A Weekend Away In The English Countryside: The Whichford Pottery

When whichford pottery hosted eco printer caroline nixon’s exhibition (no serial number autumn issue 2016) in their shop area, i was invited along, shown around and knew immediately i wanted to feature it in our spring issue! Situated in the most picturesque and midsomer murders type of british countryside they told me their story:

- Whichford Pottery

Jim and Dominique founded Whichford Pottery in 1976 and have been making their traditional flowerpots for 40 years. They learnt the ancient and efficient technique of spinning, or throwing, on old kick wheels from fourth generation settled potters. When they started, they were considered rather eccentric but after Jim successfully completed an apprenticeship with A. Harris & Sons at Wrecclesham in Surrey, they built on all their knowledge to sustain the essence and work ethic of old English Potteries: they survive in a highly competitive global market-place!

Many of our readers are interested in pottery on a smaller, domestic scale but the process of producing such large delicate pieces needs a whole team because of the lifting and moving involved. This means the work becomes more communal and the workforce more community based. Working with large pots requires everything to be on a bigger scale; from the organisation to everything else from clay production, to kiln size to the number of people in the office!