Michael Cardew retrospective

There's a major retrospective of master potter Michael Cardew's work next month in the Cotswolds, England. Cardew was a student of Bernard Leach and a master of slipware, influenced as much by Shoji Hamada. Cardew worked in both Cornwall and, from the early 1950's, in Suleja (near Abuja), where he joined forces with Ladi Kwali in turning the region into the centre for ceramics in the country. His name lives on at Bwarri pottery, where his student Michael O'Brien spends six months of the year working. To see a video of Cardew at work, click here. The images on this post are of Cardew and Kwali (she is also commemorated on the new N20 note!)

See the blurb below on the show. Thanks a lot Doig for the email.

MICHAEL CARDEW AND STONEWARE
SATURDAY 7TH JUNE TO SATURDAY 28TH JUNE 2008, 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. (closed Sundays)
(PRIVATE VIEW FRIDAY 6TH JUNE FROM 6PM TO 8PM)

A major retrospective of the career of Michael Cardew after World War II, focussing in particular on his work in Nigeria at Abuja and at Wenford Bridge in Cornwall.

The pots in the exhibition have been drawn exclusively from private collections, so visitors will have the rare opportunity to see some 200 pots not normally on display to the general public. Traditional pots from North Devon and Africa will also be exhibited.

The show will also see the launch of a new 160 page full colour book on Cardew’s pottery made in stoneware, a companion volume to the well received title we published in 2007, Michael Cardew and the West Country slipware tradition. Some contemporary pots will also be on sale by Svend Bayer, Clive Bowen, Mike Dodd, Michael OBrien and Danlami Aliyu.

Long Room Gallery is situated in the centre of the Cotswolds town of Winchcombe, which is equidistant between the towns of Cheltenham and Broadway, on the B4632. Directions are given in the map below, but do not hesitate to ring should you require any clarification.

LONG ROOM GALLERY & COTSWOLDS LIVING PUBLICATIONS ,
WINCHCOMBE [tel. 01242 602319]