Alex Simpson

Alex Simpson graduated from the University of Brighton in 2010 and has recently completed her MA in Ceramics & Glass from The Royal College of Art. Alex is interested in the relationships between surfaces, between image and object, inside and outside, mental and physical spaces. Her approach to creating is to move between intuitive and playful, and controlled; an oscillation between conscious and unconscious making, to allow the unknown to enter into the making process. There is always a negotiation between material and maker, as she chooses materials that partly direct the making through their fluid and relatively unpredictable nature.

Alex uses ink to both paint and colour the surface of the fired and unfired ceramic. Both clay and ink have some similar material qualities; fluid, responsive, immediate and yet marginally unpredictable. She believes, to have a material directly in hand creates a direct connection between the brain and the outside world, through which the unconscious can flow, opening the passage between interior and exterior spaces in the moment of creation. As well as being a FRESH Award finalist at the British Ceramic Biennale 2017, Alex works as a technician at the RCA and teaches at The London Sculpture Workshop.