Summer Shows 2014

June and July have been an exciting time for me with my current range of textured vessel forms and brand new oxidised plinths! So far, the weather has been on its best behaviour and I've had a fantastic time meeting lots of people, catching up with potter friends over a beer or two and a BBQ around the campsite; and the all important buyers, of course.

My first show of the summer was “Earth and Fire” at Rufford Abbey and, if you haven't been, it's a fantastic location set in the grounds of the beautiful Rufford Abbey ruins. It's a lovely event that is now in its twentieth year and always attracts amazing potters and sculptors from the UK and abroad. Visitor numbers were fantastic, helped by scorching weather. My new work was well received with lots of admiring glances for my new oxidised plinths not just by the public, but the potters. I reckon that next year there will be a sea of rusty plinths at the ceramics shows! You saw it here first!

The beginning of July saw me back on the road with my van fully laden on my way to “Art in Clay” at the stunning Hatfield House. This is a huge event with over 200 ceramic artists exhibiting in vast Marquees. Andy and Di McInnes, the organisers, put on a great show and I don't know how they manage to choose from the many applicants from around the world. This was my fifth time showing here and, once again, I met some lovely people and enjoyed a positive response to my latest work. I have even been invited to carry out workshops in Australia and Israel later on this year, which will be an amazing opportunity for me. It will extend my experience of teaching short courses from The Sculpture Lounge Studios. I am enjoying displaying my work on different platforms: I particularly like the contrast of vessels on the rusty plinths, wooden blocks and traditional bespoke hollow plinths, which have been commissioned for these summer shows.

The next exhibition, and the biggest event for me, is Art in Action in Oxford. It starts this Thursday 17^th July. I am thrilled to have been selected once again to be one of the main demonstrators in the Ceramics Marquee and I've also been moved to the middle of the Marquee in a prime spot. It will actually be the first time my work has been shown where people can walk around viewing and touching the pieces from every angle. You really are on a grand stage and you have to be prepared to demonstrate and talk all day, which is very tiring but really rewarding.

It really is a lovely event with the best makers selected from around the world. Every year they have a show called "Best of the Best" and in my first year there I won an award for my entry which was amazing. I'm particularly pleased with my submission this year so I’m hoping for good feedback again from the other artists and public. If anyone would like to speak to me about my work, I'll look forward to seeing you there:

http://www.artinaction.org.uk/