Well-known and respected within the ceramics community in Britain, Hazel Johnston's pottery displays a rare elegance and refinement. Existing at a confluence where the English studio pottery tradition meets early modernism, combined with a quiet Asian influence, the work has an unforced naturalistic quality of breathtaking purity and simplicity. Surveying a range of work produced over a long and distinguished career, this book, the first on Johnston, has at its heart an extensive interview with the potter. Setting out to explore the new forms and progressions which mark her oeuvre, the insightful text combines discussion of the complex technical, physical and aesthetic processes of artistic creation with a unique opportunity to understand the personality behind the outstanding work reproduced here. The text is interwoven with images, most of which are colour reproductions of individual pots but also include shots of the potter in the studio, as well as details of her studio environment. Beautiful photographs of this subtle and elegant work, extensive technical notes, as well as personal comments from the potter on each individual pot, add up to a first-class publication which will be of interest to makers, students, collectors and anyone in the ceramics field.
