Colin Pearson had an illustrious career, not only as a ceramic artist but also as a teacher of the same. Studying at Goldsmiths, London, working at Michael Cardew’s Winchcombe Pottery, he went on to teach at both Camberwell College of Arts and the Medway School of Art. There are many well known potters and ceramicists who owe a debt of gratitude to Colin for his teaching and inspiration.
Developing his craft, Colin became famous for his bold forms and winged vessels, works that became more sculpture than studio pottery. Experimentation with his art produced some astounding glazes and texture. Colin’s work is unique and he deserves the reputation he has. His work is held in the V&A, London and the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met), New York, amongst other public and private collections worldwide.
Colin Pearson was born in north London in 1923 and studied at Goldsmith’s College, where he was taught by Kenneth Clark. During this time, he began to make maiolica wares and was influenced by the tin glaze ceramics of William Newland, Margaret Hine and James Tower. He worked at Winchcombe pottery in Gloucestershire, before working in slipcasting at the chemical porcelain department at the Royal Doulton pottery in Lambeth in 1954. A year later, Pearson took over running Aylesford Pottery in Kent from David Leach, where Colin produced slipware and stoneware that was loosely modelled on the Leach Pottery in St Ives, Cornwall. In 1961 he set up his own workshop, Quay Pottery, and made domestic wares. While he worked at the pottery, he taught at the Camberwell School of Art, where some of his pupils included Mo Jupp, Ian Godfrey and Ewen Henderson. He also taught at the Harrow School of Art and Medway College of Design, He then moved to Islington, London. In 1975 Pearson won the 33rd Grand Prix in Faenza, Italy, and in 1996 he was awarded an honorary fellowship from the University of the Arts in London. He moved into his final studio in Hackney in 2000, where he continued to work with increased assistance until he was forced to stop by illness in 2003. Colin passed away in 2007.