James Hake - makes beautiful pots. He was inspired by a visit to an exhibition of Japanese potters such as Shoji Hamada and his British counterpart, Bernard Leach. This was his first encounter with Japanese ceramics. English potter, Edward Hughes was an exhibitor and his work struck a chord with Hake. Hughes had spent much of his early career in Japan. He had a workshop outside Kyoto and was very successful there, before returning to England in the mid 1980s to set up his studio in Cumbria.
Hake speaks of his emotional connection to Hughes' pots. He is fascinated by Hughes' technical mastery and risk-taking nature of his glazing. Hughes applied glazes thickly and fired to high temperatures to create beautiful surfaces.
Respecting another maker is knowing that you can't work exactly like them and their influence must push you in another direction. Where Hughes' forms were slabbed, Hake throws and then alters his pots. I like the idea of one man being inspired by the Japanese potters and in turn, inspiring younger makers.
Kate Malone - I love natural forms, I love to plant them and watch them grow. Kate Malone's project at Waddlesdon Manor was epic. She immersed herself in the history of the house, grounds and occupants, making jugs for the cooks, pipes for the plumbers and vegetables for the gardeners. Her series of pumpkins and gourds are a triumph. The forms are beautiful, the glazes exciting and adventurous and I find them thoroughly satisfying.
Whilst I don't enjoy all of Kate Malone's work, I admire the way in which she passes on knowledge and experience to the next generation of ceramic artists through a long-standing apprenticeship scheme.
Charlie Collier - He is an honest potter who served his apprenticeship making terracotta garden ware and maintains that there is no substitute for throwing thousands of pots. He makes domestic ware, 'Pots to be used, everyday objects that enhance some of our daily rituals.' (Collier) He wants to uphold the standard of traditional hand-making skills that exist in the few remaining production potteries through hands-on apprenticeship.
I love to see young people like Charlie passing on these traditional skills and helping to grow the skill base of the potter's craft in this country.
James Hake Kate Malone Charlie Collier
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