Biography
My first experience of pottery was watching my mum and brother make all sorts of creations in clay during my childhood growing up in the1970s on the kitchen table. All sorts of hand crafted pots, animals, and chess set pieces would emerge from the small but well used Harrison Meyer kiln. It must have made a big impression to see all this work emerge magically from the kiln. My brother Stuart, still hand-builds ceramics including birds and animals and runs his own antiques and pottery shop. My mum, Ann Hall, really should have gone to study at Art School and was also a talented painter. I still cherish a few remaining pieces of her pottery work and I have to thank her for spurring my initial interest with pottery as a child. I still use my Mum's old upright treadle wheel to this day.
I studied on the GAD course at Thurrock Tech between 1991 and 93, which was a revelation to me, experiencing a wide range of different media. Initially I felt drawn towards painting and Theatre Design. I gained a place at Wimbledon School of Art but this didn't work out! Eventually I wound up on the 3d design degree course at Middlesex, formerly Hornsea School of Art. I found the course at Middlesex quite challenging at times, with it's slant towards industrial slip cast ceramics. This did not put me well at ease with some of the tutors who didn't seem to want to give the time of day for the hand builders like myself on the course. I suppose this initial experience of the course had the effect of making me become more self reliant as a student potter. I did though gravitate though towards particular tutors- such as Emmanuel Cooper and Mo Jupp. I found Mo Jupp to be especially a great teacher. Emmanuel meanwhile taught me the basics of throwing, although he later advised me to stick to hand building.
After leaving Middlesex I applied for the Royal College of Art Ceramics course in 1999, but was rejected after a fairly disastrous interview. Despite this setback, I kept my nerve and was lucky enough to have work bought by Selfridges and Co in 1999, and began selling my work around various galleries. I haven't really looked back ever since. This, accompanied by teaching has helped enable my career. I've shown work in galleries around the UK and sold to private collectors across the world- including the USA, Canada, India and Taiwan. I've also been lucky to have work acquired by museum collections too. In 2019 I won a gold award at the FAPDA UK JAPAN Art competition. In 2022 I am featured in Stephen Murfitt's new book on “Contemporary Raku” alongside some well known Potters including Tim Andrews, David Roberts and Patricia Shone.