Crafts Council Development Award recipient Helen Beard is a ceramist, illustrator and painter, based in Clerkenwell, central London. Her works uses hand-thrown porcelain as a base for illustrations inspired by the quirks of human behaviour.
'A Fishmonger blows his nose, Billingsgate market' (15x16cm) by Helen Beard; Photo: John Taylor, 2006
How would you describe your pots?
My ceramic work combines sketches recalling everyday life with simple domestic pots - mugs, beakers and bowls - made from white porcelain clay, which I use as a canvas and draw directly on. The forms of my pots and the style of my illustrations complement one another sympathetically - both are fluid and spontaneous; each slightly naïve, with its own individual narrative and a character of its own, some whimsical, some cheeky, some nostalgic.
Helen Beard; Ceramist; Photo: Helen Beard, 2007
What's the process of creation?
I like to work with Limoges porcelain because it has an organic quality when it's fired. The form remains soft, and the clay turns a creamy white colour. I used my own researched method for drawing, starting with an outline sketch and followed by a wash of colour. I draw over sheets impregnated in stain, leaving an image on the clay. The result doesn't become visible till the paper is removed, and I find this really frees up my style. It produces an effect like watercolour and ink, which I then dip-glaze with a transparent finish.
Bobbing Boats (10xcm) cup, (17cm) jugs by Helen Beard; Photo: John Taylor, 2007
Where does your inspiration come from?
Ordinary everyday things and domestic scenes. I look at people, their actions and their surroundings, and try to capture the funny things they do. I take a sketchbook with me wherever I go and draw people, particularly in public places such as markets or parks.
How did you become a ceramist?
I started studying Jewellery at Edinburgh College of Art but then specialised in ceramics. I really clicked with clay as a material and so finished my BA (1st class honours) in Design and Applied Arts. Following that I did an eighteen month apprenticeship with studio potter Edmund de Wall. It was here, that I learnt to throw and was able to develop my drawing technique on to porcelain.
Website: www.helenbeard.com
Email: info@helenbeard.com
Telephone: +44 (0) 774 0304148
Watch Helen's video
Speaking from Origin 2007 at London's Somerset House, Helen recalls the everyday events that inspire her pots.
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