Sally (b. 1968) is a contemporary ceramic sculptor. She studied on a foundation year at Maidenhead College of Art and Design, later graduating from Staffordshire Polytechnic in 1991 with a degree in Studio Ceramics .
The exploration of figurative representations of the head, face and figure have been a feature of my work since I was at school. I am very drawn to the human form; our presence, our expressions, how we relate to one another, and the shapes we come in, all the wonderful combinations of bodies and heads.
I’m not in pursuit of realism, more so relatability, so I explore form and gesture through varying degrees of abstraction. This has led to pieces such as the ‘Plain Faced’ series, intelligible, with necks and heads but with no discernible features.
I consider scale, weight, subtlety, clay body type, tone and texture; and I’m increasingly interested in the impact of multiple and singular pieces and groupings that have the potential to create narratives. The clay body itself is important to me, I find it more difficult to relate to a smooth and shiny surface, preferring the tactile, matt properties of clay itself. However, I have more recently started to introduce small areas of glaze with some pieces, enjoying the contrast, but only over a porcelain slip, this tends to disrupt the glaze finish creating separation and still leaving the clay partially accessible.
Sally works from her studio in ‘The Potteries’, Staffordshire. She has won a number of awards and has exhibited in numerous shows in London and around the UK
