Exhibitions are fun to put together, you never really know until the end of the hang (and getting to know the work that you are showing) how it is going to look and where the impact will lie. This is a constant challenge – I love mixing it up a little and surprising people.


Collect 2024

Joanna Bird is delighted to be presenting a selection of compelling new work in her twentieth year of exhibiting at Collect Art Fair.

Collect is the leading international fair for contemporary craft and design, held at Somerset House, London, from 1st–3rd March 2024, with previews on 28th–29th February.

Early Bird Tickets are now available to purchase on the Crafts Council website, here.

We look forward to seeing you there!

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

The Joy of Things to Come

Joanna Bird is delighted to present her latest exhibition, The Joy of Things to Come, open from 15th November to 15th December 2023.

Just in time for the festive season, this exhibition should whet your appetite for special presents as it shows our glorious range of beautiful tableware in ceramics and glass, as well as fine Italian linen.
These works will certainly bring joy to your lives and lift the spirits for the holiday season.

The Joy of Things to Come will include works by several artists: Dawn Bendick, Alan Caiger-Smith, Prue Cooper, Pippin Drysdale, Lobmeyr Glass, Hanne Heuch, Francis Lloyd-Jones, Tom Perkins, Judith Rowe, Anthony Scala, Pam Su, Louisa Taylor, Miranda Thomas, Matthew Warner, Gregory Warren Wilson.

Also works by past masters: Alan Caiger-Smith, Edward Hughes, William Staite Murray, Lucie Rie and Charles Vyse will be exhibited.

The gallery is open 10.00am – 5.00pm, Tuesday to Saturday and by appointment.

Evening events and talks with be held in association with the Joanna Bird Foundation. See our events page to find out more!

We look forward to seeing you!

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

The Joy of Things to Come

Rites of Passage 2023

Joanna Bird is delighted to present her latest exhibition, Rites of Passage, open from 8th June to 19th July 2023.

This exhibition brings critical insight into the evolution of twentieth-century ceramics from the British tradition. It centres around innovations in style and an artistic inheritance passed from master to apprentice. The incorporation of works by artists from continental Europe and Japan allows visitors to discover the diverse and intersecting influences on artistic development, and Joanna draws out the cultural lineages embedded in contemporary works through careful curation and juxtaposition with historic pieces

Rites of Passage will include works by several contemporary artists: Emmanuel Boos, Carina Cisato, Hanne Heuch, Akiko Hirai, Tom Perkins, William Plumptre, Matthew Warner and Gregory Warren Wilson. Also exhibited are works by past masters: Richard Batterham, Michael Cardew, Bernard Leach and Lucie Rie.

The gallery is open 10.00am – 5.00pm, Tuesday to Saturday and by appointment. An illustrated catalogue will also be available.

Evening events and talks with be held in association with the Joanna Bird Foundation. See our events page to find out more!

We look forward to seeing you!

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

Rites of Passage 2023

Collect 2023

Joanna Bird is delighted to be presenting a selection of compelling new work at Collect Art Fair.

Collect is the leading international fair for contemporary craft and design, held at Somerset House, London, from 3rd–5th March 2023, with previews on 1st–2nd March.

Early Bird Tickets are now available to purchase on the Crafts Council website, here.

We look forward to seeing you there!

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

Collect 2023

Point of Balance

12th October – 16th December 2022

JOANNA BIRD is delighted to present its Autumn Exhibition, Point of Balance. The Exhibition will run from 12th October – 16th December. Our Chiswick gallery open viewing days are Tuesday to Saturday, 10.00am – 5.00pm; other days by appointment. Please email info@joannabird.com or call us on 020-8995-9960 to schedule an appointment with Joanna.

For this exhibition, each artist was asked to respond to the title theme in their own individual ways. These texts have been designed within a beautiful catalogue. The catalogue is available to purchase for £5 plus P&P. The artists include: Dawn Bendick, Halima Cassell, Joanna Constantinidis, Steffen Dam, Pippin Drysdale, Elizabeth Fritsch, Florian Gadsby, Sun Kim, Lucille Lewin, Tom Perkins, Katharine Pleydell-Bouverie, Lucie Rie, Rupert Spira, Kaja Upelj, Charles Vyse, Matthew Warner and Gregory Warren Wilson.
We do hope you can come and enjoy the exhibition.
Point of Balance

Steffen Dam’s solo exhibition – Come Fly with Me

13 May – 30 December 2022, Glasmuseet Ebeltoft, Denmark

We are pleased to share our artist, Steffen Dam’s new solo exhibition, ‘Come Fly with Me’, is now open at the Glasmuseet Ebeltoft, Denmark from 13 May – 30 December 2022. Steffen has created a beautiful airship that takes us through the screen to his wizard’s view of the world.

