Ceramicists are fired with enthusiasm

Jun 27 2009 by David Whetstone, The Journal

A FORMER cattle byre in Allendale, Northumberland, has become a gallery for 10 of the region’s ceramic artists.

It is also home to a huge wood-fired kiln that was built last year by Andrew Pentland, an artist and ceramics instructor at Newcastle College.

The kiln is a rare example of its type in the north of England.

It will be in operation this weekend as the selling exhibition of the ceramicists’ work comes to a climax. The kiln will be loaded up today and fired tomorrow – although the items inside will have to undergo a long cooling period before they can be sold.

Ceramic items resulting from previous firings can, however, be bought at the cattle byre exhibition at Broadwood Hall which is open today and tomorrow from 11am-5pm. Entry is free.

Broadwood Hall belongs to ceramic artist Steph Jamieson who is based there with fellow ceramicist Lorraine Clay.

“We’ve been here 14 years and I’ve been doing ceramics for about the same length of time,” said Steph.

“The cattle byre was redundant when we moved here. The chap who had it died about 25 years before we bought the place but the milking parlour and other farm buildings are still here.”

Andrew Pentland, who lives in Washington, said it was exciting to build the wood-fired kiln. “It’s not the sort of thing you can have where I live,” he said.

Building the kiln, he said, had been a challenging project which had brought many rewards.

The exhibition was “a fitting opportunity to present work actually created from the kiln – as well as showcasing the talent of other local artists.”

He added: “The rustic backdrop of the cattle byre not only appeals to me as a fitting location to present our work, as it sits well with the natural simplicity of many of our designs and the organic materials we use, but it also symbolises the entire process and the highs and lows that this type of craft involves.”

Andrew makes his ceramic items in Washington and then transports the fragile creations to Allendale for the 12-hour firing process – followed by the 24-hour cooling-off process, which can be agonising.

Only when the kiln is unpacked do the artists see how their work has fared in the great heat. As Andrew says, it can be a moment of reward or disappointment.

Steph said the kiln firings at Broadwood Hall are community affairs with ceramicists bringing their work from miles around.

For more information about Broadwood Hall and Steph’s work, visit www.broadwoodstudios.co.uk.