About this Journal

Welcome to Issue 10 of Interpreting Ceramics, which brings together a group of articles on the theme of gender and world ceramics. A number of the articles arise from presentations at Traditional Women Potters: Old Forms and New Markets, a symposium held at Aberystwyth University, Wales, UK, following the weekend of the Aberystwyth International Ceramics Festival in July 2007. Other articles have been offered independently. The symposium was organised by Moira Vincentelli, who has edited this issue of the journal and who herself provides an article which introduces and frames the contributions of the other authors. There are two reviews of the exhibition Sankofa: Ceramic Tales from Africa, which Vincentelli curated in collaboration with Manchester Museum in 2006, and which has since toured elsewhere.

We are also publishing a review of the book Searching for Beauty: Letters from a Collector to a Studio Potter by Richard Jacobs, accompanied by a short account of an associated event held at the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff, in November 2007, when the author was in conversation with Jeffrey Jones in front of an audience of students, potters and academics. Jacob’s book has caused quite a stir and Conor Wilson’s review examines at length many of the contentious issues discussed in the letters. Jacob’s writing ranges freely over art, literature, philosophy and politics but the theme that Wilson especially picks up on (and in which he takes issue with the author) is that of the nature and positioning of ceramics as a contemporary practice. This is a theme explored by the writers in the previous issue of this journal. There is a further opportunity to make your own contribution to this debate. To do this please use the Join our group discussion button or go straight to the form to fill in at Registration and Feedback page. We are offering a ‘moderated discussion’ rather than a live debate, so your text will not appear immediately on the Interpreting Ceramics web site. We shall endeavour to publish as much as possible of the material that you submit but we reserve the right to edit where appropriate, for example, on the grounds of length of contribution.

Reviews of the books Breaking the Mould and Kiln Building complete the contents of this issue.

Interpreting Ceramics is an initiative of a group of academic staff in the UK who have joined together under the title of Interpreting Ceramics: Research Collaboration (ICRC). Our collaboration has come about through shared research interests in recording, interrogating, interpreting and communicating the practice and history of ceramics.

The members of ICRC are committed to exploring ways in which collaborative effort, on both a national and international level, can lead to broader and more interdisciplinary research into all those categories of human activity which are indicated by the term ‘ceramics’. ICRC has an interest in any practice or mode of inquiry which brings a social and cultural awareness to bear on the manufacture and consumption of objects made from ceramic materials. The fields covered would therefore include studio, industrial, architectural, traditional, sculptural and figurative ceramics as well as the relevant branches of anthropology, archaeology, material culture studies, museum studies, archiving etc.

The journal Interpreting Ceramics is the first outcome of the collaborative work of ICRC. It is the first refereed, electronic journal for ceramics and in publishing on the Internet the journal allows contributors to exploit the possibilities of new digital media as well as offering more traditional text based approaches. The journal is freely accessible, without charge. We aim to establish and maintain the highest scholarly standards for the content of the articles published. Four institutions have joint proprietorship of the journal and they are the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff, Aberystwyth University, the University of the West of England, Bristol and Bath Spa University College.

Editorial responsibility for Interpreting Ceramics lies with the ICRC committee, which currently consists of the members of the editorial team who are listed above. The editorial advisory board consists of thirty individuals, drawn from different disciplines, who together provide a wide range of expertise on ceramics in all its guises. A list of members of the board is provided on the web site.

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