Steffen Dam’s solo exhibition – Come Fly with Me

COLLECT – the SELECT

At our Chiswick Gallery, we have reimagined our COLLECT 2022 display at Somerset House by restaging the work of several of our celebrated artists in a more domestic setting.

‘COLLECT – the SELECT’ comprises ceramics, glass, bronze, lacquer, photography, and much more, and will run from 16th March until 12th April 2022 (Mondays to Thursdays from 10am to 5pm, and all other days by appointment), with an after-party on the final day from 12pm to 8pm. Please RSVP to attend via info@joannabird.com or +44 (0) 20 8995 9960.

Exhibiting artists include Silvia Aguirre, Svend Bayer, Dawn Bendick, Hélène Binet, Karen Bunting, Michael Cardew, Halima Cassell, Vittorio Costantini, Steffen Dam, Pippin Drysdale, Elizabeth Fritsch, Akiko Hirai, Edward Hughes, David Leach, Hattori Makiko, Jim Malone, Geoffrey Mann, William de Morgan, Nason Moretti, James Oughtibridge, Tanja Pak, Katharine Pleydell-Bouverie, Lucie Rie, Rupert Spira, Miranda Thomas, Matthew Warner, Gregory Warren Wilson, Philip Wood, and Yali Glass.

#COLLECTtheSELECT

COLLECT – the SELECT

Joanna Bird at COLLECT 2022

Joanna Bird at COLLECT 2022

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Richard Batterham, Master Potter

 

“This fine documentary is a deep dive into one man’s world of making, and the philosophy behind a life in pottery. The sense of accumulation – of time, of clay, of conviction – is palpable in every shot. We also hear from the magnificent David Attenborough and master chef Nigel Slater (who begins every day with his Batterham breakfast bowl). Their voices remind us that often, the most meaningful things in life are rooted in the everyday, indeed, in the dirt beneath our feet.” 

– Glenn Adamson. Senior Research Scholar, Yale Centre of British Art

 

Joanna Bird is honoured to present Richard Batterham, Master Potter, a film made by the Joanna Bird Foundation with filmmaker Alex J. Wright, featuring Sir David Attenborough and Nigel Slater. An edited version will be on view at the Victoria and Albert Museum’s Richard Batterham: Studio Potter Exhibition opening Friday, 26th November 2021 – September 2022 in Room 146.

The life and work of Richard Batterham (1936-2021) is monumental within the world of studio ceramics. Joanna celebrates her friendship with Richard which spanned 40 years through the sharing of his life’s work. Richard remains an inspiration for us all.

For more information, please visit the V&A webite.

And more more information about the Joanna Bird Foundation, or to purchase a full length DVD of the film, please click the button below.

Richard Batterham, Master Potter

The Garden of Earthly Delights Film

The Garden of Earthly Delights Film

The Garden of Earthly Delights

Joanna Bird is delighted to present her forthcoming exhibition, The Garden of Earthly Delights. For this show, Joanna has asked the participating artists to respond to the Gallery’s well established garden, designed thirty-five years ago by esteemed landscape architect Simon Irvine.

The exhibition will be on view from JULY 8th SEPTEMBER 8th at the Joanna Bird Gallery, Chiswick, and virtually on the Joanna Bird website.

Fergus Garrett, highly esteemed Head Gardener at Great Dixter, will be giving two talks on JULY 14th at the Gallery, entitled Designing with Plants the Great Dixter Way. To buy your ticket to attend one of these lectures click on the following links for the first talk at 6:00 p.m. or the second at 7.30 p.m. We hugely appreciate Fergus giving his time to do this for us.

There will be two other evenings with our artists, one on JULY 16th with Adam Buick, and the other on the JULY 28th with Akiko Hirai and Jason Collingwood. Details to be found on the website early next week.

We do hope you come and visit the exhibition which promises to be exciting, showing exquisite work both in the garden and the Gallery.

 

 

The Garden of Earthly Delights

Gregory Warren Wilson interview with Joanna Bird

The Gallery has made a short interview with Gregory Warren Wilson in which he discusses his artistic process and his new mosaics for Collect 2021.

Gregory Warren Wilson is an artist, professional violinist and award-winning poet. His most recent work in glass is the culmination of twenty-five years of design. By working on multiple layers of glass set within deep frames, he enables light to interact spatially with the glass, making his work sculptural in its concerns. He balances colour in such a way that each design appears definitively resolved, while at the same time maintaining its asymmetry. 

