I once threw a pot at an altar boy's away-day when I was about ten or eleven. It wasn't fired, it just hardened and I used it to store my coppers in for years. The pot was thrown with red clay and was about 10mm thick. It did, however have a lovely form and sat nicely in the hand.
Ever since then I've been looking for a creative outlet (guitar playing, computer music composition, drum lessons, even juggling). I've enjoyed all of these things (and still do) but it always felt like there was something missing. I suppose hanging about with all manner of creative people meant that I really wanted to stretch my artistic wings.
Being fundamentally lazy, I find that pottery ticks a lot of boxes through 1 activity. Firstly you are creating something which has a function. You can eat off it, drink from it, cook in it (another obsession!). You can even fill it with sand and hold doors open with it.
Secondly, you can touch it. Too many forms of art are "look - but don't touch". The amount of times that I've visited galleries and looked at wonderful pieces of art which beg to be touched are innumerable. I seriously doubt that fine artists all insist their beautiful, sculptural, textured pieces be viewed under the steely gaze of a gallery attendant from 4 feet away. Tate Modern take note, why are you only catering to 2 (but mostly just 1) of our 5 senses? That said, I am now struggling to find a way "smelly art" can be catered for!
The third reason for ceramics as an outlet is that it really satisfies my inner nerd. The chemical processes involved in the creation of a glaze are fantastic! Glazes can contain almost every element from the periodic table. They will all affect the final outcome in ways that can be very controlled, guaranteeing consistent output, or you can open the kiln and have only a very limited idea of what to expect. This creates either contained, regulated design or a loose uniqueness - and everything in between.
All of the above reasons create the fourth and final one. Pots can be a beautifiul canvas, just look at the work of Grayson Perry (figurative, literal) or Kyra Cane (abstract land/seascapes).
Those of you who can get down to Cornwall this summer would be well advised to make a trip to St Ives and check out The Bernard Leach Pottery. This is the guy that kicked off the craft potter's movement and, whilst (allegedly) he wasn't a tremendous thrower of pots, his influence has been huge and his writings on beauty through form have influenced thousands of potters worldwide. The pot at the top is one of his...
