Listen to an audio recording of the talk here.

As part of our upcoming exhibition, A Time of Gifts, Joanna Bird Gallery is delighted to announce our next artist talk – Drawing as Seeing, with ceramicist and illustrator Helen Beard.

By grouping pots together, I like to tell a story – creating whimsical scenes that capture the insignificant yet precious moments that make up our daily lives.

– Helen Beard

Helen first discovered ceramics while studying Jewellery Design at Edinburgh College of Art, where she developed her distinctive method of drawing and painting onto porcelain using stain-impregnated newsprint. Following her apprenticeship with celebrated potter and writer Edmund de Waal, she established her Islington studio in 2004 and has since collaborated with Jo Malone London, the National Gallery, Fortnum & Mason and Dovecot Studios.

Known for her hand-thrown porcelain vessels, her illustrations are drawn from lively characters drawn in her North London surroundings, swimmers at the Ponds and market traders on Columbia Road.

In this talk, Helen will reflect on her instinctive approach to observation and storytelling and her unconventional route into her ceramic practice of today.

Listen to an audio recording of the talk here.

As part of our upcoming exhibition, A Time of Gifts, Joanna Bird Gallery is delighted to announce our next artist talk.

Having both trained in Thomastown, Ireland, and apprenticed at Maze Hill Pottery under Lisa Hammond MBE, Francis Lloyd-Jones and Florian Gadsby have both learned thoroughly how to throw with efficiency and skill, each striving for sensibility and functionality in their work.

Florian complements his architectural forms with gas-fired, feldspathic glazes which create a rich crystalline effect. Having studied as a graphic designer, the precise lines of his work are clean and sophisticated, sitting comfortably in any company. He has documented his process online for his 1.8 million followers, and has recently published his first book, By My Hands; A Potter’s Apprenticeship.

Francis captures a delicate balance between looseness and definition in his subtle forms. His work is fired in reduction, often with salt glazes, which evoke a quiet elegance and tactile warmth. He is currently based in Cumbria as the resident potter for Grizedale Arts, an arts organisation underpinned by the philosophy that art should benefit the wider community.

In this engaging conversation, Francis and Florian will reflect on their training, discuss the evolution of their practice, and offer insight into the experiences that continue to inform their work. Their work will be exhibited in A Time of Gifts, which will run from 19th November – 16th December 2025.

If you would like to donate to the Foundation, please visit the Joanna Bird Foundation website here. 

Join us on Thursday 23rd October for a special talk with distinguished potter Miranda Thomas. Celebrated internationally for her exquisite decorative designs, Miranda has designed diplomatic gifts for UN Secretary Generals, US Presidents, and for several Popes.

Visiting from Vermont, this is a rare opportunity to hear her explore the rich historical and decorative traditions that have inspired her distinctive style, and share insights on the ceramic masters who mentored her, including Michael Cardew CBE and Alan Caiger-Smith.

The lecture was recorded by our filmmaker Alex J Wright. It is available on the foundation website here. 

We are delighted to announce that Mark Hewitt, one of the most respected studio potters of our time, will be visiting the UK for a short while and sharing his incredible journey in ceramics.

Mark, a dear friend of Joanna, will take us through the pivotal moments of his career – from his family’s heritage as managers of the Spode factoryin Stoke-on-Trent, to his time as an apprentice to Michael Cardew in Wenford, and ultimately to his current home in North Carolina. His work, especially his signature large-scale, wood-fired, salt-glazed pots,reflects a blending of English studio pottery, North Carolinian traditions, and influences from Africa and Southeast Asia.

This is a rare opportunity to hear from an artist who has shaped the world of contemporary ceramics, so don’t miss out!

The event will take place at the Chiswick gallery: 19 Grove Park Terrace, London, W4 3QE. Drinks and refreshments will be served.

We ask that attendees donate £10 to the Joanna Bird Foundation to support our upcoming talks and projects.

An audio of the talk is available below. Alternatively, you can watch a video of Mark’s presentation on his Artist Page.

Thank you to the wonderful crowd who came to our Artists Talk last night. In particular a special thank you to Alex Toscano and the three artists Kaja Upelj, Sara Moorhouse, and Sara Dodd whose generosity of spirit made it such an illuminating evening. The wide variety of topics spanned from the rolling fields of Nottinghamshire to NASA’s ventures in outer space, as well as the physical demands on an audience and the role of light and colour in creating illusion.

Alex Toscano was a former director of Trinity Fine Art, a gallery specialising in Old Master Sculpture, Painting and Drawings, where she worked since 1988. During this time she has served on the committees of the Society of London Art Dealers, Master Drawings in London, and was Vice Chair of London Art Week until 2021.  She is currently a Trustee of the Friends of the Bargello, the glorious museum of sculpture in Florence, for whom she also undertakes the role of Administrative Development.

Join us for a tour with curator Joanna Bird at Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery as she elaborates on the theme: A Fine Line: Modern Makers at Pitzhanger.

