Page 32 - ClayCraft - Issue 35 (January 2020)

Doug’s
STARTING IN BUSINESS
(Photo: Layton Thompson) DIARY

Doug Fitch

TOUGH Remote Galloway. I took a walk with Pippin and Fred to
try and clear my head. Our house and the grey roof of
the workshop are on the right-hand side.
TIMES

I t’s the day after the election, and
the pressure is on here.
Since we returned from our
journey down south to visit my mother, we
have all been really unwell. My mum didn’t
properly wake the whole time we were
there, so was unaware of our visit, which is
a terrible shame, but I’m pleased to
report that she is out of hospital
now and back in her care
home and we’ll get down
to see her again as soon
as we can.
The day after the ƒ A Christmas order of big heart jug. (Photo: Hannah McAndrew)
long journey back to
Scotland, I was struck about illness and not Hannah trailed her relatively delicate
down with the most much about pottery, but designs on to plates, and I demonstrated
horrific migraine I have there hasn’t been much my free-flowing technique of pouring the
ever suffered. It was a fever pottery happening, which is slip from a trailer on to a flat slab, to be
and sickness that lasted for frustrating and rather slumped over a hump mould when
three days. stressful, as the Christmas orders toughened. Thankfully most of the focus
As soon as I rather weakly got back on aren’t finished yet. was on our hands, as I must have looked
my feet and was about to start work again, Anyway, here’s a little bit of pottery stuff like death.
Pippin started to have night terrors and that has been happening. Earlier in the
was clearly not right, with a couple of spots week, I had to drag myself from my Sold in the charity auction. 32cm
and a temperature; then Fred was taken sickbed, as we had been asked to contribute high. (Photo: Shannon Tofts)
down by chickenpox. to a short film showing traditional
Hannah soldiered on, and I joined her methods of decorating with slip. This has
briefly and managed to get some of the been commissioned by the Burrell
orders thrown that are needed by Collection in Glasgow, a famous, eclectic
Christmas, before once again, being struck collection of ancient arts and crafts,
down with a fever that left me shivering in assembled over a lifetime by a wealthy
bed for another two days. shipping magnate called Sir William
So, a trip to the doc’s yesterday and the Burrell, and donated to the city in 1944.
advice that I need to be taking it a bit The building that houses the collection
gentler, which is rather easier said than is currently closed for refurbishment and
done, but I guess I must at least try. reopens in 2021. In the collection are some
Yesterday afternoon it was Hannah’s fine 17th-century slipware dishes, and the
turn, and she had the most dreadful attack film will accompany the pieces to show
of sickness; I’ve never seen her look so ill. how the techniques were done and how
What a household we are at the moment. these processes are still used in
So I apologise, I’ve written rather a lot contemporary practice.
32 ClayCraft Issue 35