Ronaldo Wiltshire, contemporary ceramics from Barbados

You might recognise him from the Great Pottery Throw Down show on Channel 4 where he finished at the 6th place out of 12 contestants. Ronaldo Wiltshire, also known as Motions of Clay, is a Barbadian ceramist working and living in London. He studied Product Design at Ravensbourne Design college but mainly take his mastery from his two parents who are potters. Indeed, while growing up in Barbados, Ronaldo had the chance to learn techniques from his father’s workshop @hamiltonspottery and his mother's head sculptures. At a young age, he knew about slip casting and glaze preparation and using the potter’s wheel.

Today, Ronaldo Wiltshire is a lecturer, tutor, and work as a ceramic technician at Kensington and Chelsea college. He likes to pass on his passion for pottery in his workshops within a very pleasant atmosphere. The sessions are quite affordable and suitable for all levels, in groups or in private sessions, at Create Space studio in Willesden Green, North London. He had several exhibitions recently in June 2018 at the gallery Art Number 23 in a group exhibition; in collaboration with Babajani at Portobello road; and participated to the London Craft Week last year.

His earthenware and stoneware artworks are unique and beautiful, offering simple functional homeware such as mugs and bowls, but also beautiful decorative ceramics such as oil burners and plant pots. He adorns his works with colours of Barbados he observed in the landscapes: recurrent shades of blue, yellow, red, brown, and green. The inspiration from both his parents are striking in the colours he applies to his ceramics, mostly using his own recipe of glazes.

What I love the most in his work are his mask sculptures. Ronaldo was inspired by his mother's work but mainly by his brother, as he wanted to sculpt his face. He first started to represent him with eyes closed. You ought to know that his brother suffers from schizophrenia and tends not to look people in the eye when in a conversation. Ronaldo then thought about portray him without eyes as a representation of his unease of eye contact. He wanted to depict his mental state and maybe a way, without eyes, to feel more comfortable in the obligation to look at people in the eye. Through this work, Ronaldo expresses himself about his own personal life and strikes awareness on mental health issues in everyday life.