top of page

S a r a h   G r o v e

Handmade in Britain 2014
Origin 2006 - 1

EDUCATION

 

1992 – 1993              Wimbledon School of Art - Art Foundation  - BTEC Distinction.

1993 – 1996              Camberwell College of Art - BA (Hons) 2:1 Ceramics

 

EXHIBITION AND FAIR HIGHLIGHTS

2022                           Handmade in Britain, Chelsea

2021                           Art in Clay Farnham

2020                          Made Makers online

2019   Nov                 Handmade in Britain, Chelsea

            June               West Dean Arts and Craft Festival, West Sussex

            March             MADE London - Canary Wharf

                                     Contemporary Textiles Fair, Landmark Arts

2018   December     Selvedge Fair - Bloomsbury, London

            November     Lustre - Lakeside Arts, Nottingham

            June                West Dean Arts and Crafts Festival - West Dean College, West Sussex

2017    December     Selvedge Fair - Bloomsbury, London

            November     Made Brighton

            November    Lustre - Lakeside Arts, Nottingham

            October        Selvedge fair - Charleston House, Sussex

            June               Made West Dean, West Sussex

2016   Sept               Made Brighton - Brighton

           June               Made West Dean, West Sussex

           April                Made London - Bloomsbury

           March            Contemporary Textiles Fair - Landmark Arts, Teddington

2015   Sept               Ceramics in the City, Geffrye Museum, London E2

           Nov                 Handmade in Britain, Chelsea Old Town Hall, London SW3

2014   May               Pulse (trade fair), London

           Nov                Handmade in Britain, London

2009  April              Chelsea Art Fair, London

2008  June             Contemporary Craft Fair – Bovey Tracey, Devon

            April             Breath of Fresh Air– Byard Art, Cambridge

            April             Seeing is Deceiving – two person show, Model House, Wales

2007   March         Craft Council showcase – Victoria and Albert Museum

            March         Textile Illusion  - Craft2eu, Hamburg, Germany

            June            Contemporary Craft Fair – Bovey Tracey, Devon

            Sept             Ceramics in the City – Geffrye Museum, London

            Oct              Origin, The London Craft Fair – Somerset House, London

            Nov              Country Living Christmas Fair – Business Design Centre, London

2006   Oct              Origin - The London Craft Fair - Somerset House, London

            Sept            Ceramics in the City - Geffrye Museum, London

            March         Affordable Art Fair – Battersea, London

2005   Nov             Country Living Christmas Fair -  London

            March         Affordable Art Fair – Battersea, London

2004   Nov             Gifted – Group show – Frank T Sabin Gallery, London

            Nov              Country Living Christmas Fair - London

            April             Aston Martin selected group show–Oxo Gallery, London

            January       Top Drawer Spring – Earl’s Court Exhibition Centre

2003   Nov             Country Living Christmas Fair–Business Design Centre

            March         Country Living Spring Fair – Business Design Centre

1996     June          Slides held at National Art Library Archive V &A Museum

 

 How it's made

My work starts its journey with a piece of textile.  I hand sew patchwork, or applique, quilt or embroider in a wide range of interesting fabric textures and machine embroider motifs such as birds, shells and bees. 

These textiles are then covered with plaster, which when set, I can peel the fabric away leaving me with a plaster ‘negative’ of the fabric. I now roll out a slab of porcelain, large, flat and smooth.  Having worked out paper templates of a jug or vase, I lay the paper over the clay and roughly cut out the shapes needed to be joined together to make an item.  Each piece is then pressed firmly against the plaster.  All of the detail of the original fabric is translated onto the clay, which can then be peeled off the plaster.  My paper pattern templates are then cut around more precisely and the piece I am aiming for can be constructed.  Great care has to be taken not to loose textile detail or leave fingerprints and to match the textile joins where a spout meets a jug body.  Details are added by sprigging, such as buttons as feet on the base or braid on a handle.  The work is dried and biscuit fired, ready to be glazed or in the case of the machine embroidered work, ready to be painted with cobalt.  I use a very fine brush, charge it with cobalt and carefully paint over the stitches and only over the stitches! Cobalt is a very strong oxide when fired but remarkably hard to see in its subtlety when raw and can be picked up on a finger to be spread across any other piece handled, only to be noticed after the next firing! 

Once out of their second, high temperature glaze firing the plain white but highly textured pieces, have highlights added to catch the light and give interest in the form of opal or mother-of-pearl lustre.  These tiny additions are painted and then into the kiln the pieces go again.  I hope you like the finished items and see how many processes are involved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

bottom of page