Latest news with #ceramics
BBC News
2 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Staffordshire pottery industry is viable, says Emma Bridgewater
Emma Bridgewater, the eponymous Stoke-on-Trent pottery firm boss, has said she still sees a future for the industry despite recent cost year marks the 40th since Dame Emma's company began production, when she was still in her early had been "ups and downs" in the industry over the years, she said, citing recessions as well as a number of closures happening shortly before her firm recently, bosses have been complaining a lack of support with energy bills as the pottery industry is heavily dependant on gas-powered kilns for its products. "We can't get to a stage where we can't make our own plates in this country," she told BBC Midlands Today."We're unnecessarily scrabbling around to pay bills that shouldn't be this big, they're out of proportion."Dame Emma added it was "crucial" that her products were made in the city, due to the skilled local workforce."It wouldn't have happened anywhere else," she said. "We have a highly evolved ceramics expertise here."She added: "The community of Stoke matters enormously to me, it is integral to the health of the business so I've got to believe this is an industry with a future."She conceded she did not have a solution to its current struggles, but felt the government ought to look to other countries to understand why bills are lower abroad. Dame Emma added she wanted to invest more and train more young people, but this required growth."There isn't a sort of feeling of growth being possible, or wanting to be able to do the lovely things," she she said Stoke-on-Trent was a city that gave her "enormous faith in the future", despite all the "really hard knocks" suffered there."I knew when I first came here I wanted to make one of these factories come alive again and having done it, is an amazing feeling," she said."The minute I stepped off the train here I did have a strong sense that I was going to work here, and I had no interest whatsoever in going abroad, I never did."She said although there were worries, there had been positive developments in the industry more return of Cornishware, and Moorcroft being brought back into family ownership were among the bright spots, she said."We're definitely a viable industry," she said. "Yes, we're struggling at the moment."She said she believed the fact the products were made and decorated by hand was integral to their value. Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
RNZ News
2 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Morris and James set to close after half a century of pottery sales
Morris and James' designs are well known for their bold colours and distinctive designs. Photo: Supplied An iconic Matakana ceramics business has made the decision to close its doors after 47 years. For nearly five decades, Morris and James pottery has graced gardens and living rooms across the country, all made on site in its north Auckland base of Matakana. But the business is set to close, citing the current economic crisis as a major factor. Founded in 1977 by Anthony Morris and Sue James, the designs are well known for their bold colours and distinctive designs. Kieran Rice is among those who bought the business in 2009, and is the managing director at Morris and James Matakana. He told Checkpoint the decision was a difficult one for both staff and customers. "It was very, very hard and quite sad... it was a very difficult day when we talked to the staff about it." He said the support from the community had poured in today, following the announcement they were set to close. "People are supportive. We've got great customers and and great staff and they sort of understand the situation, and say we've been a cornerstone of the Matakana tourism for a long time." Rice said that he had never experienced tougher times when operating a business, with spending down for most shoppers. "It's definitely been difficult and these are discretionary spends so you know people have priorities. "People still support us and buy our stuff. But it's just that little bit harder than it had has been in the past." Morris and James Pottery will be closing its doors after 47 years. Photo: Supplied A number of reasons had contributed to the decision to close. Rice said these included a lack of spending, increasing costs and a need to update equipment. "We're at the stage now where we need to start thinking about investing in new kilns or upgrading kilns... and those are big investment decisions with long paybacks. "So some of those things also have been difficult decisions for us to go one way or the other." There is not yet a closure date for the business, with the team wanting to use up the remaining clay before closing the doors. "We're carrying on making for probably another two months and probably manufacturing for another three months by the time we're finished glazing." In that time, he hoped an investor may pop up to potentially save the business. "We're crossing our fingers a bit too... [that] an angel investor might turn up that wants to buy things." Rice said the business will vacate their current premises once they close the doors, and the owners hope to open it up as a space for creatives. Before the closure, the team is focusing on creating orders, and are making special items for customers who request it. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Iconic cermanics business Morris and James to close
