed me how to listen to the kiln to know when and how to stoke, and to watch the smoke to make sure each stoke didn't reduce the oxygen in the kiln too much.
This basically acts as a glaze, like wood ash in a solely wood fired kiln, floating over the pots with the movement of the flame. The soda reacts with the glazes on the piece, and makes really directional glaze effects - often only one side it hit by the flame, and goes beautifully glossy with a glaze crackle. At East Creek they have an anagama, a wood soda and gas soda kilns. I've always wanted to try reduction firings, as I make quite a traditional teacup form and love when I can contrast it with a dynamic and surprising glaze.
East Creek is two hours south of Portland, and has many kilns built by local potters, with a history of firing kilns as a group for over 40 years. It's such a friendly and welcoming space, and I signed up to take part in a wood soda firing where the kiln is fired with local wood (it's deep in the forest!) and we add bicarbonate of soda at the top temperature of the firing.
The kiln took 14 hours to load, and I bricked up the kiln at 2am ready for a preheat overnight. The wood fire started at 6am on Saturday, and from then on needed careful stoking every 5 10 minutes for the next two days. We monitored the temperature using a pyrometer as well as cones small pyramids of clay which melt and bend at certain temperatures. This told us what the temperature was across the whole of the kiln - it was a large space with probably 800 pots. I met some incredible potters, all passionate about what they were doing and very talented many were full time potters with exhibitions across the country or supplying restaurants.
Jo in her studio in Brighton
My weekend at East Creek was by far my favourite pottery weekend ever, but boy it was intense!
Emerging Potters 29 Discovering Soda Firing October - December 202226
Now(@maya.elin.1).thatI'mback
27Emerging Potters 29 Discovering Soda Firing October - December 2022
Preparing the soda on wooden boards.
nice hot kiln to vaporise the soda and get it travelling and melting through the kiln. We got the final cone 12 (c. 1300°c) down at the front at about 3pm on Sunday, when we left the fire to burn out. The following weekend was a buzz of excitement; the kiln opening. We all stood in a row, passing each pot from the kiln down the chain to the table everyone got to hold and admire everyone's work. It was a very successful firing, and I was so happy to see my normal teacup forms with some very dramatic soda glazes, thanks to Maya
in Brighton, I'm applying to various exhibitions to try and get the unusual mugs displayed before selling them. I'm planning on doing more reduction firings in future, too converting an old electric kiln into a gas one and hopefully getting involved in some wood firings across the UK. If anyone would like some help with a wood firing, please do let me @MinCeramicknow!
Stoking in 6 hour shifts, we monitored the cones and started adding soda in the early hours of Sunday morning, when the temperature was about 1200°c. We had to be careful, as the mixture of soda and water can easily bring down the Wetemperature.wanteda
Below: A blue rutile mug from the wood soda firing, May 22 nd 2022
Alan Parris from Aylesford Pottery explains…
Thisovercome.brought us to a unique challenge at Aylesford Pottery in Kent. Local archaeologists approached the pottery to help simulate how thrown pots were made prior to the use of electric wheels and the self regulating ‘kick wheel’. A time which we now call the ‘Medieval’ or Dark Ages period.
28
Now there is a new branch of the science which is ‘re construction’ archaeology. A highly skilled potter puts into practice the theories of the academic, in how something was actually made in practice, examining all the problems to be
Television has demonstrated the skills of the archaeologist in being able to identify from a small clay sherd the date an object was made, where in the country it was manufactured, the type of clay used, and how the complete object may have looked when new.
Emerging Potters 29 October - December 2022
The archaeologists were working on site on private land in Southern England and had come across the remains of a Priory which had links to Aylesford Priory in Kent, and would have looked similar. The identity of this site is kept a secret to protect it from illegal treasure hunters.
Potters Archaeologiandsts
The Aylesford Pottery is in the grounds of Aylesford Priory, just outside Maidstone in Kent. It is open each day from 10am to 5pm. www.aylesfordpottery.co.uk
The process of actually throwing the pot was not easy, and credit should be paid to those potters involved in the past. Next came the drying and firing of the clay, eventually leading to the glazing. The archaeologists constructed a kiln built into the ground for the firings as seen below.
