about me
“My art explores human feelings through the tactile qualities of ceramic form”
Peter Smith makes sculptural stoneware and raku ceramics. A large proportion of his work starts on the potter‘s wheel, creating vessels that are altered after they have been thrown and turned.
Peter makes these vessels as an expression of his endless fascination with the way that surfaces intersect. Using a limited range of colours Peter‘s work invites the viewer to consider the play of light across a form as well as the tactile quality of the ceramic. Each vessel strives to evoke an emotional response to forms that are based on human figures and engineered forms.
A vessel that achieves visual balance and feels right when held in the hand often observes the proportions of the golden section. It is this phenomenon in nature that Peter tries to capture and is the means to invite people to interact with his ceramics.
past
background
I gained an A-level in ceramics, but following that, I have been self-taught, mainly by watching other people throw on the wheel and trying to emulate how they make a pot. During sixth form studies, I was trained on the production of pottery including mixing glazes and electric kiln firing.
I have benefited from many workshops and summer courses at Adult Education Classes where teachers have challenged me in various ways. Subjects included mould making, raku, paper clay and sculpture.
I have worked in dedicated studio space since 2000. In the Wimbledon and Westbourne studios I was sharing space with fellow potters, but since moving to Redlees in Isleworth, London in 2006 I have been running my own pottery in a dedicated space.
Since 2012, I have developed my knowledge of firing raku kilns using both traditional glazed raku and naked raku decoration. I designed and built q bespoke gas-fuelled raku kiln, which I fire every year in Oxfordshire. I am proud to have refined my practice to obtain consistent and reliable naked raku results.
More recently I have challenged myself to develop a range of large scale sculptural vessels which speak to the human emotion and are my attempt to capture what we feel in clay.
exhibitions
1987 Following in their footsteps, Museum of Oxford
2000 - 2013 London Potters Open Exhibition, Morley Gallery , London
2002 Peter Smith Ceramicas, Solo Exhibition, La Galeria, Casa Condal, Gran Canaria,
2002 London Potters Exhibition, Morley Gallery, London
2003 Selected Works, Centro Cultural de Maspalomas, Gran Canaria, Spain
2000 - 2002 Wimbledon Art Studios; Summer and Winter Open Studios
2002 - 2006 Westbourne Studios, Summer and Winter Open Studios
2004 - 2007 Lesbian Gay & Bisexual Pride Festival, Group Exhibition, La Galeria, Casa Condal, Gran Canaria, Spain
2006 - Redlees Studios, Summer and Winter Open Studios
2022 - 2026 - Creative Mile Brentford
2023 - Obsession or Compulsion - joint exhibition with Lynsey Storer (paintings), Gallery, Redlees Studios
2024 - Exhibition - joint exhibition with Amelia Lucy Woods (fine art), Gallery, Redlees Studios
2026 - Exhibition - joint exhibition with Amelia Lucy Woods (fine art), Gallery, Redlees Studios
2026 - Ceramics in the City, The museum of the Home
publications
London potters newsletter
Various articles, including experiences of paper clay ‘breaking the rules’, exhibition reviews and workshop reports
memberships
Member of the London Potters for over 15 years to 2018, serving as Treasurer/Trustee on LP Council for 6 years
Associate member of Craft Potters Association since 2023