More Than Arts and Crafts
Often overlooked as Fine Art, ceramics have a vibrancy and following all of their own
Article by Rupert Watkins
Ceramics all too often brings up associations of holiday activities and art and crafts. However, this thriving artistic arena is seeing ever increasing interest and participation. The highlight of London’s – and indeed the global – ceramics world will soon be on us with the Ceramic Art London (CAL) fair being held April 8 – 10th at Central Saint Martins at King’s Cross. Sitting down with Susan Beresford, the CAL director we chatted about this small but passionately followed artistic form.
As Susan comments, ceramics appeals as it is an incredibly open and accessible art form. In a world of contemporary paintings and mega-bucks, ceramics is both open to the new collector to either buy – or crucially take up for his or herself. The prices range from £40 through to some of the top makers such as Thomas Bohle at just over £10,000.
Ceramics historically suffered from being somewhat side-lined decades ago and thus has not been as revered as Fine Art (be it traditional antique or contemporary). It became somewhat associated with the Arts and Crafts movement through the 20th Century and the traditional joy of craftsmanship and use of natural materials. Nonetheless, in recent years there has been a renaissance and the finest examples are now starting to creep up to prices more commanded by Fine Art.
With its approachable and usable background and roots, ceramics is booming as an interest. “Many teachers have seen evening course attendance triple in recent years” Susan remarks. One of the unique points of CAL is that many of the ceramicists showing will be there in person and many visitors go as much to meet them and chat about the processes and techniques as looking to buy.
Part and parcel of this form of art is the enormously time consuming and wasteful design process. A piece that has the wrong balance of clays, powders or is fired slightly incorrectly in the kiln has to be discarded. Susan mentioned that this fraught creative process generally teaches patience and she finds ceramicists exceedingly well grounded.
Ceramic Art London is now in its 12th year. For the first 11 years of its existence it took place at the Royal College of Art; this is the first time it is trying a new venue but Susan is very excited at the possibilities and fresh momentum the move to Central Saint Martin is giving the event. It has always drawn visitors from all over the world, “many overseas guests plan their holiday around the fair” Susan mentions. There will be stands and makers from as far afield as Australia, Japan and South Korea; a quarter of the display will be from abroad.
In recent years there has been an increasing trend towards installation type pieces rather than the simply functional. Susan is particularly excited by the South Koreans, “they are very avant garde and are really pushing the conceptual boundaries with their cutting edge installation type pieces.” As well as these works, CAL will have an enormous breadth of work; with both practical and affordable pieces offering a very reasonable way into collecting, Susan finds many collectors make a beeline for a certain individual’s works which they buy up without fail each fair.
Susan’s own artistic background is not though in ceramics or pottery. Trained at (the now) Brighton University as an illustrator, she found herself managing and organising exhibitions as much as wielding a brush and pencil. This facilitative role very much came to the fore after 2008 when she was asked to run a fair by Croydon Council and she has worked with CAL and the Contemporary Ceramics Centre in Bloomsbury for a number of years now. She is thrilled at the number of new exhibitors at CAL this year, 25 out of 88, and is taken by how many ceramicists are looking to push the boundaries with the materials they work with – for example Emily Gardiner with her stark, probing designs.
The fair is rightly proud of the education programme it runs, “without par in Europe.” A comprehensive selection of talks runs throughout the three days with specialist speakers covering topics from Yixing province 10th Century teapots to a discussion on the well-known Heatherwick studios by one of its artists. In its new premises, Ceramic Art London looks to be going from strength to strength. Many of the showing ceramicists will be there for the whole three days, so for something a little artistically different and the chance to chat with those behind the creation head to King’s Cross this weekend. 
Enquiries: Ceramic Art London, Central Saint Martins, 1 Granary Square, King’s Cross / Fair Friday April 8th – Sunday 10th 2016 / www.ceramics.org.uk/index.php