Information about the Oral history interview with Karen Karnes, 2005 Aug. 9-10, including instructions on use, availability of transcript and audio, and related materials from the Archives.
This article is concerned with one craftsman's understanding of the word 'functional'. Using an audio interview of the potter Ray Finch, in which he voices his 'hatred' for the word 'functional', the article looks at the various discourses surrounding function, which are suggested by Finch's words. The areas discussed are:
Winchcombe Pottery and Michael Cardew.
The Mingei philosophy of the unknown craftsman.
The making of production wares and one-off pots.
The class system and the experiences of Sidney Tustin at Winchcombe.
The influence of Chesterton, Gill and the Distributist movement on Finch and Cardew.
Englishness and the pottery of Finch and Cardew.
The lifestyle of 'The Country Potter'.
Founded in 1920 by Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada, the Leach Pottery is probably the most famous and certainly the most influential studio pottery in the world. For decades it forged the shape of studio pottery production in the UK and beyond.
