AN ODE TO CERAMICS

Our columnist Willow Kemp on how the work of ceramicists delivers soul, shape and story to the home

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As design director for Kit Kemp Design Studio and art ambassador for Firmdale Hotels, and having studied architecture at Cambridge and sculpture in Germany, Willow is well versed in anything art-related.

Ceramic art has been shaped by human hands for over 10,000 years; made of earth, hardened by fire and elevated by imagination. Clay may be a humble material, dug from the earth, soft in our hands, but in the world of art it is incredibly expressive. Ceramicists are able to manipulate form, texture and glaze in endless combinations and their results are wonderful assets to an interior. The artist's touch is literally embedded in the work and the tension between utility and aesthetic value is powerful. Clay may be common, but in the hands of an artist it becomes rare.