I’m in Sweden at Capellagården running a Ceramics and Print course. My journey here took me from Newcastle to Ijmuiden (near Amsterdam), through Northern Holland, where I stopped off at  Royal Tichelaar Makkum. The company ‘adds cultural value by making the most of history through modern design’ and is well known for its collaborations with contemporary artists and designers including: Hella Jongerius, Studio Job,  Jurgen Bey,  Roderick Vos and Marcel Wanders... I bought some white plates by Hella Jongeris, for probable use in new work, and had a vey agreeable cup of Earl Grey tea, gazing out at the canal through painted blue and white tableware.

I stopped overnight at Guldagergård (meeting some interesting resident artists, including Rebecca from the US who was experimenting with photo prints... when I find the card she gave me I’ll put her full name and details up) before heading for Copenhagen to deliver some decals and finished cups etc to Ann Linneman. We have been working collaboratively for some years, usually at a distance, enhanced by irregular meetings when the opportunity arrives. We are exploring the synthesis of print pattern and hand thrown form... This time I deliver some finished resolved cup and shot forms with new decals. Not only summer trees and winter trees, but also some willow pattern and other borders... We share the work, we discuss shapes and patterns then Ann makes the cups and forms, and I make the prints/decals. half of the decals go to Ann and I keep half. Then we each will be applying decals and lustres. Half of the editions of print/objects will be available from Ann in Copenhagen or her exhibitions, and half from me in Cumbria. There are a maximum of fifty prints of each pattern or image. As they are applied to a hand made form, each is thus unique. Future artefacts will include printed porcelain trays....