From 4th–12th May, I will be exhibiting my work in my home, studio and garden at Venue 121 in Eynsham, just a short walk from the centre of the village. Whilst there is no parking down Tanners Lane, there is plenty on the streets nearby, all within the Eynsham Art Trail. Most places on the Trail are within walking distance, so grab a map from the first artist you visit and then enjoy the others. It is great to meet artists in their natural habitat where they live and create.
My venue is just perfect for showcasing my work, and a wonderful place to be. You can take your time to enjoy the refreshments I will serve, come inside to see my work and relax outside amongst pieces I make specifically for the garden. Be sure to give attention to Squeakles, my cat (very friendly, unless you are accompanied by a dog), who assumes that all visitors are there to see her.
The Chicken Run Studio will be open, too. The chickens, who are my constant companions when I am working, will be safely enclosed in their run, so that the gate can be open for you to meander through to the studio without them getting under your feet. There will be opportunities for you to observe how I make and work the pottery. Certainly, I will be able to talk through some of the projects I have underway, including my raku work.
If you would like to see my work again or if you missed these early dates in May, I will be exhibiting a second time from 18th–27th May in North Moreton. This South Oxfordshire venue is in a 13th-century church that has the oldest stained glass in the country. I will be exhibiting with a number of artists showing paintings, prints, silver jewellery, woodwork and ceramics; see details at Venue 439. Again, there will be tempting refreshments throughout.
I work predominantly with stoneware clay, which will take the heat of the oven, the cold of the fridge and any extreme weather outside. I love throwing large open forms and using glazing that contrasts with a sometimes textured clay body. My work is influenced by my native New Zealand bush and the wild lands of England. Having recently returned from my homeland and a visit to the Cook Islands, I have exciting plans afoot for new pieces.
My work includes:
- Wheel-thrown homeware: bowls, plates and mugs with different characteristics: painted animals or birds, quirky ‘lips’ or ‘hand’-les.
- Hand-built homeware: bowls and platters of whole imprinted leaves with decorative coils, or little creatures, like a mouse or snail; coiled bowls in different designs; spoons; coasters; decorations.
I strongly believe that any functional pottery must be a thing of beauty that you can leave out on display and have ready to hand for daily use. I want it to be tactile, and so I take care with my glazing and surface features.
- Sculpture: animals and birds, both true-to-life or quirky, which come alive with a flick of an ear or a tilt of a head.
- Raku: beautiful bowls. I love the organic nature of this pottery firing method, which is so instantaneous. It is pure chemistry in action with the fluxing glaze and the reduction of oxygen.
I have been able to dig West Oxfordshire clay and use it for my raku. It echoes the past, as I clean it and mould it into shape with my hands, as people would have done 2000 years ago. Full of iron oxide, it first turns a rich terracotta-orange in fire and then, under reduction, a deep black. I have discovered it is relatively ‘stable’ to stoneware temperatures and produces a deep crimson clay — something our forebears may not have achieved with their crude kilns and fire pits. I want to further refine it and experiment some more this coming year. Look out for my new exciting pieces emerging during Artweeks.
I am never happier than when I am in my studio making and creating. Come and see for yourself!