Hear how each of the exhibition’s artists, including Emmanuel Boos, Joseph Harrington and Prue Cooper and a host of other makers have been placed in the context of Soane’s manor to uncover connections across craft, design, and history.

Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery
Ealing Green, London W5 5EQ
(closer tube station Ealing Broadway)

We are delighted to announce the final evening event of our summer exhibition Serendipity, Open House & Garden on 12th July from 5.00 to 9.00 pm, at Joanna Bird Gallery, 19 Grove Park Terrace, W4 3QE.
Join us for a glass of fizz and a stroll around the garden, followed by viewing an exquisite collection of contemporary and historic works. RSVP essential

If you are travelling by car, please make sure you enter Chiswick via Sutton Court Road to avoid any fines.

Joanna Bird Gallery, 19 Grove Park Terrace, W4 3QE
open until Saturday 13th July
Tuesday – Saturday, 10.00 am – 5.00 pm, and by appointment.

Join us at London Craft Week 2024 for a unique encounter with Joanna Bird at Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery as she delves into A Fine Line: Modern Makers at Pitzhanger between noon and 2pm on 18th May.

This informal session offers an exclusive look at how the exhibition’s artists, including Emmanuel Boos and Prue Cooper, resonate with Sir John Soane’s architectural mastery. Drop in to uncover the intertwined stories of craft, design, and history through ceramics and glass.

Book your ticket HERE.

The event will take place at: Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery, Ealing Green, London W5 5EQ (10 minutes from the Elizabeth line).

Join us for a special late-night reception for A Fine Line: Modern Makers at Pitzhanger as part of London Craft Week 2024. Joanna Bird will be in conversation with artists Joseph Harrington and Gregory Warren Wilson. Together, they will explore the intricate interplay between the disciplines of ceramics, glass and architecture and offer us a rare glimpse into the creative process behind new works inspired by Sir John Soane’s aesthetic and architectural legacy.

Guests will have the opportunity to explore A Fine Line: Modern Makers at Pitzhanger displayed throughout the manor house before the talk begins.

Buy your tickets HERE.

The event will take place at: Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery, Ealing Green, London W5 5EQ (10 minutes from the Elizabeth line).

Wednesday 13th December, 6.30–8.30 pm.

Please join us for a fascinating evening with potter Prue Cooper, in association with the Joanna Bird Foundation.

Prue’s dishes are meant to be used and enjoyed, slip decorated press-moulded earthenware is an approachable and friendly medium. The designs reflect her view of life, celebrating friendship and the sharing of simple pleasures. Some dishes have inscriptions, which are not separate from the designs but integral to the whole both in form and meaning. The overall design echoes the sense of the words (as a tune echoes the sense of the lyric).

Work by Prue is on view as part of our current exhibition, The Joy of Things to Come, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com

Donations welcomed towards the Joanna Bird Foundation.

RSVP is essential for all events.

Wednesday 22nd November, 6.30–8.30 pm

Please join us for a conversation between Martina Margetts, writer, curator, lecturer, former Editor of Crafts and Senior Tutor in Critical & Historical Studies with the artist Pam Su, in association with the Joanna Bird Foundation.

Work by Pam is on view as part of our current exhibition, The Joy of Things to Come, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com

Drinks and canapés will be served. Donations welcomed towards the Joanna Bird Foundation.

RSVP is essential for all events.

Wednesday 19th July 2023, 6 pm

Please join us on the exhibition closing night  for a talk and tour of the house and garden.
An evening not to be missed!

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com

Suggested donation of £5 towards the Joanna Bird Foundation.

RSVP is essential for all events.

Wednesday 28th June 2023, 6.30 – 8.00pm

Please join us for a conversation with ceramicist William Plumptre.

Following his ceramic design studies at Chelsea College of Art, William Plumptre travelled to Japan where he learned with the Japanese National Treasure, Tatsuzō Shimaoka. He returned to England and established his first pottery in 1987, and since 1994 Plumptre has been working from his studio in the Lake District.

Work by William is on view as part of our current exhibition, Rites of Passage, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com

Suggested donation of £15 towards the Joanna Bird Foundation.

RSVP is essential for all events.

Wednesday 21st June 2023, 6.30 – 8.00pm

Please join us for an artist talk, featuring Akiko Hirai and Gregory Warren Wilson.

Akiko makes a variety of wares, drawing from the Japanese tradition of allowing the clay to influence her in how she decorates and fires her work. The interaction between object and viewer enables the viewer to discover the language of her practice in their own way. Her unique approach to ceramics has been highly acclaimed, her work is much in demand internationally.

Gregory Warren Wilson is an artist and prize-winning poet. His work in glass plays with the translucent nature of the material, using multiple layers of hand-cut sections glass and tesserae to allow light to interact with the colours spatially. His designs sometimes take as their starting point a fragment of poetry, resulting in a glasswork that exists in its own right while alluding to the original literary source.

Works by Akiko and Gregory are on view as part of our current exhibition, Rites of Passage, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com.

Suggested donation of £15 towards the Joanna Bird Foundation.

RSVP is essential for all events.

