My passionate affair with fire, clay & mud
For the recent past I have been exploring porcelain and
slip-casting. After many years of working with heavily grogged clay I
find the difficulties presented by porcelain both a challenge and a joy.
I love the creamy consistency when using the material and the resulting
hard fired surface. I started my work in clay in the late Seventies.
seduced by the reduction fired stoneware of that time with its strong
oriental influence. I built a large oil kiln and the excitement of
firing with solid fuel has never left me. I still treasure high fired
porcelain and stoneware yet I am equally drawn to Raku and other
alternative low firing methods such as pit and sawdust which still occupy
much of my time. The firing process is the most exciting part and motivation for my working with clay.
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After the first few years of private tuition I learned from experienced potters by attending their workshops. Much later I decided to get a more formalized education and was granted a B-Tech degree in Ceramic Design by the University of Johannesburg in 2005. These studies forced me to explore industrial mold making and create work within the aesthetics of design. While my B-Tech degree in ceramic
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design has broadened my knowledge of the ceramic discourse and opened many avenues I have returned to making expressive work which suits my intuitive way of creating. I usually arrive at the finished object by playing with several vague images which leads to a crystallization in my thought pattern. Playing and experimenting with the material and techniques are most important to me to evolve my work.
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