postcard Postcards from the summer, a snapshot of final year ceramics students continued professional practice
postcard This document marks the beginning of the National Centre of Ceramics, Wales, celebration of an exceptional cohort of students as they progress through their final year of study on our ceramics BA programme. The vibrancy of these students has been demonstrated at every turn, these are no ordinary students! A visit to the National Museum Wales turned into assisting with the set up of the Fragile? exhibition – the largest ceramics exhibition ever housed in Wales and students helping Phoebe Cummings construction of ‘Scenes for a Future History of Ornament’. Other students then went on to independently devise and run workshops focusing visitors attention on the ‘Fragile?’ exhibits, trained as tour guides and presented at a Subject Specific Network meeting and the National Fragile? conference. A simple request to host a stall at Careers day at the National Museum, Wales, resulted in blindfolded throwing and participatory arts activities. A visit to St Fagans Museum of Welsh Life led to building pit kilns according to ancient Roman Design and running interdisciplinary workshops with illustration students and story tellers.
An introduction to clay cob building led to an eighteen foot dragon being built at the Green Man festival of music and art and the running of a similar event for the Crafts Council ‘Hey Clay Day’. …and this is barely the tip of the iceberg. Add to this, volunteering at the I nternational Ceramics Festival, Hatfield, New Designers, trips to Jingdehzen, La Pedrix, France, Berlin -‐ and a pattern emerges that evidences what these students are capable of and their hunger to contribute to their chosen field of ceramics. Suffice to say, the Great British Pottery Throw Down was also viewed with similar verve, bringing their community together to watch the episodes projected onto large screens whilst running simultaneous challenges!! …and this is just the beginning. What follows are the students postcards from the summer giving a snapshot of their continued professional practice and providing foundation for their final year. Watch this space to find out more as they research and develop their ideas and drive their potential to a final exhibition of work Cardiff School o f Art and Design: BA (Hons) Ceramics: private view 21st May 2016.
postcard Hello All It was a busy and enjoyable summer. I made the most of every opportunity that came my way!
In July I helped at Art in Clay in Hatfield House it was fantastic to see so many potters in one place. In August I worked in National Museum of Wales facilitating Family Clay Workshops that ran alongside the amazing Fragile? Exhibition. In September I got the chance to visit Jingdehzen. I had a residency in the Sanbao Ceramic Institute which is the workshop and home of Jackson Lee. It was such a thrill to be there, to improve my skills and be able experience Chinese culture! Anne Frost
postcard Hi All! At the beginning of summer, I spent some time volunteering with the National Museum of Wales which included two days of children's workshops in St Fagans, as well as the digging and firing of a wood kiln on site. I also volunteered at children's workshops at the museum linking with the Fragile? exhibition. The workshops were a wonderful experience, it is really fascinating to see new hands working with and being inspired by the material I am so familiar with. I spent the rest of summer reading and researching for my dissertation, and to inform my subject practice ready to start the final year of my BA. Mikky Saunby
postcard Hi Guys! I built a small scale pizza oven with materials from the college as a self initiated project. It was an experiment to explore cob building and prepare for the Craft Council's Hay Clay event: http://www.craftscouncil.org.uk/listings/hey-clay-at-national-centreof-ceramics-studies-wales) Check out this link to the outcome: http://youtu.be/DNS4tzWMtPQ This experimentation took place after i worked for the Fragile? exhibition helping Phoebe Cummings set up her installation. It was very exciting because it allowed me to see and understand the processes of curating and installing work Ellie Cooper
postcard Hello Everyone! This summer I had a busy time! Here are some of the things I did.
1.Volunteering at the Ken Stradling Collection 2.Volunteer for the Crafts Council 'First Decade' https://cloclomonksie.wordpress.com/)
3.Tour Guide at the National Museum of Wales 'Fragile’ Exhibition C Chloe Monks
postcard Hello! Just wanted to let you know what I was up to this summer! Work went well, my theme is the body, the figure and working with others. I am doing a number of open workshops in the community. These are proving very popular! The multiple forms generated in the workshops forge strong links with my work. In the workshops people look creatively at surfaces, coverings and also the ways in which humans cover themselves. This is such an exciting project! Rachel Smith
postcard Chinese ceramics has a profound relationship with my culture. Its long history, the fine quality of porcelain produced and the skillful craftsmanship are highly acclaimed. Moving on to my third year a high standard of graduation work is needed to present, plus my dissertation which is related to Chinese ceramics. So I decided to visit the porcelain capital, Jingdezhen, China, this summer. I would like to take this opportunity to gain in-depth knowledge about ceramicsin China and to search for inspiration. Florence Fung
postcard Hi Guys! During the summer I participated in building a large cob sculpture at the Green Man Festival in Abergavenny.
We built two large dragons, out of white and red clay to depict the legend of the red and white dragon. We laid down straw in the shape of the dragons, then placed stiff cob on top to create the forms. We put softer clay over the top in order to create some detail. It was a great experience; very physical work and we were outside the whole time. It was so rewarding when we saw how much the children enjoyed interacting with the piece, both with stomping the cob and decorating the dragons. It was a fantastic environment to work in, and I would love to do it again.
