Richard Wilson 8th April 2020

Wednesday 8th April 2020, 7:45pm at Polehampton Junior School

Richard Wilson (8th April 2020)

 

 

Richard Wilson was born and brought up in Norwich, and has been making pots since the early 1970s. After studying for two years at Great Yarmouth College of Art, he worked from 1974 to 1980 at Le Dieu Pottery in Norwich before spending 3 years in Australia and New Zealand, and a further five in Germany, working with many potters using different techniques, in particular woodfired saltglazes.
Whilst in Germany, Richard spent some time with potters whose work drew from Eastern European designs, and has himself been especially inspired by Hungarian and Romanian slipware from the 1800s. He has also been strongly influenced by the Cardew tradition of English country pottery, having spent some months working at Wenford Bridge in the 1980s, learning about the strengths and subtleties of Cardew’s work.
Recently his work has explored colour and abstract patterns in strong forms that capture the ebb and flow of the sea and the landscape of South West Dorset.
As a member of several pottery associations including Professional Member of the Craft Potters Association and ex chairman of the West Country Potters Association, he has been selected over the years for many ceramic fairs here in England and in Europe.
Richard’s work is sold in many galleries in the UK from Scotland to Cornwall and also the Caribbean.

Rachel Wood 14th October 2020

Wednesday 14th October 2020, 7:45pm at Polehampton Junior School

Rachel Wood (14 Oct 2020)

 

 

 

The marks of making and assembling reflect the journey of exploration and learning in each piece, just as a wrinkle or dimple depicts expression and character in a human face.

The colour, texture and energy of her forms are a metaphor for how she interprets the landscape and world around her.

The impulsive desire we all have to want to touch, and the inherent emotional need to be touched, underpin the technical, creative and emotional foundations of her work.

Rachel’s personal intuitive touch is an integral trait in all her work – a dent in the soft clay, a tear, rip, and a finger or handprint in the glaze. She also plays with the rhythm and movement of clay on a wheel to reveal fresh and spontaneous surfaces.

Potters’ day 30th January 2021 Phil Rogers and Hajeong Lee

Potters’ day 30th January 2021

Phil Rogers and Hajeong Lee

Phil Rogers was born in Newport, S. Wales in 1951. He attended Newport and Swansea Colleges of Art and then, after graduating, spent almost 5 years as a teacher of art and pottery in secondary schools. In 1977 he moved to Rhayader in Mid Wales and opened his first workshop.
In 1984 a move to Lower Cefnfaes, a fifteenth century farmhouse and buildings, about ½ mile outside Rhayader gave him the space he needed to expand the pottery and to build a variety of large kilns.
A past Chair and council member of the Craft Potters Association Phil has served as a trustee on the Adopt a Potter Foundation and the Craft Potters Charitable Trust. Currently he is working with the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge cataloguing and annotating the recently bequeathed Dr John Shakeshaft collection.
Phil Rogers has written respected books on ash glazes, throwing techniques and salt glazing. He has conducted workshops and lectured all over the world most notably in South Korea, Canada, S. Africa and the USA. In 1992 and 1995 he worked for Project Ploughshare to create a pottery for women in Ethiopia. Phil’s work is held in the permanent collections of more than 50 museums worldwide including, amongst others, the Victoria and Albert, The National Museum of Wales, The Museum of Ceramic Art in Mashiko and the Boston Museum of Fine Art.

Hajeong Lee

I grew up in a suburb of Seoul the South Korean capital. As far back as I can remember I had an abiding interest in all kinds of art. In 1995 I began my studies at Sungshin Women’s University in Seoul to study craft in the broadest sense but I quickly became attached to the ceramics department. I graduated with a BA in 2001 and went on to study for my MA which I completed in 2003. Later I became a teaching assistant at the same university and subsequently a lecturer.
While in Korea I won a number of competitions for my ceramic sculpture which, at that time, was very large scale. Amongst my successes in competitions I won the National Award for Craft Art in 2005 for a very large ceramic sculpture almost the same size as a small car. Along with the honour of winning came a prize of £10,000.
In 2011 I moved to the UK to be with my husband Phil Rogers and we now live in Rhayader, Mid Wales where I make as much as I can while looking after my 6 year old son Ethan. I am now in my new studio full time now that Ethan is at school.

Phil Rogers

Presently, I am making tableware which is a fusion of traditional Korean techniques using inlaid white slip and a dark clay and the patterns are influenced by those of William Morris. The technique is complicated. I made a very large, flat master mould by carving the surface of a plaster slab 3 ft x 2 ft from which I can make plate moulds by selecting certain areas of the carved surface. Once the plate is formed it carries the imprint of the carving. I then inlay white slip to fill the hollows and then, when dry, I scrape back the white slip to reveal the crisp and clear pattern underneath. It is both time consuming and makes my back ache!

My pots are fired in any of our three kilns but I prefer to have them in the wood kiln whenever possible. I love the idea of my pots being used everyday unlike a sculpture which is entirely decorative or made to convey a message…I feel that by using my pots they become a familiar and comforting feature of a persons life.
I hope you like my work and do please call by if you are in Mid Wales……
My work is included in the following public collections:
The Reeves Collection at Washington & Lee University. Lexington, VA. USA
The Ken Stradling Collection. Bristol, UK
Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, UK.

Website: http://www.philrogerspottery.com/profile/

 

Jacqui Ramrayka March 2021

I am a ceramicist with a love of the vessel in its many forms- the idea of containment fascinates and continually challenges me. Although I began my ceramics journey as a hand builder, I found throwing on the wheel suited my exploration better. I trained at Harrow, on the renowned ceramics course, graduating in 1994 with a BA(Hons) Ceramics. After completing my degree, I founded the ceramics studio Archway Ceramics, along with a group of fellow graduates. I combined working there with teaching until I had my family. Following a stint at Kingsgate Workshops, I now work from my studio at home.

My current work is mainly thrown, however hand built projects are an ongoing interest. I continue to focus on the vessel form, working in series and making one-off pieces. I find my inspiration in natural and urban landscapes, as well as the seemingly random and mundane – pebbles on a beach, rusty metal tools, peeling layers of paint, found objects that suggest a fragment of a story- and it’s also these things which inform my colour palette.

Work

I work primarily with porcelain as, despite its tricky nature, it has the right qualities for the finishes I want to achieve and explore.

The surfaces of my vessels are important to me, I use them as a way to express a narrative and achieve a patina of depth and variety. The vessels are layered with oxides and glazes, brushed and dipped, and often multi-fired. They are used as a canvas to investigate the myriad combinations of texture and colour.

This unpredictability ensures each piece is unique.

Website: https://www.jacquiramrayka.com