Artist's Statement

Andrew was born and brought up in the coastal Northwest of England but has now lived in Warwickshire for over seven years.
It was during his scientific career, researching his PhD in mammalian genetics and chromosomal biology at Cambridge University, that he discovered ceramics and began a long fascination with the art form, both making and collecting.

In January 2004, he took a six month sabbatical to focus on his ceramics and to facilitate his move from amateur potter to a professional exhibiting artist. With financial support from the Arts Council England, and mentorship from the internationally renowned ceramicist Peter Beard, his technical skills at the potter's wheel and with glaze chemistry developed rapidly resulting in a strong portfolio.

His work consists of volcanic glazes applied over thrown stoneware vessels fired under oxidising conditions. The degree of the surface reaction is closely controlled and used to accentuate both form and hue. Some vessels exhibit muted reactions which work with the subtle tones of the colouring oxides, whilst the bolder coloured pots often have exaggerated textures.

"The Scottish sandstone, granites and slate are a beautiful and intriguing surface teeming with wildlife. With my development of the volcanic glaze textures being applied to both thrown vessels and hand-built landscape forms, the Cumbrian and Caithness coasts have now overtly manifested themselves in my work".

The need to work with texture and subtle colours originated early in Andrew's youth with a fascination of all things biological; the yellow, sage and black lichens growing on the tidal glacial rock of South Lakeland, where he grew up, have always excited him, as do the silver white and sage mosses on dry stone walls which can enliven a static and "dead" man-made structure. As a consequence of paddling in rock pools and scrambling up cliffs, he has been drawn to the variety and feeling of the rocks themselves. Major influences have been the slanting slate beds of Caithness; the coloured soft sandstone of both Petra and the Jordanian deserts; the basalt hexagonal stones in the Giant's Causeway to name but a few.

The clay medium serves two functions to Andrew; firstly to define and express visual form, and secondly to function as a canvas for decorative expression. Marrying both produces a successful piece of visual art. This is not to forget the inherent making process however; the hands-on transformation of raw clay to finished vessel, through all its intermediate stages, enthrals him and is a deeply personal process, combining his technical skills with his influences.

Since turning professional, Andrew's ceramics have evolved dramatically into mature and strong work and, significantly, uniquely distinctive. The intimate relationship between vessel surface texture, form and proportionality will continue to be developed as his career continues.

Current Work

Textural glazed stoneware vessels which are fired in oxidizing electric kilns.

The work is both thrown and handbuilt, with surface modification frequently taking place on the clay surface prior to reactive slip and glaze application.

The glazes are designed for texture and both volcanic and controlled crawling glazes are used with a combination of colouring oxides. Due to the nature of the glazed surface, not all of the work is suitable for function, thus emphasising the presentation as visual sculptural art.

Stocked on an ongoing basis at:
The Roger Billcliffe Gallery, Glasgow 
Gallery at Bevere, Worcester
Waters and Acland, Staveley, Kendal
Katherine House Gallery, Marlborough
SDC Gallery, Shoreditch, London

Awards

May 2006 - Awarded a grant from Arts Council England, West Midlands, for "Grants for the Arts - Individuals". Project entitled "Enhancement of Marketing Strategy and Artistic Portfolio".

May 2004 - Awarded a grant from Arts Council England, West Midlands, for "Arts for Individuals" to permit a dedicated research and development period.

Publications

Ceramic Art and Perception: issue 65;pp88-90 (September 2006). Artist profile and review by Craig Ashley.

Ceramic Review: issue 213;p56 (May/June 2005) – “Spotlight” at the Art Gallery & Museum, The Royal Pump Rooms, Royal Leamington Spa. Exhibition reviewed by Emma Crichton-Miller.

Exhibitions

2010 Exhibitions To Date
- 5th – 27th June 2010 – Summer show at The Gallery at Bevere, Bevere, Worcester, UK.

2009 Exhibitions To Date
- 2nd February – 31 July – “Art@Warwick”, IBM UK Ltd Corporate show, Warwick, UK
- 12th March – 9th May – “Melody”, Group show at “SDC Gallery”, Shoreditch, London, UK
- 21st – 24th May - Selected to exhibit at the 2009 Dießen Ceramic Market, Dießen, Bavaria, Germany
- 23rd May – 13th June – West Fest Exhibition, Stranraer Museum, Scotland, UK
- 26th – 28th June - Selected to exhibit at “Earth and Fire”, Rufford Country Park, Nottinghamshire, UK.
- 1st – 2nd August – Selected to exhibit at “Internationale Keramiktage”, Oldenburg, Germany
- 21st – 22nd November - Selected to exhibit at the 13th Southern Pottery & Ceramics Show, The Maltings, Farnham, Surry, UK.

Previous Exhibitions
Galleries: Beaux Arts; The Gallery at Bevere;  Wine Street Gallery; Gallery 23; Milyard Gallery; at The Gallery Upstairs; Roundhouse Gallery; The Burrows Gallery; "Where I Fell In Love Gallery"; Art@IBM Warwick; Old Courthouse Gallery; Arts Creative; Red Barn Gallery; Art Gallery & Museum, Leamington Spa Royal Pump Rooms; Gallery H;

Ceramic Shows: 9th, 10th & 12th Southern Pottery & Ceramics Show; 2006, 2007 & 2008 Dießen Ceramic Market, Dießen, Bavaria, Germany; 11th, 12th, 13th & 14th  Art in Clay Ceramics Show; 2006 & 2008 Craft Potters Association Show, Oxford; 2006 & 2007 Potfest In the Park; 2004 & 2006 Orton Cone Box Show.