For nearly five decades, Morris and James pottery has graced gardens and living rooms across the country, all made on site in their north Auckland base of Matakana. But the iconic ceramics business has made the decision to close its doors, citing the current economic crisis as a major contributor. Managing Director at Morris and James Matakana, Kieran Rice spoke to Melissa Chan-Green. Tags: To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
Mail & Guardian
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Mail & Guardian
Clay Formes and the resurgence of African sculptural traditions
Martine Jackson shapes clay to document emotive journeys, such as Silent Resolve At the periphery of Joza township in Makhanda, just before its core unfolds, cliff faces rise in majesty — striations of ochre, rust and gold glowing with a celestial intensity. Clay appears to form itself there, as though the earth is recalling its own shape. And yet the nearby institution insisted (at least during my tenure) on importing clay for its sculpture department. The material on its very doorstep dismissed. Clay can symbolise this paradox: abundant yet overlooked, persistent yet devalued. The book, Clay Formes: Contemporary Clay From South Africa (2023), is something of a response to this limitation. It has a compelling survey of artists, many rooted in that very region, working with the earth beneath their feet. Clay Formes emerged from this ethos as a result of extensive travel, door-to-door conversations and nearly 100 interviews. I spoke to Olivia Barrell, whose path was destined to lead to this publication, about how she came to map the contemporary landscape of local clay and ceramic practice. 'I was born in Johannesburg, but I went to Paris at 18 because I got into Sorbonne University, where I studied history of art with a specialisation in ceramics. I stayed for 10 years and did my postgraduate degrees in Chinese and 17th-century ceramics,' she says. 'When I moved back to South Africa about eight or nine years ago, I became aware of the ceramic artists here; the level of the work was really world class. I have a background across the art world; I've worked as a writer, academic, in auction houses, the secondary market, market analysis and with collectors. I decided to build something that filled a gap I saw in the contemporary African art space.' Her gallery, Art Formes, is devoted solely to contemporary sculpture. Opened in 2021, it foregrounds marginalised sculptural practices through a slow, text-rich and museologically inspired approach. Art Formes is a hybrid institution; part gallery, part living archive. Its name, drawn from the French forme, meaning 'shape' or 'work of art', redefines how contemporary African sculpture is viewed and valued. Works by Sbonelo Luthuli, such as Umsamo (above), draw on Bantu spirituality and cosmology. Photos: Iterations of Earth Barrell explains, 'I wanted to disrupt terminology around sculpture. Sculptural works have often been categorised as craft or design, implying mass production and distancing the artist's hand. I wanted to move away from that. 'Our main focus is clay, both because it's close to my heart and rich in this country's history. We also use [the term] clay formes instead of ceramics because ceramics only refers to clay when fired. So you're ruling out all artists that work in earth-based practices, which we include. We work with clay and we work with all offcuts of the earth as well.' Barrell elaborates, 'I like the term 'ceramic master' because it's an ancient term that refers to an artist, whichever gender, that has mastered the art of ceramics.' The focus on language is palpable. Barrell says, 'It's also why I like ancient terms such as 'pot' or 'vessel'. I don't think that these are tied to utilitarian functions. For many, many centuries, cultures have been making pots and vessels that are not utilitarian.' This linguistic depth broadens the understanding of earth-based art beyond craft and utility to encompass deeper cultural and artistic significance. I kept seeing this term 'slow curation' and I was curious about its implications. 'It's based on my interest in … more slow, text-heavy, explorative curation,' Barrell explains. 'I felt that South African galleries were dominated by a white cube approach to curation aka a lack of curation. And I wanted to bring the museum curatorial style into the contemporary art world 'We don't just believe in selling works. I only work with artists that insert into our art history. So the narrative is essential — it's paramount for me as a gallery owner. 'At Art Formes, there's a strong archival focus … Clay is indigenous to this country, unlike painting, which is a Western import … Many ceramic artists have passed away undocumented. 'Clay is embedded in the cosmological realm; Nguni communities used it to communicate with ancestral worlds.' Her vision is not nostalgic but decolonial; shaped by a feminist commitment to recovering lost legacies. 