Phil Arthur

Phil Arthur lives and works in North Norfolk. He trained in vocational ceramics at Farnham School of Art and Design and Epsom College of Art from 1970 to 1974.

Having worked as a production wheel thrower, making functional domestic ware, he has become increasingly inspired by the freedom and limitless scope of hand building techniques which he uses when teaching.

He has developed a line of bird form pots using altered thrown shapes as the basis for construction. As a potter rather than a sculptor he has retained the essential essence of a pot, a vessel, whilst being prepared to ditch all other constraints.

Phil’s pots are inspired by, and follow the tradition of, 17^th century English slipware owl jugs, but have been taken a step further, influenced by Pre-Columbian vessels and the pots of Picasso.

Each lidded jug is assembled from 5 or more individual wheel-thrown and altered pieces, slip painted and decorated with scraffito designs. The material he uses is smooth red terracotta clay and he uses a range of traditional earthenware honey glazes.