The Maker

How it all started

Claire began working with clay 7 years ago. Knowing that she wanted to do something creative with her life, she fell into the material in the middle of her high school years. With the support from her teachers she actually began as a handbuilder, lucky to have access to a kiln but not much knowledge of what a pottery wheel even was! It wasn’t until university, where she decided to further her clay knowledge and take on a ceramic course, that Claire found herself planted a wheel. What began as a daunting experience turned out to be for the best as the process reinvented Claire’s work and opened her up to the fast paced life of functional work and introduced her to the making of the vessel.

Career

Now a graduate of Ulster University, Claire has continued on with her making as one of their Graduates In Residence. Continuing to push and explore the vessel and the surface, along with making smaller functional pieces.

2020 saw Claire’s first international exhibition with a pot heading off to first to be exhibited in France at 1000 Vases.

Moving into the future teaching is the next highlight in Claire’s path as a maker, hoping to pass this skill on to others and encourage more to get creative and get their hands into some clay!