Ancient tree gives life to handmade pottery
Robert Silas and Josh standing with the clay and tree roots
29 June 2023
May 16 was an eventful day at Minstead Lodge, as a loud crack was heard echoing around the grounds. After 200 years of serene progress, one of our grand old oak trees fell to the ground.
As staff poured out of every office to take a look at the top of this magnificent oak, the people we support in the ceramics workshop wandered down to inspect the roots.
What they found was a treasure trove of natural wild clay, a well of natural material carved out by the way the tree fell.
Nestled among the roots was natural clay, perhaps a ‘yellow ochre with blue streaks’ Connor Brown, senior instructor of the pottery workshop suggested.
Collecting natural clay is all part of the process in the ceramics workshop, with the people we support involved in every step of sourcing, digging and collecting. They are always excited to head out and see the raw form of clay themselves.
Graham, a potter we support in the workshop says “I really enjoyed it when we went out digging, it’s a nice feeling.”
Several of the group, Graham, Silas and Josh, collected two buckets of raw clay and took it back to the workshop for processing. This involved soaking, sieving and wedging the clay, making sure all twigs and stones are removed. It is all done with sustainability in mind, reusing water and reclaiming any materials they can.
Raw clay in the roots of the tree
Once the clay was processed, Minstead Trust ceramics instructor Connor Brown support the group to throw a pot, using hand-over-hand throwing.
Connor said: ‘Using this way of training allows people to have mastery over the process, gaining independence through learning. The approach of the ceramics workshop is simple; supporting people to have complete ownership of the whole process, empowering them to be independent and autonomous.
‘It was very exciting to discover this natural play in such a dramatic fashion and to create something so beautiful from the material. Day after day I see the positive impact that ceramics can have on the people we support – helping them to build new skills, feel calm, and have real pride in producing quality products that people want to buy.’
After it had been thrown, the pot was dried and fired, coming out the kiln a beautiful terracotta orange, the presence of iron oxide in the New Forest soil was very evident.
The ceramics workshop is in the process of setting up an online shop to sell their products, handmade, local pieces made by people with learning disabilities.
Robert, who is supported in the ceramics workshop said: ‘We work hard in ceramics making all that lovely stuff to sell.’
Currently, products can be bought from Furzey Gardens in Minstead, which is open every day. You can see more of the Ceramic workshops work on Instagram, at @minstead_studio_pottery.