Jacqueline Clark - Open Studios

Ceramic work inspired by the ebb and flow of the tide at my creekside studio.

I make thrown and hand-built forms based on the landscape; informed by the calm tidal creeks and rivers of the south coast of Cornwall, near to where I live. I work with Dobles white stoneware from St Agnes.

Some forms are observations of boats that sit on the water or on the mud at low tide. These sculptural pieces, made from local stoneware clay, some loaded with oxide, reference boats but are not intended as perfect representations; they capture the essence – some suggest movement, some static.

Much of my work is inscribed with lines representing the swaying grasses of the creek margins. Reeds, silt and how the tide and man mark the landscape, all influence the work. Glazes are representative of the tide: a dry, ultra-matt green glaze emulates the creek at low tide, a soft grey glaze reflects the soft focus of the view in Cornish mizzle, then the turquoise-blue, the vibrant colour of the sea on a summer’s day.

Visits to the potteries of Mashiko, Japan are also hugely inspiring; the raku teabowls are fired and washed at the water’s edge.

I graduated from Cardiff in 1989 specialising in Raku ceramics. I worked as a Learning and Participation Officer at Leach Pottery, St Ives until 2021. I teach throwing courses at my studio and community workshops both in Cornwall and further afield.