Through this blog, I’ll be linking to the ceramics that inspire me. My early inspiration came from NIgerian water pots, beer pots from Zimbabwe, shards of neolithic pottery, Sung and Han dynasty tea bowls….. More recently I have found myself drawn to the work of a few contemporary potters such as John Leach (Muchelney, Somerset), Akiko Hirai (working from the Chocolate Factory workshops in London) and Adam Buick (working in Pembrokeshire), for very different reasons. What I feel they have in common is that their contrasting work explores form, function and process in a way that captures my imagination.

As I return to ceramics after an 8 year gap, there seems to be the potential for a growing rift between those who see themselves as production potters, those who see themselves at the pinnacle of their craft, working as studio potters and those who use ceramics as a vehicle to explore concepts and ideas. I have heard of the “death of the Leachian era” that “had a good run”, and that Ceramic Review is in a state of crisis because of conflicting views on what should be represented through it’s pages.

It makes it an interesting, if challenging time to come back to ceramics.