Artist's Statement

"...To make an object it requires the intellectual act of design and the physical act of making. The most successful examples of design in handmade ceramics are where the two are executed in harmony with each other. One does not necessarily dictate the other" .

In my work I express the preciousness of food and drink rituals and a long tradition of family gatherings for special occasions, coupled with the simplicity and tactile feel of everyday objects recalling the Mediterranean textures and colours of childhood experiences.

When I work, my subconscious is free to express its contradictory tensions of duty and pleasure, resulting in uniquely fluid, sensuous forms in thrown porcelain. I use the chemistry of multi-coloured layered glazes and very high temperatures to create the exciting individuality of the finished products.

Takeshi Yasuda once said to me: "you cannot decide where you are going until you have made a series of a hundred".

I have taken on the challenge and worked all year on a hundred teapots. Keeping only the medium (1Kg of porcelain) and the colour scheme of my established work as fixed, I have explored their shape and aesthetic.

Almost like characters in a play, slowly the essence of each teapot unravels.  What I am looking for is my own interpretation of balance and character.

For me they are like people. Not so an object, not just a piece of clay or a container, but more quirky and alive. They have a personal expression to them. They take on a life of their own.

Current Work

Functional domestic thrown porcelain.

Work Generally Available:
Nicole Farhi, Fulham, London
The Gallery at Bevere, Worcester
Tanner and Lawson   59 Columbia rd London  www.tannerlawson.com

Technical Information

I use a multiple layer of glazes, crystalline and not and fire to cone 9 in oxidation.

Career Background

1962 Born Genoa, Italy
1981-87 BSc in Pharmaceutical Chemistry from University of Florence
2004-07 BA Hons in Ceramics from University of Westminster

Exhibition History

2012 “Art in Action” Waterperry House, Oxford
2012 National Gallery shop, on sale during the Turner Exhibition
2011 Nicole Farhi, Fulham - commissioned series
2011 “Art in Action” Oxford
2011 Development and production of a collection for Nicole Farhi
2010 (Nov) - 2011 (Jan) “Make” Contemporary Crafts For Christmas Devon Guild of Craftsmen, Bovey Tracy
October 2010 “Handmade in Britain”, Chelsea town hall. The contemporary craft and design fair
2009 “Origin”  week 2  Somerset House London
2009 “Art in Clay” Hatfield
2009 “Culture shock” Royal Birmingham Society of Artists
2009 “Potfest in the Park” Penrith
2009 “Ceramics in the South east” Maidstone
2008 “Stepping out - the graduate show” Gallery at Bevere, Worcester
2008 11th Southern Pottery ceramic show, Farnham
2007 Hidden Art open studios, “Armadillo”, Hackney, London
2007 East Finchley Open Fair, London
2007 Waddesdon Manor Christmas Fair
2007 Oxford ceramic Fair CPA - Associate Members’ stand
2007 “Art in Clay” Hatfield
2007 “New Designers” Business Design Centre, Islington, London
2007 “Earth and Fire” Rufford Arts centre
2007 “Degree show” Harrow campus

Commissions and Projects

2012 Production for line for Designer Image Seoul Korea
2012 New collection for Designer Image Seoul Korea
2011 New collection for Nicole Farhi
2007 80 Pieces for The Ceramics Boutique, East Dulwich, London

Publications

London Potters News letter no.127 Dec -Jan 2008/9 "Making pots for food"