Artisans of Dartmoor - Book - Page 143
While Alison crafts her pots, she’s often visited by
her neighbours: upholsterer Stuart Coote (see page
67), whose workshop is across the courtyard, and
felt-maker Yuli Somme, who makes burial shrouds in
a converted storeroom upstairs. Alison’s dog, Nina,
and Stuart’s dog, Eno, are great friends and romp
around in the field together when Alison works at her
saggar-firing kiln at the rear of the stables. The duo are
blissfully unaware of the trials and tribulations Alison
goes through each time she fires her pottery.
“Saggar firing is a very unpredictable process
because it’s sensitive to temperature fluctuations,” she
explains. “It’s an emotional rollercoaster because you
never know how it’s going to turn out. Although I can
guide the process to some extent, there’s still a huge
element of serendipity and mystery. When it doesn’t
work, I wonder why I bother, but when it does, it’s a
huge thrill – it makes up for the perpetually muddy
knees and dirty pockets.”
LEFT: Wearing a mask to protect her from smoke, Alison carefully lifts a pot out of a firing container.
ABOVE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Late afternoon sun streams through the windows of Alison’s studio. Her
dog, Nina, scouts for rabbits in the Victorian walled garden that backs onto the property. Alison turns a pot on her
wheel. Alison carries plates to her kiln to be fired. Using old t-shirts, Alison ties foraged finds around her pots so
their shapes imprint on the vessels during firing. A selection of completed work on display in Alison’s studio.
NEXT PAGE: Alison forages in local woodlands for ferns to imprint on her pots.
The Potter • Alison West
143
