Sam Hall

Sam Hall was born in West Yorkshire, studied at Harrogate College of Art and Design and then at Loughborough College of Art and Design where he received a BA in Ceramics. He now lives and works in St Ives and his pieces have been exhibited since 1996 throughout the UK and Europe.

Starting with simple thrown cylindrical - most often flattened - forms, Sam treats the surface as a ceramic canvas, blurring the boundaries of art and craft. The working process goes through many stages and is built up using slips, oxides and glazes, often being worked many times over. The use of scored lines, random marks and a sombre palette help to create a tension where drawing and form cohabit together.

Working alongside the potter John Bedding and others in the Goalyard Studios, Sam Hall finds that the association between St Ives and pottery has been the catalyst from which his recent work has evolved. As Sam Hall himself says:

"Working with a strong awareness of tradition, within St Ives and on the wheel, my work has, for all intents and purposes, found itself deeply rooted in the pottery tradition."