Award winning potter Rachel wood is a maker of individual hand pinched and coiled forms , and also strong, thrown forms, currently inspired by the colours and textures of the Australian bush seen when Rachel did a residency in New South Wales.
Rachel works with a ‘crank ‘clay (a resilient gritty stoneware) which has many characteristics of its own and is evident in this work. The glazes, several on each pot , are painted, rubbed and layered on giving each piece a 360 degree aspect , each a superb one off almost with its own personality, with a host of tactile and varied surfaces.
My personal intuitive touch is an integral part of these pots – a dent in the soft clay, a tear, rip, and a finger or handprint in the glaze. I also love to explore the rhythm and movement of throwing clay on a wheel, excited by the freshness and spontaneity of the results.
Rachel won the 2016 Die Neue Keramik prize, Germany and most recently the 2017 Diessen Ceramic prize.
