Clare Henshaw

For nine years I lived in the far north of Sweden, returning to the UK in 2003.
The extraordinary light phenomenon in Sweden, pristine nature and long Arctic winters has shaped my visual sense. It is the starting point for my presently emerging work. The 'pared down' quality of Scandinavian design and rural culture are also important influences, evident in the use of form, and colour as well as techniques applied in my Graal pieces. The work is quiet but arresting; about light and colour, it is very different from the heavily engraved figurative narrative which defined my earlier pieces. As the eye perceives the multiple layers of colour one struggles to focus on the patterns between the layers.


This new work reflects on my experience of a place which is covered in a blanket of snow for six months of the year, a place where the silence is penetrating.

The pieces are free blown, vessel forms which are outside and inside cased with colour. Using 'Graal' technique, I cut through layers of colour to reveal the inside colours. Patterns are generated which become integral with the form as the piece is blown into its final shape. My work is represented in seven public collections including the V&A and the Fitzwilliam Museum.


I now live on the Welsh Borders close to the Black Mountains with my daughter Signe.