After studying model and prop making in Bournemouth Arts institute,  I returned to Wales in the year 2000 and have since had 20+ years working in the TV and film industry as a prop maker.

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I set up my own business in 2010 (www.rubbertoeprops.com) providing props to several TV and film productions in the UK.  In 2012 I set up my BBC licensed prop replica business (www.rubbertoereplicas.com), specialising in manufacturing and selling high end collectables from Doctor Who.

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Being a prop maker has given me a great understanding of making and I have found my skills in this field have been transferable to ceramics.

I started working in ceramics in early 2020 and instantly fell in love with the medium and the freedom that working in clay can bring.  

With many similar build techniques used in ceramics to prop making, I have found my style leaning mainly towards hand-built sculptures and vessels made from several parts. I like to combine different building techniques such as slabs, press moulds and coiling; often these are combined with wheel thrown parts which are then cut, altered or joined to create my pieces.

 

Being from South Wales and living by the coast it was inevitable my work was going to become heavily influenced and inspired by the beautiful welsh coastline, especially the Glamorgan Heritage Coastline where I currently live with my wife Katherine, four children and two dogs. Here you can find all kinds of beaches, from golden sands, to smooth pebbled beaches, to sharp bedrock beaches full of fossils and rock pools.

 

In all my pieces I try to create a rolling shape with movement, curves and contrasting hard edges. I mostly use grogged stoneware clays to achieve texture; the pieces are then sometimes left unglazed to show the clay in its natural finish. However often a glaze will be partially applied to contrast with the clay. I use several different methods for glaze application, including spraying, dipping, brushing and pouring.