The process of making the experimental pots were as follows. Firstly find your clay. Fortunately the river Medway is close by, so it is a reasonable assumption that it was dug from the riverbank. We can see that the fragments of original pot were not coiled in their construction, so they must have been thrown on some sort of wheel”. The one thing they did have was the invention of wagon wheels for transport. But can one be used to throw clay into a usable shape. After some trial and error the wheel and stand was constructed and the power to make it spin was provided by an assistant.
Emerging Potters – 29 Potters and Archaeologists October - December 2022 29
30 October - December 2022 Book Review Emerging Potters 29 Wild Clay ClayWild ceramicsCreating and glazes from natural and resourcesfound
By Matt Levy, Takuro Shibata and
HardbackShibataHitomi176 pp £30 plus 20% discount for readers of this https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/wildmagazine-clay-9781789940923/ 978178994092327 Herbert Press Published 27th October 2022
Matt Levy has a strong connection to the geology around him, which is a constant driving force in his practice. He lives in St. Paul, Minnesota, sourcing local clay from Lake Superior and the Mississippi River Basin.
Takuro Shibata is a Japanese ceramic artist. In 2005 he accepted the position of director at STARworks Ceramics, moving to Seagrove North Caroline, with his wife.
Discovery the beauty of clay dug in your area
About the authors:
Hitomi Shibata is a Japanese ceramic artist. She studied Fine Art & Craft at Okayama University before working as a potter and then moving to the USA to study ceramics. She later set up a permanent pottery in Seagrove, where she and her husband build wood kilns.
The publisher is offering a 20% discount for readers of Emerging Potters magazine and Aylesford Pottery students. clayhttps://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/wild319781789940923/
Emerging Potters 29 Wild Clay October December 2022
Potters from all over the world are taking to their local landscape to dig their own wild clay, to discover its unique properties, and to apply it to their craft. This new book draws on the authors’ tips from their own experience in the US and Japan (applicable to clay anywhere) to find a material’s best use. A particular clay might be best suited to sculpture and tile bodies, throwing clay bodies, handbuilding and slab bodies, or simply be applied as a glaze or slip. The specific properties of found materials can create a diverse range of effects and Stunningsurfaces.photographs and technical descriptions explain the formation of various clays; how to locate, collect and assess them; how to test their properties of shrinkage, water absorption, texture and plasticity; the best ways to test-fire them; and how to adapt a clay’s characteristics by blending appropriate materials. There is helpful advice through every stage, from prospecting in the field through to the finished product, accompanied by a gallery of work by international potters who have embraced their local clays.
Julian Stair Friday 14th October at 6.30pm
The Kiln RailwayDevelopmentProfessionalRoomsTalksArch198,BellendenRoad
(rear of 85 Bellenden Rd), London. SE15 4QJ
Verity Howard Friday 6th January at 6.30pm
She is a ceramicist from Wigan, Lancashire, known internationally for her sculptural ceramics which act as photographs, capturing ‘frozen moments’ in time. With a focus on clay’s immediate, pliable qualities. She works with both Parian porcelain and, separately, in heavily grogged stoneware. Her work subverts historic connotations of delicacy and fragility by sculpting solid forms, which are presented in a way that emphasises their interaction with light.
Talks and demonstrations from invited guests covering all aspects of professional practice. Every 5 6 weeks in the studio. Free for members / £5 for those on Kiln Room classes and London Potters members / £10 for non members. Usually finish arou nd 8pm, at which point guests head to a local pub. No need to book, just come along on the www.thekilnrooms.comnight!
A ceramic artist creating works that explore mystery, trigger memories, generate atmosphere and evoke a sense of place. Inspiration from the landscape, history and culture surrounding her in rural Herefordshire. Verity creates sculptural, slab built, ceramic forms and uses clay as a medium for drawing and monoprinting. Her work has been praised nationally and internationally, winning numerous awards including the Guldagergaard Network Award, 2015, selected for Craft Council’s ‘Hothouse’ in 2017 and featuring as one of Ceramic Monthly’s Emerging Artists in 2022.
Rachel Grimshaw Friday 4th November at 6.30pm
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Emerging Potters 29 October - December 2022
An internationally exhibited artist, potter and historian showing in 30 public collections since the 1980’s. Since studying at Camberwell College of Art and the Royal College of Art, he has developed a practice which is interested in the place of pottery in contemporary culture and in the idea of function rather than the concepts of abstraction and emptiness, echoing the minimalism of the 1960’s.
E: paulbailey123@googlemail.com
Emerging Potters magazine is published quarterly and can be found on the ISSUU platform.
