SHAPED BY HAND: WORKING WITH PORCELAIN
We're passionate about preserving skills and sustaining heritage craft. It is a principle rooted in time honoured traditions, artistry, and a deep respect for natural materials. Inspired by our founder's desire to nurture and support talent; through an ongoing series of collaborations, we hope to spotlight and safeguard traditional craft skills for the future, while bringing to market extraordinary homeware pieces.
We’re excited to launch our latest collaboration with ceramicist Jo Davies. Working from her home studio, Jo specialises in wheel-thrown porcelain, creating objects that feel as good in the hand as they look on the shelf. Here, she shares the story behind her craft, her creative process, and the environment that shapes her work.
What first inspired you to start working with ceramics, and why do you continue to choose this medium?
I really fell for ceramics when I was a teenager at school. I loved the autonomy it gave me, allowing me to work directly with my hands without needing lots of tools. The immediacy of that hands-on experience was really appealing, and I’ve always had a natural interest in creating three-dimensional objects, I can mentally visualise what I want to make. It all began in my art classes, where we were encouraged to explore a wide range of media. I was also fortunate to have a teacher who was a trained ceramicist, Glenys Major, who encouraged me and played a huge role in building my confidence and progress in ceramics. I owe her a lot. Thirty years later, I’m still choosing ceramics. It continues to evolve, but clay and all its idiosyncrasies now feel as natural to me as breathing, like a baseline to my life. I guess you could say I’m a ceramics-lifer. If I had to pinpoint why I keep coming back to clay, it’s because it still gives me that sense of autonomy, or at least something very close to it.
Can you talk us through your typical creative process, from initial idea to finished piece?
An initial idea can come in a fleeting moment, sparked by the way clay curls or moves in a new way, or by discovering a functional domestic object that inspires me. From there, the idea begins to develop. For me, that means sitting down at the wheel to make some mock-ups. Drawing doesn’t really play a role in my design process because it’s quicker and easier to bring ideas to life on the wheel. After that, I focus on ironing out any technical issues with the shapes and making sure there are no firing faults. I’m now good at avoiding the infamous kiln explosions, but ensuring the porcelain has strong structural integrity remains a technical challenge; the final layer of creative problem-solving after all the fun making.
As a maker, you highlight the tactile experience of your ceramics. How do you ensure that each piece invites touch and interaction, and what role does texture play in this?
Turning up the metaphorical volume on ergonomics and tactility is central to my work. When a piece is still on the wheel, I make sure the shapes have a softness — edges are rounded and smoothed, and areas where the hand naturally holds the item are designed to invite touch. After the first firing, the process continues with sanding to enhance tactility and remove any rough spots that might have been missed. Once sanded, I glaze the pieces, carefully selecting satin-touch glazes. I dip each item into the liquid glaze, allowing it to gather in ways that highlight and enhance the shape. During the final glaze firing, the pots reach full temperature and the glaze melts, creating a smooth finish. Over the years, I’ve learned how to apply glaze to both enhance the shape and create a pleasing tactile experience.
How does your studio environment influence your creative process? Are there any tools, materials, or rituals that are essential to your work?
My studio space is currently a bit small. It does influence my work because it naturally sets a limit on the scale and volume of what I can make, so I sometimes have to be mindful of that. Having said that, my workshop is at home, which I love. The trade-off for the smaller space is the time it gives me, the ability to step into the garden whenever I want, the comfort of my own surroundings, and the near-constant companionship of the cat.
What role does experimentation play in your studio practice?
Experimentation has always played an important role for me, as it should in any creative practice. However, the scale of my experiments has become smaller over time, as more precise, incremental changes have taken priority. For example, early in my career I might have tested how steel fires in the kiln when set inside clay (answer: not well). Now, I’m much more focused on the nuances of how domestic objects are held by their users, and what I can do as a designer to make that experience more comfortable, tactile, or enriching. These are the areas where my smaller experiments happen now.
There’s a time for bold experimentation, and there’s also a time for focused, specific exploration, more like a science experiment, where you change one thing at a time and then measure the results.
What’s your favourite part of the making process, and what’s the most challenging?
My favourite part of the process is still the time I spend at the wheel. I have my favourite tools and other aspects of my work that I enjoy, but the wheel remains the most vital tool in my process. I currently use a 35-year-old Shimpo wheel that I originally acquired second-hand. It was manufactured in Japan, is low in height but very strong, and built to last. Wheel-throwing is a challenging skill to master, especially with porcelain, but over the years, the logic of it has crept up on me. My skills have grown, and now it feels like second nature. Knowing that this craft is literally at my fingertips is incredibly important to me.
Jo’s pieces are exclusively available to purchase in-store.
For sales enquiries:
Bamford Barn: bamfordbarn@bamford.co.uk 01608 692861
South Audley: southaudley@bamford.co.uk 020 7499 7994