David Cushway
David Cushway’s education has been located within ceramics, reflected in his artistic output since graduation with an MA in 1994. The process of education, through to making and exhibiting internationally over 20 years highlights his conceptual approach to the material of clay and ceramics discourse. His development as an artist has resulted in practice that employs: sculpture, installation, film, photography, performance, socially engaged practice and drawing. Within this expansion, he has collaborated with filmmakers, editors, photographers, artists and curators to facilitate projects and commissions. Residencies include residencies at Hohr Grenzhausen, Germany, the world renowned European Ceramics Work Centre, The Netherlands, The Philadelphia Clay Studio, America and Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Wales.
In 2015 David completed a PhD by practice supported by The Arts and Humanities Research Council at The University of Sunderland entitled, A model for the interpretation of the ceramic object located in the museum developed through post-disciplinary, post-studio practice. The practical element of his PhD study deliberately set out to test the boundaries of ceramics discourse through film and photography, with the absence of clay and the ceramic object being a fundamental motivation and consideration of the research. His practice can been seen in numerous publications, most recently, New Directions in Ceramics, from spectacle to trace, a book by Jo Dahn (2015), The Ceramics Reader, book edited by Andrew Livingstone and Kevin Petrie (2017), Contemporary British Ceramics and the Influence of Sculpture: Monuments, Multiples, Destruction and Display, book by Laura Grey (2018) and Ceramics and the Museum, book by Laura Breen (2019). David teaches and lectures nationally and internationally on his practice and associated research, including in 2013 at the International Ceramic Magazine Editors Association Symposium in Fuping, China.
