Stoked about ceramics

This weekend sees the opening of the British Ceramics Biennial, celebrating Blighty’s finest contemporary ceramics.

This is the second Biennial, and the event will span six weeks of exhibitions, site-specific installations and artist residences; as well as inviting participants to create responses to the industrial and architectural heritage of its Stoke-On-Trent home.

The festival hub will be the Spode Pottery factory, with other events taking place in various locations about the city including talks, seminars and workshops.

The Award exhibition at the Potteries Museum & Art Gallery will showcase the 24 finalists in the running for the

£10 000 Biennial prize, which will be announced on 13 October.

Graduate show Fresh will feature the Craft Council’s Firing Up project, which encourages participation in ceramics in secondary schools.

Another Fresh highlight promises to be Lawrence Epps’ Human Resources project – which started life as thousands of three-dimensional businessmen placed in various locations around London, aiming to explore workplace issues such as the impact of the recession and waste.

 On the eve of the festival, an extension of Epps’ project will see another of his installations unveiled in a ‘top secret’ Stoke-On-Trent location.

Native Stoke-On-Trent artist Philip Eglin has been busy making new works from reclaimed and discarded ceramic moulds from the nine remaining stores at Spode. His Something Borrowed Something Blue series references the Spode colours, imagery and traditions, and will sit alongside the work of six other artists as art of the Explore programme.

The British Ceramics Biennial takes place from 30 September to 13 November at various location around Stoke-On-Trent. For more information visit http://britishceramicsbiennial.com/