“I work with white stoneware clays fired to 1260* C, to produce strong, resilient pieces. This is due to a desire to create something that will last, something that I can leave behind in the world. This media dictates a range of colours and finishes that are possible, so earthy tones are that are common in nature frequently occur in my work.Use of clay to build large forms also leads to solid structures which have authority within the space they occupy. They do not merely exist, they create an atmosphere of life and energy, and the space is enhanced by the attention they draw to it. The method of hand building gives more freedom in creating shapes, jugs can become sculpture. The border between the two is crossed only when the completed glazed jug is viewed by different eyes, when the details, decorations and glazes are observed as the art and the vessel as the canvas upon which they are described. By contrasts and layers I am showing pots from different perspectives. I would like to bring them to life. Show movement, transformation, emotions – life. Crystalline glazes contribute to this effect because they show the same kind of captured movement as a photograph. Because crystalline glaze is very “runny” in the top temperature it needs to be caught, cooled rapidly, then soaked to encourage the unpredictable growth of the crystals.The glazes are so new, unusual, surprising and yet unexplored that many potters working with them, apply them to straight, smooth, simple porcelain shapes to best show off the beautiful crystals of various shapes and colours. I decided to take a different route, to use crystalline glazes contrasted with conventional high-temperature glaze and with different textures. I use them to enhance my art, whereas because of their unique beauty, others view crystalline glazes as an art form in and of themselves. To me a jug is not static, it is alive. I want to challenge people’s preconceived ideas about what a jug, a pot, a vase, is. These vessels are not limited by size, shape, functionality, they are not still and inanimate, they are made from the earth and grow from it.”