'Sculptural ceramics in this country were often pioneered by women in the 1970s, which is a history that has also been almost undocumented.' Art Formes represents artists such as Siyabonga Fani (born in 1981), whose smoke-fired terracotta evokes ancestral memory and township life; Sbonelo Luthuli (born 1981), whose conceptual ceramics draw on Bantu spiritual and cosmological traditions; Nicholas Sithole (born 1964), a master potter known for hand-built Zulu forms held in major collections; Clive Sithole (born 1971), whose work bridges Zulu and Venda traditions and explores land, race and animal life; and Nigerian artist Eva Obodo (born 1963), who uses charcoal, unfired clay, wild clay and raw earth. Dante wrote, 'All other means would have been short … but that God's own Son humbled Himself to take on mortal clay' (Paradiso, Canto VII). These words elevate earth-based materials to the sacred threshold where divinity consents embodiment. Making with earth therefore, is entering this liminal space, both medium and metaphor: archive, altar, agent inviting communion with the grounded sublime. Clay's continuum is proof of a collective yearning for substance even amid a screen-saturated, artificial intelligence-driven contemporary moment. 'We crave what is real. We crave what is tactile,' Barrell notes. 'We're drawn to objects that are still made by the human hand.' If Gen Z's technocritical refrain is 'touch grass', Art Formes offers an audaciously ancient call: touch clay. Iterations of Earth: Exploring Multitudes is a revolving group show reimagining earth as sculptural medium, on view from 7 June to 4 September at Art Formes, The Old Biscuit Mill, 375 Albert Road, Woodstock. An exhibition walkabout with select artists, including Ledelle Moe, Martine Jackson, Clive Sithole, Sbonelo Luthuli, Jo Roets, Eva Obodo, Nic Sithole, Siyabonga Fani, and Astrid Dahl, will take place on Saturday, 26 July, from 10am to 11am.
Arab News
18-07-2025
- Business
- Arab News
India eyes closer cooperation in pharmaceuticals, ceramics with Saudi Arabia
NEW DELHI: India is seeking to expand cooperation with Saudi Arabia in the pharmaceuticals and ceramics sectors, following virtual meetings earlier this week between Indian Trade Minister Piyush Goyal and his Saudi counterparts. Goyal held separate discussions with Saudi Arabia's Economy and Planning Minister Faisal bin Fadel Al-Ibrahim and Investment Minister Khalid Al-Falih to explore ways to deepen trade and investment ties. His meeting with Al-Ibrahim focused 'on enhancing our trade & investment partnership and collaborating in key sectors' like pharmaceuticals, petroleum, and ceramics, while his conversation with Al-Falih centered on mutual growth, innovation, and long-term collaboration, Goyal wrote on X. 'We are confident of exciting growth prospects ahead for both nations,' he added. In 2023–24, bilateral trade between India and Saudi Arabia reached nearly $43 billion, making India the Kingdom's second-largest trading partner. Saudi Arabia, in turn, is India's fifth-largest trading partner. Energy trade accounts for a major share, with Saudi Arabia being the third-largest source of India's crude oil, petroleum, and LPG imports, valued at $25.7 billion in the last fiscal year. India's cumulative investment in Saudi Arabia reached $4 billion in 2023, marking a 39 percent increase from $2.39 billion in 2022. The two countries have been in regular talks to deepen their strategic partnership. During Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Jeddah in April 2024, 'both sides reaffirmed the strong commitment to advance economic and investment partnership,' Indian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Suhel Ajaz Khan, told Arab News on Friday. He noted that India's pharmaceutical and ceramics sectors, in particular, have the potential to contribute meaningfully to Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 transformation initiative. NEW PARTNERSHIPS India is the world's third-largest drug producer by volume, after the US and China, and accounts for over 20 percent of the global supply of generic medicines. New Delhi is looking to boost exports to the Kingdom and enter into new partnerships in the pharmaceutical space. 'With annual pharmaceutical exports exceeding $30 billion, Indian pharmaceutical companies play a vital role in ensuring affordable and reliable health care across the globe. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia currently accounts for only about $200 million of India's pharmaceutical exports — a relatively small share that underscores significant untapped potential,' Ambassador Khan said. 'As KSA pursues the goals of Vision 2030, which include building domestic manufacturing capacity, fostering knowledge-based industries, and ensuring health care security, the Indian pharmaceutical sector stands out as a natural strategic partner.' India is also the world's second-largest ceramics producer and the top global exporter of ceramic tiles. The government is looking to leverage this advantage in sectors such as construction and infrastructure. 'Indian ceramics are widely recognized for their quality, cost-efficiency, and manufacturing scale, particularly in segments such as tiles, sanitaryware, and refractories,' Khan said. 'Given the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's growing infrastructure, construction, and industrial development needs under Vision 2030, deeper cooperation with India's ceramic sector holds significant potential.'