Jenny Hawthorn
postcard Hi there, During the summer I helped to design, build and fire a simple updraft kiln on the S t. F agan’s national history m useum site for the heritage craft festival. Fired w ith local w ood and built in a trench we dug into the ground in order to insulate the kiln. S ince then I have been carrying out research for a dissertation thesis about where craft gains value-‐ not m onetary, but socially, politically and emotionally. I have been trying to bring this into m y pottery practice by experimenting w ith the ideas I w rite about in the hope this w ill allow m e to push my practice forward. Ross G iles
postcard Hello All This holiday is a long one — the children manage to keep me very busy!! On the upside my summer project went very well and I did loads of research for my dissertation. I'm really pleased and excited about my transfer to Cardiff Met in September! Sian Dixon
postcard Hi G uys, I had an exciting summer! I w as delighted to assist Al Higgns, a potter from Wolverhampton to fire his salt kiln. It is always exciting to see the results from this process! My other work experience includes placements w ith the ceramic artist Claudia Clare in London and w ith Tythegson Pottery in Porthcawl. I also devised and taught ceramics classes at Trinity Methodist Church, Cardiff w hich is a center for asylum seekers and refugees in Cardiff. Isa B ilstein
postcard A mighty Summer of clay began with daily commutes to Julian Stair's Studio to take part in a coloured clay project. Then on to Whytham Woods for four very good days firing an Anagama Kiln - One of my days at the site was spent making up and churning out a mixture of concrete, lime, sand and vermiculite destined to be skilfully layered on top of the brick kiln by Takuma Tak- ikawa, one of the Japanese ceramicists.
Fast forward two weeks and I was in Shanghai on my way to Jingdezhen, a totally different world. I stayed at Sambao Ceramic Village, a retreat set amongst densely wooded hills with suitably wonderful views from the studio. My time in Jingdezhen was split between Sambao's studio and numerous trips into central Jingdezhen. Jago Poynter
postcard Hello Guys, I undertook a work placement at the Cardiff National Museum. My aim was to gain a better understanding of the curation processes and understand how pieces are selected for display. I observed this during build up to the Fragile? Exhibition. I was lucky enough to shadow assistant curator Penelope Hines and Events Manager Heidi Evans. During the placement I saw the importance of connections between museum institutions and higher education establishments. I had the opportunity to present my findings at the Fragile? Exhibition conference in September. Charles Conreur
postcard Hello Everyone! So far this year my ceramic work has focused on the relationship between surface and form; I always find that surface speaks as much about the maker and making as the shape itself. To find new and exciting ways to decorate a fired surface I first needed to get inspired. I was able to attend the British Ceramics Biennial at Stoke-on-Trent which offered some amazing works, Sarah Worgan was one of my favourites. Her work dealt with chaos and order, and did this through the interplay of sculptural forms and the painterly application of colour. Bella King
postcard It gets exciting for me when I start to blend simple industrial design with traditional craft skills. I have been drawn to ceramics by the versatility, texture and forms this material can create, these factors are very important to me while making. I feel combining this diverse material with technology the exciting new outcomes are endless. For me it is to produce an object that is not purely hand built or purely machine built something midway. I start with geometric shapes formed by technology and through the process of slip casting and the material of ceramics I produce objects that are organic in appearance. I find myself looking at organic matter to help me through these transitional stages. I try to blend the boundaries of natural and unnatural making the viewer feel ambiguous to what inspired the piece, the environment or machine? Rhiannon Evans
postcard Hello Everyone! Over the past two years I have worked as an interior designer, I can’t resist the temptation to work and experiment with different materials from ceramics to textiles. My work consists of lighting design with current work and research based around materials such copper paired with porcelain. I am currently looking at the theme between rough and smooth textures and the contrasts these create within our interiors both residential or commercial. Tiffany Suart
postcard Hey everyone During the first and last month of the holidays I was teaching at Coleg Gwent Crosskeys College introducing students to the joys of basic throwing, slip casting and hand building. I have been working with students in various stages of education and at different levels of learning. This has allowed me to gain greater experience for my future plans to undertake Post Compulsory PGCE.
During the summer I was also writing my dissertation on ‘Gender Identity’ which is the main focus of my practice. Writing the dissertation has given me a deeper understanding of Gender Theory and how this could be applied to my practice, enabling me look at gender from different perspectives, and informing my practice. Aaron Chvers
postcard During the middle of this year I gained a wonderful opportunity to do work experience at the National Museum, Cardiff. As well as getting behind the scenes – like the library and workshop space – we also witnessed the development and curation of the 'Fragile?' exhibition. It became much more than just work experience, it was a delight to be apart of, seeing the curators and designers pulling together such a fantastic exhibition. I got to learn about artists such as Claire Curneen and Phoebe Cummings and the chance to see how their work would be positioned according to its material, context and ideas. This opportunity has opened many doors for us and our future understanding of the wider field of ceramics. I hope that this link between the art school and the Museum will continue to grow. Chelsea Morgan