Wednesday 14th June 2023, 6.30 – 8.00pm

Please join us for our first talk of our latest exhibition, Rites of Passage, featuring Julian Stair, Carina Ciscato and Matthew Warner in conversation.

Julian Stair OBE is an English potter and historian who works in London, and studied at Camberwell School of Art and the Royal College of Art. His work ranges from modest homeware to monumental vessels, but retains his unique modernist style throughout. Julian’s essays have been published by the Courtauld Institute, Dulwich Picture Gallery, Tate Gallery and the Yale Centre for British Art.

Carina Ciscato is a Brazilian potter from São Paulo, who moved to South London in September 1999, where she worked in the studio of Julian Stair and Edmund de Waal. Her work captures the fluidity of clay as she masterfully alters and re-assembles the thrown forms with a natural sense of balance, form and material.

Matthew Warner completed his BA at Camberwell College of Art in 2010. He went on to study under Julian Stair and now works from his studio in South East London. He takes inspiration from the work of the 18th century potter, Josiah Wedgwood, and from historic cultural research.

Works by Carina and Matthew are on view as part of our latest exhibition, Rites of Passage, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com

Suggested donation of £15 towards the Joanna Bird Foundation.

RSVP is essential for all events.

Monday, 5th December 2022, 6.00 – 8.00pm

Please join us for our final talk of 2022, featuring artist Lucille Lewin and curator Preston Fitzgerald in conversation with Joanna Bird.

Lucille Lewin is an artist from South Africa, who graduated from the Royal College of Art in 2017. Her work focuses on fine porcelain elements which are fractured metaphors for human experience through time.

Preston Fitzgerald is a curator of contemporary ceramics as well as a collector of contemporary crafts. He curates an annual exhibition of ceramics and glass with students from the MA course at the Royal College of Art, and also serves as a judge of the Young Masters Maylis Grand Ceramics Prize.

Work by Lucille is on view as part of our autumn exhibition, Point of Balance, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com

Thursday, 1st December 2022, 6.00 – 8.00pm

We are very pleased to announce our upcoming Evening Event in association with the Joanna Bird Foundation, with glass artists Dawn Bendick and Gregory Warren Wilson in conversation with Joanna. Join us for an evening of discussion and insight into these outstanding artists and their practice.

Dawn Bendick is an artist working with time, light and multitone glass based in the UK. Her project titled ‘Time Over Time’ considers how the changing properties of a material can signal the passage of time. Using a combination of natural and artificial lights to tap into our peripheral senses, Dawn questions how we can bring awareness to the change in seasons, atmospheric light and weather.

Gregory Warren Wilson is an artist and prize-winning poet. His work in glass plays with the translucent nature of the material, using multiple layers of hand-cut tesserae to allow light to interact with the glass spatially. His designs sometimes take as their starting point a fragment of poetry, resulting in a glasswork that exists in its own right while alluding to the original literary source.

Work by Dawn and Gregory is on view as part of our autumn exhibition, Point of Balance, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com

Saturday, 19th November 2022, 11.00am – 1.00pm

We are delighted to invite you to brunch at our Chiswick gallery with acclaimed potter Florian Gadsby. This is a unique opportunity to meet and chat to one of our outstanding artists about his work and philosophy. Gaining insight into Florian’s practice as a potter while enjoying breakfast treats will be a Saturday morning well spent!

Florian Gadsby is a ceramicist working in North London. Having apprenticed with Lisa Hammond at Maze Hill Pottery for three years, Florian went on to work with Ken Matsuzaki in Mashiko, Japan, for six months. There he learnt how to use the traditional Japanese kick-wheel to make his established shapes, as well as how to glaze and fire in both the oribe and shino styles.

To book a ticket for brunch with Florian, please click here.

Work by Florian is on view as part of our autumn exhibition, Point of Balance, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com

Tuesday, 8th November 2022, 6.00 – 8.00pm

We are pleased to announce our upcoming Evening Event in association with the Joanna Bird Foundation: an illustrated talk by artist and sculptor Halima Cassell MBE, FRSS. Known for her dynamic geometric motifs, which she carves into clay and later fires or casts, Halima’s work is largely inspired by her Pakistani heritage, her fascination with African patterns, and her knowledge of Islamic architectural principles. Join us for the exciting opportunity to hear Halima speak about her work and process.

Work by Halima is on view as part of our autumn exhibition, Point of Balance, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com

All talks begin at 6.30pm. Canapés and wine will be served.

Entry donations welcome.

13th July 2022, Wednesday 6.00 – 8.00pm

We are pleased to announce our upcoming Evening Event in association with the Joanna Bird Foundation, with artists Francis Lloyd-Jones and Karen Bunting in conversation with Joanna. Join us for a rare opportunity to hear son of potter David Lloyd-Jones speak about his beautiful soda glazing in the company of Karen, who has know him for many years

Work by Karen and Franics is on view as part of our summer exhibition, The Sunlight on the Garden, in our Chiswick gallery and on our website.

For more information, call us on 020-8995-9960 or email info@joannabird.com