"Through the outsourcing and mechanisation of labour and the outsourcing of materials, we have steadily become distanced from the objects that surround us, the processes involved in their making and the materials they are made from.
We potters tend to think of ourselves as having a heightened understanding of material and process, but in truth it is rare that we consider where our raw powders come from – how they are extracted, who extracts them and what immediate environmental impact their extraction might have. Through technical experimentation with locally sourced clays, shells and ashes, I have begun to build a portfolio of natural, abundant materials which will aid me in taking greater responsibility for my own environmental and ethical impact, granting greater agency over my practice.
I hope to use this portfolio to achieve beautiful, functional surfaces which resonate with their natural origins and which will adorn every-day objects to be cherished by their user. I see my practice almost as an act of resistance, crafting functional wares which offer an alternative to those mass produced, consumed and then discarded so readily."
Having become acquainted with ceramics during a Foundation Diploma at the Bristol School of Art and subsequently developing that material relationship through a voluntary role with local practitioners, I landed on the Ceramics BA Hons course at Cardiff School of Art and Design in 2018. During my time Cardiff I focused on the production of reduction fired stoneware, the development of glaze from self-sourced materials and the interrogation of what constitutes "sustainable" practice - where do our conceptions of what is and what is not sustainable come from? Increasingly over the last couple of years I have become drawn to wood-firing; it is an involved process which grants greater agency to the maker, and the opportunity for independently sourcing fuel makes it the next obvious step in my pursuit for self-sufficiency. I hope that post graduation I can continue the material research I have begun and delve deeper into the nuances of wood firing.
