CERAMICS BY YVETTE SPOWERS

My clay pieces evolve organically and take shape as I build them – I rarely have a plan at the outset and allow the piece to speak for itself. Coiling pots is a slow process, one of the most ancient ways of shaping clay and I enjoy the simplicity of it.

The pots are shaped, joined and smoothed several times with basic modeling tools and burnished when the clay is leather hard. The first firing takes place in a gas kiln. The final finish is achieved by smoking the pots in a brick pit in and other combustible materials to give varying effects.

The process of smoke firing clay pieces is one of the most ancient forms of craft dating back to the pre-dynastic Egyptian potters (c 3500 BC). Primitive open firing is still being used in many cultures today, including Sri Lanka, with locally dug clay. This method of work is becoming more and more popular as an expression of works of art with clay.

Yvette now resides on the beautiful Spanish island of IBIZA