Chris Carter is a master potter who has made distinctive pots for well over forty years. He is a great admirer of Hans Coper and friend of Lucie Rie. His high level skills are applied to make pots which are elegantly designed and tactile pieces which have significant presence.
He started in furniture making and design but an early introduction to clay was enough to convince him that making ceramic pieces was what he would like to devote his life to, which is what he has done for over fifty years. His ceramics training was done at what was then Stoke on Trent College of Art. He was tutored by Derek Emms and Geoffrey Whiting.
Chris’s personal involvement with farming and the landscape gave him a special empathy with his native Britain. He’s a “son of the soil” who has worked the land for a living and who still works with some of the substance of that “land” to make his vessels.
Within the many layers of his unique glazes, that are first built up and then partially taken back with abrasion and multiple firings, there is a search for the essence of an ancient landscape and for the shadows of its creators. These gleanings, so passionately sought, reveal themselves only gradually.
His work appears in many public and private collections – including the Sainsbury Collection and the Ashmolean Museum. In 2016 an important monograph retrospective was published entitled ‘Just Pots’. Which was written by Stuart Dickens, Ceramic Curator at Bevere Gallery and long time friend. This gives insight into the Carter creative spirit and is well illustrated with pots from across his long making career.