Gregory Warren Wilson interview with Joanna Bird

‘Landscapes in porcelain’ – Pippin Drysdale in Ceramic Review

Don’t miss the feature on Pippin Drysdale in the latest Ceramic Review, Issue 303 (May/June 2020).

‘It’s when the process feels at its easiest and most natural that most of the gems emerge’

Joanna interviews Pippin on her life and work in porcelain from humble beginnings to gaining international acclaim. Since Joanna started representing Pippin in 2008, her work has been acquired by private and public collections and numerous museums, including the V&A. In 2015 Pippin was named one of Western Australia’s 15 Living Treasures and this year was awarded an Honorary Doctorate at Curtin University, Perth.

We have a selection of works on our website which you can view here and Pippin will be taking part in our upcoming online exhibtion Autoritratto in July.

Pictured: Deep Reach Pool and Wattle Tree, enquire here

Art, Form and Function Talks

In association with the Joanna Bird Foundation

November 2019

For this 25th Anniversary Exhibition Joanna is hosting a selection of artist talks and poetry reading to accompany the show.

William Wilkins in conversation with Joanna Bird

An intimate talk with this distinguished British painter inspired by Venice.

Thursday 7th November 6:30pm

Amy West

Gain a fascinating insight into Venetian glass jewellery making.

Wednesday 13th November 6:30pm

Gregory Warren-Wilson

A reading of his poetry, written in the city of Venice.

Wednesday 20th November 6:30pm

Charlotte Hodes

Interactive artist’s talk by ceramicist and print maker Charlotte Hodes

Wednesday 27th November 6:30pm

 

RSVP is essential to all events – RSVP here

Please be aware that spaces are limited and will fill up quickly

Art, Form and Function

30 October - 30 November 2019

Why should Art not stimulate us in our homes especially in our daily routines?

This 25th Anniversary exhibition is to celebrate Joanna Bird’s life as a Gallery owner exploring decorative objects and fine art over the last 30 years. The show seeks to capture an enlightened world where beautiful objects appeal and amuse – some charmingly suggest whilst others demand attention – to be handled, utilised, arranged, hung high, touched and dwelt upon.

An opportunity to absorb deeply considered objects made with integrity is a life enriching experience. These objects are at the heart of the matter, enduring beauty is never to be underestimated for the pleasure it can bestow.

Each of us has a favourite cup, plate, teapot or bowl to which our eye and hand involuntarily reach out. Just imagine if all the objects and utensils  were our favourites (assuming that we had managed to jettison any with loosely sentimental value or not quite what we would have chosen ourselves) suddenly our specific living area becomes a curated space punctuated with our chosen pieces; we would be delighting in them daily and spoilt for choice.

Many years of discerning selection of objects and art has gone into the pieces chosen for this exhibition. The artists all excel in their fields. We do hope you will come and view the marvellous work on display in Art, Form and Function and consider objects which are visually compelling, made by hand and heart felt.

For the first time Joanna Bird is delighted to be showing the striking pointillist paintings by distinguished artist William Wilkins, CBE.

Come and see the elegance of Matthew Warners cups refreshingly researched after Josiah Wedgewood’s production in the 18th Century. Delight in the wit of Charlotte Hodes printed collages of fashion, decorating a coffee service and other fine platters. Feel the rough texture of LOEWE finalist Akiko Hirais unglazed cups and sake bottles. Witness the playfulness of Carlo Morettis cocktail glasses (limited editions). Relish the anticipation of a déjeuner sur l’herbe with Chiarastella Cattanas hand woven linen napkins whilst relaxing on her jacquard blanket woven in the Dolomites. Be charmed by Marie-Rose Kahanes delicate glass garniture composed of subtly evolving shapes; vases which will lend elegance to any table centre. Enjoy the conceptual glass by Geoffrey Mann and distinctive silver jug forms by Adi Toch. Imagine arriving at the Opera in one of Amy Wests exclusive glass necklaces created by transforming rare coloured glass into jewellery, exclusive to Murano.

To complement these artists Joanna will be showing ceramic work by Richard Batterham, Svend Bayer, Carina Ciscato, Rupert Spira, Michael Cardew, Joanna Constantinidis, Ruth Duckworth, Hyejeong Kim, Edmund de Waal and Edward Hughes. Presenting a rich gallery of Masters and Students, Designers and Craftsmen this exhibition will excite your imagination, it is not to be missed.

Sublime Alchemy Events

May 2019

We are hosting a series of special evening events to accompany the Sublime Alchemy exhibition:

Plants, Sculpture & Landscaping 

Join us on a walk and talk through the gallery garden with Joanna Bird and Tom Freeth, gardener at Kew Gardens.

