Laurance Simon, 2024. © The Artist.
I never have a fixed idea of what I am going to create... nothing is set in stone; I like to let the clay speak for itself. I can change my mind whilst working and take another direction.
– Laurance Simon, 2024
EASTWOOD FINE ART: You studied at Camberwell College of Arts and Cardiff School of Art. What drew you to working in ceramics and have there been particular moments in your career that have informed your practice?
LAURANCE SIMON: When I was a child in France an unexpected encounter with a potter made a lasting impression on me. My uncle and grandfather were craftsmen, they made cider barrels and horse carriages to carry in hay from the fields. They shared a cavernous workshop where I spent many hours of my summer holidays in Normandy blissfully making things. One morning I followed my uncle on one of his deliveries to a farm where we found a potter in residence. I watched the young man on the wheel with utter fascination, so much so that my uncle suggested: maybe you could do that when you grow up? I replied that I couldn’t because I was a girl and this (in my child's mind) was a man’s job!!! Sadly my uncle died before I could show him my work.
I was really fascinated and many years later, after I had moved to England, I was invited to the private view of a ceramic degree show. When I walked into the room I had this Eureka moment where I knew instantly that this was my vocation – I had no doubt whatsoever.
Whilst at Camberwell College of Arts, I also had the chance to participate in a school exchange which allowed me to spend six months studying ceramics in New York State, as well as spending time in California. Those experiences further increased my interest in working with clay.
EFA: Your work has a wonderful whimsical, organic sensibility that combines the sculptural nature of clay and drawing, how do you approach making each piece? There is also a balance between the aesthetic and functionality, how do you imagine your work being used once complete?
LS: I never have a fixed idea of what I am going to create, I decide on a shape I would like to make. I occasionally do some sketches or doodles to play with variations and how I will decorate it, but nothing is set in stone; I like to let the clay speak for itself. I don’t take a rigid approach, I can change my mind whilst working and take another direction.
I don’t spend a lot of time imagining how the work is going to be used, although I do create vessels that can be used and the candelabras certainly have a function; I regard them as sculptures and paintings in their own right. Primarily I want them to bring joy to the person who has chosen the work. I wouldn’t want to be prescriptive as to how they’re supposed to be used. I imagine that when the work leaves the studio, it is no longer mine, it has a life of its own. Occasionally, clients will send me pictures of the work in situ and I rather enjoy that. It also amuses me that they can be found in many places I have never been, Sweden, China, and recently Mexico.
For me the functionality is incidental.
EFA: The handpainted images across your work often represent plants and animals with patterns that recall folk embroidery or the simplicity of modern geometric designs. Where do you look to for inspiration?
LS: I am not sure I can pinpoint my inspirations, it has been varied over the years. To start with I was inspired by travels in India and Africa and their cultures – their attention to detail, the carving and modelling of vessels. Over the last few years, I have become more interested in paintings and I have begun to use my vessels as a canvas. I get a lot of my inspiration from the beauty of the natural world. Trees fascinate me, as well as plants, and the endless variations of their colour, texture, and pattern – it’s almost inexhaustible. I also often look at textiles if I visit a museum to discover new patterns.
EFA: For SPOTLIGHT, you have made two new pieces, a large jug and a candelabra, could you tell us more about them?
LS: Of the two pieces I have made for SPOTLIGHT, one of them is a large jug whose inspiration came from the garden of a friend in Dorset. I was enthralled by the delicacy of the almost snowy cow parsley against a very blue summer sky, so when I returned to London this image found itself on the jug with the added whimsicality of playful birds. The second piece is a candleholder where the starting point was blue too, this time inspired by black and white leaves on rippled water.