Profile - Ian Morrison

I’m so pleased to have been asked to join the selection panel for Celebrating Ceramics and look forward to helping keep it one of the finest ceramic shows in the country. Having grown up and learned about clay in North America, I hope that I will bring a unique perspective to the team. I have been making domestic pots since 1999, in that time I have mainly produced functional work but did spend many years working with an abstract expressionist who opened my eyes to another side of clay. I have fired pots in tiny electric kilns, large Japanese wood fired kilns, and everything in between giving me a very well rounded appreciation for the various processes makers use.

I came to the UK in 2014 to work as a production thrower at the Leach Pottery and stayed to build Knighton Mill Pottery in 2016. I produce a large salt glaze range of domestic ware now and will bring an eye for craftsmanship and function to the panel. I have taken part in many of the best ceramics shows this country has to offer including having been at Celebrating Ceramics since it began. This show has always been of the highest calibre and I aim to keep it that way.

Profile - Jon Bull

Born in South Wales, I am a ceramic artist creating handcrafted vessels inspired by celestial landscapes, shorelines, and earthy textures. My journey began at Pontypool College in the mid-1990s, where I fell in love with wheel-throwing. I later earned a BA (Hons) in Ceramics from the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff in 1999, guided by mentors Geoffrey Swindell, Peter Starkey, and Graham Williamson.

After working as a production thrower at St Fagan’s Pottery, I opened my studio in 2002, moving from functional pottery to unique ceramic art. For me, the wheel is the heart of my work—the source of all form, surface, and colour.

I have spent over two decades exhibiting my work at galleries and fairs across the UK and internationally. Alongside my studio practice, I am delighted to support fellow makers and the wider craft community by serving as a member of the selection and advisory panel for Celebrating Ceramics

Profile - Sally Dunham

I am delighted to join the selection panel for Celebrating Ceramics. Celebrating my 28th year of business as a sculptor, my passion for clay is as strong as ever. Over nearly three decades, I have been privileged to exhibit with fantastic galleries and top art shows across the country. I look forward to bringing this extensive experience to the team, helping maintain the high standards of the show while championing both exceptional craftsmanship and fresh, emerging talent.

Based in my home studio, I create unique human and animal sculptures using a distinctive patchwork method. By piecing small slabs of earthstone and porcelain clay together without moulds, I create a lively, tactile surface that captures a realistic, narrative 'moment in time'. Alongside these, I create my light-hearted 'Mister Herbert' collection—stylised figures designed to uplift, bring a sense of positivity, and make people smile. My own work ranges from complex, gravity-defying poses to whimsical, thought-provoking scenes.

As a selector, I will bring an eye for original storytelling, technical skill, and that vital emotional connection that makes contemporary ceramics so deeply rewarding to discover and own. 

Profile - Sarah Michael

I've been working in ceramics for over 30 years and have had the pleasure of participating in about eight ceramic shows across Europe, and even one in China! In addition to exhibiting, I've also organised a biannual ceramic fair "Clay2Day" in Holland five times, the last one being in 2015.

I understand the importance of maintaining high standards and offering a diverse range of work for customers.

I’ve had the privilege of taking part in Celebrating Ceramics twice now and remain in awe of its stunning setting. Having lived in the tulip region of Holland for 40 years, where the landscape is breathtaking for just a few weeks each year, I’m thrilled to be part of the Celebrating Ceramics team!

Profile - Valerie McLean

I am delighted to have been asked to join the selection panel for Celebrating Ceramics. I have been exhibiting at Celebrating Ceramics, as well as other top UK shows (including Ceramic Art London) for several years, and have also participated in ceramic fairs in Europe and China. I did my MA in ceramics at Farnham. My work is sculptural and deeply influenced by the visual language of the landscapes I grew up with, those of the Mediterranean world.

I bring to the panel my experience as an artist but also my perspective as a ceramics collector. I am looking forward to welcoming a very varied selection of exhibitors, all highly skilled at their craft and each with a story to tell. Ceramics can be serious, funny, challenging, irreverent, whimsical, practical, political, decorative… I want the people who come to Celebrating Ceramics to arrive confident about the quality and the range of works that they are about to discover. But even more, I want them to arrive really excited about the few hours ahead, knowing they could as easily leave with some beautiful tableware as with a unique work of art. 

Profile - Sherry Moran (Creative Director)

I have loved ceramics as an art form for as long as I can recall and my parents bought me my first ‘bowl’ at a fund raising event when I was 16. But it was when I was working in Japan 35 years ago, producing a business documentary, that I began collecting on my frequent trips to Kyoto and Mashiko. 

Every time I passed a beautiful piece I couldn’t help but touch it and an antique dealer in Kyoto said ‘that was the sign of a collector’. My crew had to lovingly help carry back all the treasures I had found, on top of our equipment!

When I moved to London from New York, I was asked to be the curator of the Ceramics section of Art in Action, held at Waterperry Gardens.  This opportunity was a pure labour of love since we were all volunteers.  But during the 26 years that I curated the Ceramics tent, I met and got to know potters (ceramics artists) from all over the UK and Europe. 

It was a privilege to call them friends and it was because of these relationships that I again volunteered to help bring a quality ceramics show at Waterperry gardens to the public.

Profile - Rob Chapman (Craft In Focus) Event Co-ordinator

Craft in Focus was launched in 2000 by Rob Chapman, then a Woodturner, now head co-ordinator of the events.  Craft in Focus stages nine events across the UK, mostly in the South East, including the UK’s most popular Designer Craft Fair at RHS Garden Wisley. 

They are also used to staging solo discipline events, such as the Desire Fairs focussing on Jewellery and Silversmithing.  One of the key aspects to their success has been to treat makers, and visitors, with respect and understand the lifestyle the artists lead. 

As a former maker, Rob Chapman  was able to address what the maker wanted from an event.  In addition the selection of the exhibitors has always been key to ensure the makers show flair and originality in their work, and the work they present is always from their own workshops as well as being of the highest quality.