Tuesday 14 May 2019, 6:30pm

 

Artist’s Talk: Akiko Hirai

Japanese ceramicist, Akiko Hirai, will be in conversation with Joanna Bird, discussing her creative process and her pieces on display.

Thursday 16 May 2019, 6:30pm – This event is now fully booked

 

“Firing the Imagination”, Gregory Warren Wilson

A short reading by Gregory Warren Wilson, inspired by ceramics, including a new poem created in response to the Korean art on display in the show.

Monday 20 May 2019, 6:30pm – This event is now fully booked

 

RSVP is essential to all events – RSVP here

Sublime Alchemy

8-25 May 2019

Under the theme of Korean and Japanese ceramics, we introduce new artists for this Spring exhibition. The show explores the fascinating contrast of aesthetics between both cultures and ceramic styles.


A rare group of works by the pre-eminent Korean Master Potter, Soon-Tak Ji (1912 – 1994) demonstrate his outstanding achievements. Soon-Tak Ji was deemed a Living National Treasure in his lifetime and remains one of the most influential potters in modern Korean ceramics. These unique pieces are wonderfully representative of his output at its best.


Hyejeong Kim has created new work in Korea for the show as has Jaejun Lee. Their work adds an ingredient of very contemporary Korean ceramics available and an interesting contrast to that of Soon-Tak Ji; who built his repertoire having researched the Joseon period in depth.


Japanese potter Akiko Hirai’s style is instantly recognisable, and she too has created new work for the show. Kaori Tatebayashi has Still Life framed compositions on view while Hiroko Mita’s vessel form exudes tangable energy. Miyu Kurihara excels in her hand painted Mini Moon jars adding to this distinguished group.


The presence of Moon Jars is celebrated by  Adam Buick; some glazed in seaweed or other unusual organic ingredients. Svend Bayer is exhibiting some of his best work to date. These are amphorae in form and character, placed in the firebox of his wood fired kiln for at least three days with unimaginable results, a perfect example of ‘Sublime Alchemy’. John Ward’s considered understated pieces show us how black manganese can appear as bronze, underlining the transformation from clay to artefacts of great beauty, through oxides and fire.


Featuring artists including:Halima Cassell, Carina Ciscato, Pippin Drysdale and Katie Spragg adding to this talented group of ceramic artists. Adi Toch presents her shimmering, brightly coloured silver vessels and James Oughtibridge shows us how black and white ceramic sculptural forms command attention in the garden. Also included; past masters Kenkichi Tomimoto, Joanna Constantinidis and Lucie Rie.

 

In collaboration with LVS and Icheon City.

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Joanna Bird at CAL’s Claytalks

This year as part of Ceramic Art London’s Claytalks Joanna will be delivering an overview of her varied career. From the early days of creating pots at Wenford Bridge Pottery with mentor Michael Cardew to running a successful Art Gallery. Joanna will be discussing her charity the Joanna Bird Foundation, how and why she created it and the films she is so passionate about making. Join us for the talk on Saturday 23rd at Ceramic Art London, Central Saint Martins.

Ceramic Art London
Lecture Theatre
Central Saint Martins
King’s Cross

Saturday 23 March
1.00 – 2.00 pm

 

 

Collect 2019

Joanna Bird is delighted to be returning to Collect 2019.

We have a wonderful mix of new and established artists, all with their unique voice and quality craftsmanship.

We will be showing work from:
Halima Cassell, Steffen Dam, Sara Dodd, Pippin Drysdale, Joseph Harrington, Catrin Howell, Theis Lorentzen, Hattori Makiko, Nest Design, James Oughtibridge, Bruno Romanelli, Lucie Rie, Matt Sherratt, Katie Spragg, Karlyn Sutherland, Kaori Tatebayashi, Adi Toch and John Ward.

28 February – 3 March, 2019

Opening Times:
Thursday 28 February: 11am – 5pm
Friday 1 March: 11am – 6pm
Saturday 2 March: 11am – 6pm
Sunday 3 March: 11am – 6pm

Saatchi Gallery
Duke of York’s HQ
King’s Road
London
SW3 4RY

Poetry Amongst the Pots

On the 8th November we were delighted to have poet Gregory Warren Wilson join us for a special event during Heavenly Bodies, Earthly Forms. Poetry Amongst the Pots offered an evening of performance by Gregory followed by a Q&A covering inspirations, influences and his favourite pieces from the exhibition.

Collections of Gregory’s poems now on sale for £5, plus P&P, please email us on info@joannabird.com for details.