Pottery is so hot right now, here's some of the best ceramicists out there
Pottery has had a bit of a bad rep until recently when people have slowly begun to realise that it’s FUCKING BADDASS. The pottery world is creaking under the weight of the amount of thrill-seeking clay-spinners popping up all over the place making vessels for cool people to put their cacti and fennel seeds in, and so we thought we’d highlight a few people who are taking the clay world by storm. Think for a minute, if you will, how few kilns there are on this earth, and how many universities have in recent years completely shut down their ceramics department due to lack of funding and demand. Then get your head around how these guys manage to create such brilliant work at such an astonishing rate while still keeping up their day jobs. Seeing as pottery is well trendy right now, I thought I’d run down a list of my personal favourite pot-heads out there.
Angel Oloshove
Everyone in the pottery world LOVES Angel Oloshove. I was trying to work out how she makes that beautiful fade and asked my friend Justine who is a pottery whizz. She said that Angel must use an air gun pre-firing, which makes sense. Angel’s newer vessels (which still have the wonderful fade) have seductively-placed holes in them, and she’s made some killer ceramic badges too. If you want one of these babies it’s probably best to act fast, because she’s getting very popular very quickly.
Saskia Pomeroy
Saskia Pomeroy is a mega powerful and popular artist who works mainly with print and textiles, but sometimes sashays into the world of ceramics. The sweet little vessels she creates mimic her print work in their squiggles and well-chosen colour palettes, and sit nicely on her online shop in amongst the other Memphis-inspired abstract goodies.
Weak End Club
More abstract knick-knacks here from Sydney’s Weak End Club. Aside from the totally beautiful patterns, these pots are just so well made, on a wheel as opposed to Saskia’s hand-modelled pots above. I joked about cacti earlier, but these guys are really, really into the whole succulents game. And why not, eh? Those little plants look like they’ve never been happier resting in those wee ceramic gems. Make sure you treat your plants with similar love, yeah?
Ben Sanders
I love Ben Sanders’ ceramics because they’re totally unlike anyone else’s, and he’s gone totally wild with the styling for his photoshoot. I never really associated pottery with humour before either, so it’s nice to see someone championing that through pottery. You can find the rest of his mental plant pots in the section on his website called “pot dealer.” I’d say Ben’s style could be classed as “acid craft.”
Karin Hagen
Karin Hagen
Who says you have to make vessels? With pottery you can also just make little trinkets, talismans and knick-knacks that are so small they are basically un-smashable and are destined to clutter the world forever. Karin Hagen’s got the right idea with these little characters which are hilarious, useless and cute all at once. Inspirational!
William Edmonds
Will (of Nous Vous fame) has been making pots for years over at Hackney Farm. His vessels are beautifully made on wheels and by hand, and are decorated with a truly unique style of glazing that Will’s been refining since he began. What I like about his vessels is the way he makes each item specifically for an activity as opposed to just “pot” and “plate.” His teapot for example is practical and fabulous, and his little cups designed especially to drink shandy out of are just…well, that’s just a great idea isn’t it?
Sean Roy Parker
Ever been on The Garden Edit? It’s like gardening porn that you can buy. Sean Roy Parker, a London artist, has been selling his unashamedly big plant pots on that site for a while now, much to the delight of rich Americans who want to put their rare ferns in something just so. The best thing about Sean’s work is how unapologetic it is, and how passionate he is about committing his life to the art of pottery. What a guy.
Charlotte Mei
Err, is that Toad of Mario fame on plate dodging some pesky bananas? Yeah, it is, and this is the nature of Charlotte Mei’s beautiful ceramics. Her work is so, so popular: particularly a pottery piece of toast with a smiley face that she invented which eventually spawned hundreds of Etsy imitators. Just on the right side of cutesy, and with glazing skills madder than anyone on this list, Charlotte is a Princess Peach of the pottery world.
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Liv joined It’s Nice That as an intern in 2011 and worked across online, print and events, and was latterly Features Editor before leaving in May 2015.