Mud Art

Ceramic is often seen as the ‘King’ of all crafts, but it’s just mud at the end of the day. As a silversmith, that makes me want to misbehave and find some way to trash it and incorporate it with metal. From figurines to animals, anything has the potential to fall victim to my misdemeanours.

What has developed comes from an uncontrollable process where the collision of molten metal with the fragile ceramic offers unique and surprising results.

Image of a small ceramic wren bird. Used as a mould and showing the collision of 2 materials coming together. Hammered to open up and expose the cast pewter core

A delightful eBay find. I wanted to experiment and use old, hollow figures and animals as moulds and where molten pewter is directly cast into the ceramics—actively embracing the element of risk, chance and failure.

WREN

Wren
Material   Porcelain, Pewter
Dimensions   6 x 6 x 10cm
Year   2019
Location   Private Collection UK

Detailed image of a white ceramic statue of Jesus. Cracked and broken showing an inner core that is patinted black.

AMEN

My father was a priest and spent most of his time split between preaching and stripping churches of iconography. For this reason, it seems forgivable to ‘have a go’ at this very white Jesus.
Divine intervention …

 

Amen
Material   Ceramics, Patinated Pewter
Dimensions   30 x 10 x 8cm
Year   2020
Location   Private Collection UK

Image of a white ceramic statue of Jesus. Cracked and broken showing an inner core that is pewter and patinted black.

Are You Sitting Comfortably

I can’t help myself when I see these ridiculous figures in charity shops sitting there. There is only one thing to do: and that’s to knock their heads off! Hugely satisfying as the characters are so smug and pleased with themselves.

Are You Sitting Comfortably
Material   Ceramic, pewter
Dimensions   18 x 10 x 28cm
Year   2018
Available

WOOF WOOF!

I’m slightly obssessed with Nymphenburg ceramics from Bavaria Germany.  True quality and highly refined. A dream would be get into the factory, let’s see!!

This is a double casting as the dogs are individuals, they both fractured beautifully during the casting process…..way beyond my expectations.

WOOF WOOF!
Material   Porcelain, Pewter
Dimensions   15 x 8 x 12cm
Year   2021
Location  Private collection Germany

DROWNING MAN

A porcelain figure found in a thrift store in America. The first piece I made after my fathers death in 2018. Poignant, emotive and timely. Stuff happens through making and we should embrace it.

Image of a white porcelian figure of an old gentleman sitting down. The slipcast figure has been filled with molet pewter and resulting explosion recorded. The petwer core has been patinated black

Drowning Man
Material   Porcelain, Pewter
Dimensions   9 x 6 x 12cm
Year   2018
Location   Private Collection USA

Image of a ceramic duck that is cracked and broken because molten pewter was poured into it as it is slipcast

DUCK
Material   Ceramic, Patinated Pewter
Dimensions   25 x 10 x 15cm
Year   2020

Available

An image of the back of the ceramic duck cracked and broken with a pewter body.

DUCK

What came first the duck or the egg?

I’m not quite sure or what is skin, bone, flesh or feather? But I do know the more I look, the more disturbed I am about this half-cooked inside-out roasted toasted duck.

Image of a group of exotic ceramic birds made be Karl Erns, these have been altered by pouring molten pewter into the hollow parrots and budgies

MENAGERIE

When you think about the types of birds you’d expect to encounter in London, a stumpy-legged grey pigeon or an increasingly rare sighting of a cockney sparrow are most likely to come to mind. However, when I wake up each morning, it’s to the noisy chatter of a flock of vibrant green parakeets – thought to be early escape artists from London Zoo. To me, there is something really pleasing about these exotic creatures becoming part of my everyday.

 

Menagerie
Material   Porcelain, Pewter
Dimensions   18 x 10 x 8cm
Year   2019
Location   Public Collection V&A UK
A few available

Title: Brainfart
Material Porcelain, Pewter
Dimensions 10cm x 8 x 26
Year 2019
Location Private Collection USA

BRAINFART

Ceramics can be viewed as the King of Craft. I’m interested in changing the balance of hierarchies and order. Blowing up ceramics and capturing the explosion allows me to create by being disrespectful and willing different disciplines to collide.

SHOT!
Material   Pewter, lead
Dimensions   10 x 10 x 15cm approx
Year   2023
Location   Available

SHOT!

Mr Lawrence was my parents’ boiler man. He was also part of a shooting club in Somerset, Great Britain. Every time we met he would march into the kitchen and present a brace of bloody rabbits. Unfortunately, he would hand them directly to me: like I would know what to do with these carcasses. Slowly over time I learn’t to skin, gut and butcher the rabbits ready for cooking. Still to this day I love cooking rabbit, very slowly in cider. However whilst eating I never enjoy finding spent lead shot in the now laced sweet flesh

Each bisque-fire Kaiser bunny purchased from Ebay has been exploded from the inside out by pouring molten pewter into the hollow forms. The rabbits have the exact amount of lead in them as you would find in 1 bullet (2.6gm).

The unique series SHOT! is still slightly poisonous.

Approach with caution!

TO THE KNACKERS YARD

This pair of Nymphenburg porcelain horse and rider figurines were made in Bavaria, Germany and arrived in their original boxes. By pouring molten pewter into their hollow bodies, the resulting explosions and ruptures are recorded through the casting process.

Original factory packing boxes are included

Image of a pair of horsemen on horses with hounds made by Nymphenburg Bavaria. Pewter has been poured in and the explosion recorded physically

To The Knackers Yard
Material   Porcelain, Pewter
Dimensions   18 x 8 x 16cm each
Year   2020
Private Collection Australia