Karen George
I trained as a music teacher and have been teaching adults and young people ever since. Pottery has been part of my creative life since school where I did ‘O’ and ‘A’ level ceramics.
My own work is hand-built using coils. I combine this with a pinching technique to achieve very strong, thin vessels. Using this method I can make more or less any shape in almost any size. At the moment I’m developing a range of water features and planters.
Hand building is a great way to relax, free your mind and get creative.
Karen is a member of Anglian Potters.
Ian George
I trained as an engineer and wrote software for many years. Engineering is all about being inventive and solving technical problems to make something useful and elegant. I like to think that my pottery reflects these principles.
I have specialized in throwing but I enjoy slab building and modelling too. I can even coil but Karen is much better at it! I taught a ceramics evening class at Hills Road Sixth Form College for 10 years. I always enjoyed helping people realize their own ideas in clay, and of course I always learnt something myself.
In 2005 I built a wood-fired soda kiln and developed a range of soda-fire slips, many based on naturally occurring clays I dug from the gardens of friends and family. After starting a family, the demanding firing schedule became too much and pottery took a back seat to other activities but now that the children are old enough to help, we are planning a new kiln.
In addition to ceramics I also have an interest in woodworking, from spoon carving to furniture.
Ian is a selected member of Anglian Potters.