My posts are getting a bit gloomy, time for a change of subject. One of the things which is helping me get through my months of isolation is the fact that I can do some pottery at home.
In the eighties I did a ceramics degree as a mature student and loved every minute of it. Afterwards I did a bit of teaching in Adult Education evening classes but never managed to set up my own studio. Then life got in the way, I stopped potting and eventually moved back to Brazil. Here evening classes are unknown except in private studios which are few and far between.
I searched on and off for a while but couldn´t find anywhere where I could make and fire my own pieces without having to take lessons which I didn´t need and were very expensive. Then by a stroke of luck a couple of years ago I found somewhere I could take work for glazing and firing. I sacrificed my dining table and a corner of my flat for a 'studio' and started making pots at home. What a wonderful feeling to be able to work with clay again!
I bought a wheel so I could do thrown work, but I also do casting and handbuilding, whatever takes my fancy. Most of my pieces are snaffled by the family (I have a large family!) and occasionally I sell one although I don´t actively seek customers. I don´t want to be in a position where I have to churn things out on demand, I make pots for the pure pleasure of the creative process. Whether it is thrown on the wheel then shaped, like this Roman oil lamp
or a porcelain piece inspired by sea forms the pleasure for me is in the making.
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