Mark's
career with clay began in 1971 as a trainee thrower at
Kingwood Pottery in Hampshire, England, where he was
taught by a mix of art school graduates and old time
plant pot makers. At this time he also attended part
of the ceramics course at Farnham Art School, which was
run by Paul Barron, and Henry Hammond;a pupil of Bernard
Leach, who gave him a wider view of the world of clay.
His present
workshop was established
in 1982,and for ten years he made terracotta garden
pots and slip decorated earthenware.
He also built his large wood-fired kiln.
After a
year spent working in New Zealand in the early nineties, he
returned to England, and continued potting with
more emphasis on the glazed slipware, which in its various
forms now constitutes the major part of his production.
His work is
a continuing exploration of the potential of wood-fired
earthenware,with the aesthetic and technical challenges
of the medium creating a constant evolution of style
and making practice.In his one-off pots he is developing
the theme of 'ritual vessels',(although none of these
pieces has a specifically allocated purpose unless it
is a functional pot).Current work consists of wheel thrown
or slab built 'shrines' and 'vessels', large jars, plant
pots for interiors,and functional pots.
He has exhibited widely
in the UK, and in France, and
examples of his work can be found in private and
public collections including
the Fitzwilliam Museum Cambridge.