Adventures with mud!About Bear Clay
Who would have thought that mud could occupy so many hours of focused concentration?
The learning curve has been steep but so, so satisfying. I am indebted to all those generous potters out there, who have shared their knowledge and methods, enabling me to explore ways of making I wouldn't have dreamt of.
Take a lump of clay...push it, sculpt it or carve it using bare hands and simple tools. Cover it in liquid glass and let heat work its magic. From birdbaths to life size barn owls, patio lanterns to cheery sunflowers, bird feeders to hanging bats, there’s something for everyone.
All my pieces are one off and handbuilt not thrown on a potters wheel - functional and decorative - for homes and gardens.
Mud glorious mud
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Pinch it, pull it, sculpt it, carve it
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Stain it, glaze it, fire it, use it!
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Mud glorious mud • Pinch it, pull it, sculpt it, carve it • Stain it, glaze it, fire it, use it! •
Unique
Commissions allow you to design truly individual, one off gifts for special occasions and pieces for yourself.
Hand-crafted
Everything is lovingly designed, sculpted, decorated and produced in the BearClay studio by myself.
Nuturing
Workshops are small and friendly, tailored to suit your needs with plenty of guidance and support.
My process
I hand build ceramic pieces, using high quality stoneware and crank clay (with added grog) for larger sculptures. These materials both fire at 1250 degrees Celsius, making them frost proof and suitable for indoors and outdoors.
When it comes to decoration, I occasionally decorate with underglaze and coloured slip - ‘stains’ that can be applied like paint. However I prefer the magical effects of glaze chemistry - liquid glass is hard to beat for beauty and movement, both alone and layered. Oxide washes can provide a Matt more natural finish for wildlife portraits; for example red iron oxide for the fur of a fox or manganese for the black sheen of a raven. I also enjoy making my own sprig moulds of natural items such as leaves, flowers, shells and fossils. Carving fine detail into forms to bring them to life is particularly absorbing, the angle of the eyebrow changing misery into mischief, anger into fear.
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