Robert Cooper is fascinated by the persistence of artefacts and ideas. He often uses found objects, such as pottery shards from the Thames foreshore, in a collage way as a starting point for his work.Historical objects spark ideas and Cooper is interested in the juxtaposition of contemporary ideas with the past, updating, upcycling and acknowledging story telling through surface pattern, surfaces and imagery. Robert Cooper says of his work "I have a collage approach to my working, information collecting and feelings. I work with clay slabs, a diverse image store and different ways of constructing narratives. Colour, texture and mark making come together to evolve a personal take on modern living. I give clues to questions of function and contemporary issues, but, in all, I respond in the moment to what clay can give and the ideas that surface. I work with white stoneware clay, firing to stoneware and earthenware temperatures and applying at each stage of making; texture, colour, glazes, ceramic transfers and lustres