Gilly Whittington
I studied ceramics in Oxford UK before setting up my first workshop in 1993, when I also began teaching community education pottery classes in the Cotswold. I initially worked in earthenware with slip decoration, fired in an electric kiln.
After a few years I moved to stoneware and succumbed to the temptations of firing in a gas kiln to explore stoneware reduction glazes using wood ash as a basic glaze ingredient.
More recently, I began to experiment, and now work exclusively with porcelain still mainly reduction fired and glazed using wood ash, with glazes coloured by oxides.
A few years ago I went to an exhibition of Abstract Expressionist painters in London and was inspired to try to achieve abstract ‘paintings’ on my pots. Together with these Abstract Expressionist pots, I also make a small range of plain glazed domestic ware, all dishwasher and microwave safe.
Since 2009 I have had a large workshop in South west France, while continuing to divide my time between there and the UK. I have now a small workshop in Oxford which allows me to both work and keep a stock of my pots in the UK.