Ceramicist Georgia Buck won the Heather Jansch Award for the most welcoming Devon Open Studios venue in 2024.
Georgia is based in Plymouth where she designs and makes stylish functional tableware. Her current designs feature colourful brush strokes, and she’s been experimenting with processes and finishes to create the exact effect she wants. Georgia intentionally leaves marks from her throwing and some evidence of the tools she’s used in making so that her pots show traces of the person who made them.
During Open Studios, visitors to Georgia’s studio were invited to have a go at making a pot themselves. She prepared balls of clay, centred them on the wheel and then talked visitors through the process or creating.
For Georgia, Open Studios was a way to connect with people and to spark conversations about her work. She found that people are more likely to buy work if they’ve engaged with the artist.
Georgia is the fourth person to receive the annual award, which was set up by Devon Artist Network in memory of Heather Jansch, to recognise the contribution to Devon Open Studios by one artist or venue.
The Award celebrates Heather Jansch (1948 – 2021) who was an enthusiastic participant in Open Studios over many years. Heather was a renowned sculptor who specialised in sculptures of horses created in driftwood and bronze. Her life-size sculptures are held in collections around the world.
The Award is a sculpture by Heather Jansch – a small bronze horse head which was donated by Heather’s family and will be kept by Georgia for one year before passing on to the next awardee.