19/12/2025
I’m happy to announce that the ‘KILN SERIES’ has been shortlisted for the John Ruskin Prize
and will be on display at Trinity Buoy Wharf 29th January- 21st February.
The Kiln series is a reflective response to my paradoxical relationship to Stoke-On-Trent, ‘The City Britain Forgot’.
The series includes a pair of matching yet distinctly opposing vessels- their shape informed by the iconic bottle kiln structure. These kilns once littered the landscape of Stoke, lending itself to the colloquial name ‘the Potteries’.
The city, once essential and world leading for ceramic production has become almost obsolete- with further loss of industry, including coal and steel contributing to this notion.
Stoke’s identity and character has become muddied and lost post de-industrialisation, a sensibility that echoes in the local culture and socio-political climate.
In response to the crossroads that Stoke on Trent and its community find itself in, the Kiln Series stand as both mirror and shadow of the other, simultaneously grieving what could have been and hopeful for what remains.
Out of almost 4,000 entries, 91 artworks by 82 creatives have been shortlisted for this exhibition.
The John Ruskin Prize showcases talent in all media, encouraging interdisciplinary works responding to this year’s theme, Patience in Looking, Truth in Making.
Many thanks,
