The exhibition will include pots which I create on the wheel here in my home studio (a considerable body of work built up during all the lockdowns) along with the skilful botanical drawings done by co-exhibitor, Dianne Frank. All of my pieces are made using stoneware clay which is fired to quite a high temperature and is wonderfully robust. It is ideal for functional pieces but also lends itself to the rather muted palate that I prefer. You can see a video of a previous Artweeks exhibition here at 10 Hayward Road by clicking on the link above. It features my pottery, Dianne's botanical drawings and jewellery made by Jane Hainsworth who will be exhibiting from her home next door at 12 Hayward Road
I began doing pottery after taking early retirement from a rewarding career in teaching. It has become quite an avocation with me and I have recently opened up an Etsy shop https://TamsPots.etsy.com My work is often inspired by vessels I have seen, some of them quite ancient ones in museums. Other shapes emerge in a more spontaneous interaction between wheel, hands and clay. People often comment on the quietness and “Japanese feel” of my work—something which perhaps comes from growing up in northern California next to the sea.
I am a member of the Oxfordshire Craft Guild. My work has been shown in various galleries including the Wiseman Gallery, Oxford; Bell Fine Art, Winchester; SOTA Gallery, Witney; and Junction Art, Woodstock. Visitors are always welcome at my home studio at 10 Hayward Road in Oxford.