This summer we are celebrating the centenary of the pioneering studio pottery at Winchcombe, Gloucestershire.
In April 1926 Bernard Leach was invited to take part in an Easter weekend of rural activities in Broadway, Worcestershire by Sydney Russell, entrepreneur owner of the Lygon Arms hotel in the village and his son, the furniture designer, Gordon Russell. Leach loaded the sidecar of his motorbike with equipment and with his assistant, Michael Cardew on pillion drove the 250 miles from St Ives in Cornwall to Broadway. As well as demonstrations of throwing on a wheel, the weekend was marked by long, fruitful conversations between the Russells and the two potters.
Cardew expressed his desire to set up his own pottery and was taken to see the former Becketts Pottery on the outskirts of Winchcombe. This traditional country pottery serving the local community had closed in 1914 – taking it on provided Cardew with an opportunity to develop his own ideas. The pottery was run first by Cardew, then from 1939 by Ray Finch and in more recent years by Ray’s sons Mike and Joe.
The exhibition will show an important private collection of Winchcombe Pottery including pieces not normally available and some which have never been exhibited publicly. It will cover the pottery’s development looking at Michael Cardew’s pioneering work, and its continuation under the thoughtful leadership of master potter Ray Finch with his belief in the power of the team. It will explore themes such as Winchcombe’s role as a training ground for young potters, the way its pots reflected changes in society, and its impact on studio pottery in Britain and the wider world.
The exhibition at Court Barn will be the centrepiece of connected shows in the area, at the Winchcombe Museum; the Edgeler Collection, Winchcombe; the Gordon Russell Design Museum, Broadway, Nature in Art, Twigworth; and events at Winchcombe Pottery itself.
The symposium will explore Winchcombe’s story from the early kiln disasters to wonderful handmade pots for every day. Featuring new research on the early years, its African connections, and craft pottery in the 60s and beyond with first-hand testimony from potters that worked there. Speakers include, Jeff Jones, Barry Turner, Joe Finch and Alex McErlain.
Registration from 9.30, starts at 10am – 5pm
Early Years: Stories from the Kiln – Helen Brown & Dr Oliver Kent
Winchcombe’s origins: kiln history, early production, and traditional wares.
Giving Sid Tustin a Voice – Dr Matthew Partington
Audio insights into Tustin’s life, work, and relationship with Cardew.
The ‘Mothership’ Influence – Barry Turner
Winchcombe’s impact on Cotswold slipware potteries (1950s–60s).
Winchcombe in Context – Prof. Jeffrey Jones
Studio pottery in post-war Britain as cultural regeneration.
African Links – Mary Greensted & Toff Milway
Cardew in Nigeria; Kolonyama Pottery, Lesotho.
Time and Place – Joe Finch, Alex McErlain, Ed Turfrey
Personal histories across generations.
Past, Present, Future – Panel (Chair: Hamish Jackson) with Nel Olsen, Flynn Paget-Wall Collins and Dan Finnegan
Sustainability, legacy, and new directions.
If you would like to talk to us about the event please call 01386 841951 or email [email protected]
Sarah McCormick Healy comments: ‘This exhibition promises to be a wonderful opportunity for visitors to the north Cotswolds to explore the remarkable work produced by Winchcombe Pottery throughout its 100-year history. By working in partnership with other venues in the area we can showcase a range of stories from potters past and present.
I am particularly looking forward to the symposium which promises to deepen our understanding of the pottery’s cultural significance and spark new conversations about its future. The exhibition and symposium aim to honour the legacy of Winchcombe Pottery while inspiring a new generation of ceramic artists and enthusiasts.’
This exhibition has been made possible with generous grants from The Summerfield Trust and The Dent-Brocklehurst Family Charitable Trust.
Mary Greensted is a freelance curator, lecturer and writer who specialises in the Arts and Crafts Movement. In her former role as Keeper of Museums at the Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum, she was responsible for Cheltenham’s award-winning Arts & Crafts Movement collection. In 2010, she received an MPhil by the University of Birmingham for her research into exchanges between Britain and Greece as part of the Arts & Crafts Movement. She was also Chairman of the Gloucestershire Guild of Craftsmen from 2009-18, a trustee and former Chair of the Guild of Handicraft Trust, Chipping Campden.
Mary has published a number of books including, most recently (October 2019), Ernest Gimson: Arts & Crafts Designer and Architect written with Annette Carruthers and Barley Roscoe.
Helen Brown is an independent curator having worked for many years at Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum. She curated the first retrospective exhibition of Winchcombe Pottery at Cheltenham in 1998 which travelled to Stoke-on-Trent and Penzance. More recently she curated ‘Radical Clay’ at Bristol Museum and two exhibitions at Court Barn: ‘Michael Cardew: The Winchcombe Years’ in 2016 and ‘Pioneers, 101 Years of the Leach Pottery’ in 2021.
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