Ironstone Mine Clay Vessels
My interest in pottery begins with process. I am drawn to the physicality of throwing and the quiet discipline it demands. Working with clay allows me to explore material in a direct and responsive way, and I’m always looking for new techniques, tools and approaches. I’m particularly interested in how materials carry meaning, how texture, colour and form can hold the memory of place and process.
This body of work begins with a site: an abandoned ironstone mine on the North Yorkshire Moors. In the 1860s, this was an active place of extraction, fuelling the surrounding industry. Now it lies dormant. From the mine’s old waste pools, thick with discarded waste clay, a byproduct of ironstone washing, I collect the raw material for these vessels.
The clay itself is heavy, iron-rich and unpredictable. I throw each form by hand, allowing the character of the material to lead. I leave visible marks and rough textures, echoing the cracked walls of the mine and the sedimentary layers built up over time. The colours mirror the earthy tones and rusted remnants of the site.
The shapes reference industrial objects: chimney pots, utility jars, storage containers. These are forms made to serve, endure, and often be forgotten. I’m interested in how they sit between function and history, and in what happens when we rework these designs with care and attention. In doing so, I hope the vessels become containers not just in form, but in meaning by holding the memory of a place shaped by extraction, abandonment and slow regrowth.