earth vessels
A chance encounter with the land — a natural crevice in the ground, wild-foraged clay damp in my hands, and the conditions of place guiding what happens next — becomes the starting point for each Earth Vessel /
Every vessel represents a deepening relationship with the natural world. Time spent working directly with earth, weather and landscape has become an essential part of my practice; a way of listening more closely to material, place and presence /
I coil, stroke and blend the clay upwards from the hollow in the ground, allowing the form to reach towards the sky. Wind, air, sunlight and sometimes rain all become active participants in the making process, leaving their own subtle influence on the work /
Commercial and wild clays are layered together intuitively, allowing the vessel to evolve through chance, touch and time. As the form develops, I gather dried grasses and twigs from the surrounding landscape and light a small fire within it. The heat begins to strengthen the clay, allowing the vessel eventually to be lifted — almost born — from the earth. This act of fire-making becomes a quiet ceremony: a gesture of reciprocity between maker, material and place /
Most Earth Vessels remain unfired once they are lifted from the ground. I resist the urge to make them permanent in the kiln. Their fragility is part of their meaning; the clay continues to respond to changes in humidity and atmosphere, shifting subtly over time like a living material rather than a fixed object /
These works are often presented within curated exhibitions as forms of land art, carrying with them the physical traces of the place in which they were made /
living earth vessels
A chance encounter with the land — a natural crevice in the ground, wild-foraged clay damp in my hands, and the conditions of place guiding what happens next — becomes the starting point for each Earth Vessel /
Every vessel represents a deepening relationship with the natural world. Time spent working directly with earth, weather and landscape has become an essential part of my practice; a way of listening more closely to material, place and presence /
I coil, stroke and blend the clay upwards from the hollow in the ground, allowing the form to reach towards the sky. Wind, air, sunlight and sometimes rain all become active participants in the making process, leaving their own subtle influence on the work /
Commercial and wild clays are layered together intuitively, allowing the vessel to evolve through chance, touch and time. As the form develops, I gather dried grasses and twigs from the surrounding landscape and light a small fire within it. The heat begins to strengthen the clay, allowing the vessel eventually to be lifted — almost born — from the earth. This act of fire-making becomes a quiet ceremony: a gesture of reciprocity between maker, material and place /
Most Earth Vessels remain unfired once they are lifted from the ground. I resist the urge to make them permanent in the kiln. Their fragility is part of their meaning; the clay continues to respond to changes in humidity and atmosphere, shifting subtly over time like a living material rather than a fixed object /
These works are often presented within curated exhibitions as forms of land art, carrying with them the physical traces of the place in which they were made /
