Grace Vessel embraces figuration while retaining the essence of a vessel as a container of the spirit. Jane’s rhythmic and repetitive process of making is a meditative state which dictates the form she produces. She is fascinated by the universality of clay and how it lies at the heart of the human experience.

Mae Grace Vessel yn cofleidio ffigwriaeth tra’n cadw hanfod llestr fel cynhwysydd yr ysbryd. Mae proses rhythmig ac ailadroddus Jane Sheppard o greu yn gyflwr myfyriol sy’n pennu’r ffurf y mae hi’n ei gynhyrchu.

Jane Sheppard is a self-taught ceramicist and began coiling and smoke firing over 30 years ago. The meditative simplicity of coiling is a fundamental part of her practice. She travelled widely in Africa researching the spiritual use of clay and visiting remote pottery communities, running workshops in the Namibia and Kalahari deserts with funding from the British Council.

After a 10-year absence from clay whilst a single parent, Jane is enjoying working from her home studio and engaging more deeply in the metaphorical language of clay. She aims for forms and decoration which appeal to our shared human aesthetic and remind us of our physical connection with the earth.

www.janesheppard.me

Photos by Mud and Thunder.