About this Journal

Welcome to Issue12 of Interpreting Ceramics. Most of the content for this issue has been assembled and provided by Mary Drach McInnes of the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University, USA. In the spring of 2009 she and Linda Sormin of the Rhode Island School of Design chaired two conference panels which focused on interdisciplinary approaches in ceramics studio practice and ceramics education. We are publishing the transcripts of the seven presentations from the panels and Mary Drach McInnes gives an introduction, which sets the context and summarises the key issues and debates arising from the presentations. There are three book reviews in this issue and a review of the 2010 International Film Festival on Clay and Glass held in Montpelier, France. We are also publishing ‘Getting it Right’, a provocative text by Alan Wallwork, which …XXXX

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, the University of Wales, Aberystwyth, 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.

About this Journal • Issue 12