"A wonderful fact to reflect upon, that every human creature is constituted to be that profound and secret mystery to every other."

 Charles Dickens: A Tale of Two Cities

In the autumn of 2016 and the early months of 2017 I have continued to explore the theme of the unknowable interior and to create ceramic forms that express nuances of emotion, atmosphere and ideas. I wish to create forms that prompt the viewer to question the interior whether it be of a person or an inanimate object.   

The interior, or as Dickens expresses it 'that profound and secret mystery' of a person or object is formed by life experiences, the events of history, the prevailing culture and individual genetic inheritances. Hence, in the Everywoman/Everyman series the figure, the embodiment of the individual, strides relentlessly and bravely forward. She/He may have limited understanding of those around them and almost certainly cannot truly fathom their own psyche but they can do no other than continue. Having glimpsed the interior through apertures and openings the next step is to see beyond, to speculate on what is possible and to consider the hidden factors on which lives are built.

The 'Inheritance' series is comprised of standing and wall pieces developed from the 2016 Guarded Spaces, the forms refer to an individual's genetic and cultural inheritance. Most people know little about these factors and move through their life unaware of the intrinsic influences carried within; we may know our Grandparents but perhaps not the generations before them and we are unlikely to be aware of much detail about our genetic history and so 'that profound secret and mystery' continues, for the moment at least.