Ami Derbyshire

Ami is a designer maker who studied Ceramics at Staffordshire University.  Her sculptural ceramic designs are made in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire.

Using clay and found objects she creates decorative one-off ceramic pieces constructed by slip-casting and hand-building.

Nostalgia is a constant thread that runs through the work.  By creating objects of desire, and still life scenes she invites the viewer to step back in time, drawing them into a kaleidoscope of decadence and whimsical imaginings.  

Ami is influenced by rich, decadent furnishings from the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth century. The rich colours and decor of these periods are her palette to create with.  Her work is an extension of herself; she imprints herself into her designs.  The clay is her canvas on which she expresses her emotions.

The glazes she uses are reminiscent of Victorian Majolica earthenware pottery made in the 19th century with moulded surfaces and colourful clear lead glazes.

By recreating impressions/essences of the past and fusing the old with the new she gives an overall contemporary feel to her work.

“The decorative past draws me, but the present leads me back again”.

Ami Derbyshire’s website