Bill Gowans & Anthea Stewart

Ashdown Pottery

Ceramicist

©Ashdown Pottery

From hitting balls to throwing pottery

Bill and Anthea both turned to ceramics as they neared retirement
They honed their skills at the Leach Pottery in St Ives, Cornwall
They merge their passion for Raku with a love of colour and impact

Bill Gowans and Anthea Stewart share both a love for tennis – both played professionally – and a passion for ceramics. But the passion only recently became their craft as Anthea had worked as an Antique Dealer for the past 20 years, while Bill was a family doctor for 30. It was when they approached retirement that they both decided to do a degree in ceramics at University for the Creative Arts, Farnham, perfecting their skills at the Leach Pottery in St Ives. After moving to Ashdown Forest – renowned as being Winnie the Pooh’s home in southern England – that they set up a studio. Here, Bill uses a wheel to “throw a variety of forms, from bespoke tableware through to large vessels intended for outside display” while Anthea uses ancient methods like Raku with experimental twists and pushes the boundaries “to find new results by exposing clay to different elements.”

Interview

©Ashdown Pottery

©Ashdown Pottery

Why is your craft so fascinating?: Anthea: The clay is waiting and invites creativity. It is a very childlike experience, playing with pieces that unlock ideas. Ceramics especially has the added element of surprise as the kiln gods also play their part with ethereal results. <br> Bill: I love the rhythm of our professional life, the gentleness of the work and the immersion of being completely ‘in my hands’.
Do your surroundings inspire your craft?: Anthea: Living and working surrounded by unspoilt countryside and woodland enables me to be quiet inside, which helps my ceramics to be more thoughtful and considered.<br> Bill: We live and work in an area of outstanding natural beauty and we feel deeply connected to the trees that surround us.
Is there a connection between tennis, potting and medicine?: Anthea: Working in clay has a connection with my sporting days, as many skills are transferable. Similar to being an athlete, a crafts person must have a sense of thinking in a 3D way and a sense of space.<br> Bill: Being a doctor requires listening and a deeper sensing, along with a disciplined imaginative faculty which can combine the patients story with medical need. This is a creative process and a skill which now enables a living relationship between my inner self and the clay.
What was the most memorable moment of your career?: Anthea: It happened when I was firing my first Raku pot. The element of fascination was the random results produced by the flames and smoke.<br> Bill: Discovering that the vessels I made for my degree did not fit in the kiln.

Bill Gowans & Anthea Stewart are rising stars: they began their career in 2017 and they started teaching in 2020