Nancy Murgatroyd
"Working with clay to shape and form thoughts and ideas."
I am fascinated by a task which completely transforms a material making it useful, decorative and sometimes thought provoking. A lump of clay moulded into shape by hand, fired and decorated, a linocut print transforming a sheet of handmade paper into wall art, spun fibres woven into a piece of cloth. All techniques I have used and enjoyed, each one informing the others.
My first serious encounters with art and craft were at Bideford School of Art and led me to a degree in fashion and textiles, a career in both fields, colour forecasting, painting, design management, teaching workshops and owning a gallery.
My cream stoneware moulded and shaped by hand is my blank canvas to which I apply images which are formed in a number of ways. Sgraffito carving into slip relates to linocut printing and feels like the medium which gives me a satisfying freedom of expression. It is a joy to be interpreting a traditional North Devon technique in a contemporary way.