Alistair Danhieux

Ceramicist

©AnthonyGirardi

Ceramics shaped by adventure

Alistair opened his workshop in 2007
He defines his work as ceramic art
He lives in Saint-Amand-en-Puisaye, a major pottery centre in France

After completing his education in Britain, Alistair Danhieux travelled extensively in Europe, India, and West Africa. He finally settled in Saint-Amand-en-Puisaye in 2003 and opened a workshop with his wife in 2007. Through his work he tries to create a language and identity using shapes and decorations. Around 2014, Alistair started using high firing stoneware and porcelain, as a medium to create his hand painted black and white vessels. The motifs are the result of hours spent drawing and inspired by his many travels and the different cultures he discovered, ranging from Tibetan mandalas and Indian mehndi designs to traditional tattoos. They are original and painted freehand.

Interview

©AnthonyGirardi

©AnthonyGirardi

Do you master any specific techniques?: Yes, many! Turning, coil shaping, coil shaping on the wheel (for large jars), glazing, polished clay, terra sigillata, naked raku, saggar firing, plaster moulding, casting, brush decoration, and more.
Is there one that you specialise in?: I am specialising more and more in coil shaping without using a wheel. I like to work slowly. I also like decorating with oxides.
What inspires you?: I think that I am unconsciously marked by Asian ceramics when it comes to shapes. People often see that in my work, but it was never done in a conscious way. I think I just like harmonious and taut lines.
What do you enjoy most about making ceramics?: Dialogue with matter. When you apply a force to the clay, it reacts. It is not a material that can be dominated, I must know it intimately, to accompany it well in the various stages of making. Clay is a material that teaches humility, that is what I like about it.

Alistair Danhieux is a master artisan: he began his career in 2005 and he started teaching in 2009