Claire Ireland produces elegant hand-built sculptural forms; collectable objects, inspired by her studio’s location in the grounds of a historical steam museum in London in combination with a diverse array of visual research. Her working practice as a ceramic sculptor is changing and is drawn to a more minimal and reductive strategy, but constantly enhancing and developing the decorated surface. The discipline of drawing, her continuous sketchbook studies and her passion for printmaking are of prime importance to her. Her work explores the disparity among materials and surface, between precise graphic notions and textured, weather-battered surfaces. The relationship between the fragility of a porcelain plant fragment, the strength of fractured solid clay, or the ethereal qualities of a smoky surface enveloping a form is an integral part of her process. She is a professional member of the Craft Potters Association, the Society of Designer Craftsmen, Design Nation and Contemporary Applied Arts. Her latest project is a book commissioned by The Crowood Press on “Surface Decoration for Ceramics” published in January 2023.