Image credit: Shannon Tofts
Fitch and McAndrew are internationally renowned potters who live and work in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland.
Partners in business and in life, Doug Fitch and Hannah McAndrew were brought together by a shared love of slip decorated earthenware and historical, traditional pottery.
They enjoy life with their two young children, in their home and workshop with wood-fired kiln which is hidden away in the beautiful Scottish countryside.
Doug Fitch : ‘I work in red earthenware clay, the pots simply decorated, with appliqué decoration or sgrafitto, using a basic palette of traditional slips that are made from natural raw materials. The majority of my pots are thrown on the wheel with some press moulded dishes, decorated with freely trailed lines.
The forms, principally large jugs, draw influence from the work of the medieval potters of England and the subsequent tradition of slip decorated country pottery that was prevalent in this country until the early twentieth century.
I’ve been making pots for most of my life. It’s a strange thing, to be excited by something as simple as a brown clay jug and I can’t explain it, but it seems that it happens to some people; it just gets under your skin.’
Public Collections include The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, UK; Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery, Plymouth, UK; Centre of Ceramic Art, York, UK; Shipley Museum & Art Gallery, Middlesborough, UK; Ceramic Museum of Mun-Gyeong, South Korea.
Hannah McAndrew: ‘
Britain boasts a particularly fine tradition of slipware pottery. I draw on this rich heritage and use it as the basis for my own work, where I attempt to capture the essence of these historical pieces, reinterpreted in a contemporary style.
Predominantly, I make pots with a purpose. However, I enjoy the challenge of creating a piece that will not simply perform its task well, but will be attractive to the eye and instil a sense of comfort and warmth to its surroundings. My pots are thrown in red earthenware clay and decorated using coloured slips. The decoration is applied to the surface of the pot by use of a slip trailer, while the surface is still glistening wet. Sometimes I allow the slipped surface to dry a little, so that I can inscribe motifs with sgrafitto lines. These slips are subsequently enhanced by the addition of a layer of rich honey glaze.
Although personal fulfilment takes precedence over financial gain, I am able to survive by spending my days investing time and passion into the thing that I love. My life is my work and my work is my life. This is a rare and fortunate privilege that I never lose sight of.’
Public Collections include Mashiko Museum of Ceramic Art, Mashiko, Japan.
