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I love exploring all the possibilities clay has to offer
After gaining qualifications in the sciences I satisfied my ambition to try pottery and became 'hooked for life'.
I take inspiration from my environment: from big skies to the reflections of venetian blinds.
I am particularly drawn to using shape and texture to convey movement -be it the movement in big Lincolnshire skies, the plants growing on our smallholding or dancing figures- they all fire my imagination.
I draw and paint my initial idea on paper and then experiment and abstract the image until I find a design that suits the particular ceramic. I make my pottery in the maiolica tradition where I apply colour by brushstroke on to the unfired tin glaze. I both throw on the wheel & handbuild using rolled slabs of clay.
I have been making my own pottery for about 20 years. I use a red earthenware clay to throw the pots on my potter's wheel. I like to turn pots because visually this 'lifts' the pot. Turning is the process by which clay is pared from the base of the upturned pot as it rotates slowly on the wheel. This is generally done the day after the pot is thrown because the clay has to harden slightly - the term used to describe the clay in this state is 'leather hard'. Once the clay of the pot is dried (known as greenware) I fire it in my kiln to about 1000C; this stage is known as the 'biscuit' firing. This firing makes the pot strong but very porous which means that when I then dip it into glaze, the water in the glaze is sucked into the clay and holds the glaze on the surface of the pot. I use a tin glaze which I allow to harden for a day or two before applying the colour by brush to the unfired glaze surface. I then fire the pot again in the kiln. This time I take the temperature to 1110C -this effectively melts the glaze (glass-like) on to the surface of the clay-providing a surface that is both functional and decorative.
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