About Jonathan Chiswell Jones: 50 years a potter

5 September - 24 November 2024

Jonathan Chiswell Jones (b.1944) is one of the world’s pre-eminent makers of lustreware, with a loyal following.

This exhibition celebrates 50 years of his work as a potter – the principal show to mark this extraordinary anniversary.

Initially inspired by the work of William De Morgan, Jonathan Chiswell Jones’s beautiful lustreware encompasses plates, dishes, vases, jars and tiles. With over 70 new works, this is an exhibition not to be missed. All work will be for sale.

The exhibition also coincides with the 175^th anniversary of the birth of Mary Watts, one of our founders and herself a potter.

William De Morgan’s work changed my direction. I remember exactly the moment when I came across William De Morgan. A young woman walked into my pottery showroom in Sussex carrying a large book called The Designs of William De Morgan. I was amazed when she showed me brightly coloured and beautifully decorated tiles and vases and plates all of which were entirely new to me.
- Jonathan Chiswell Jones

Timeline of pots

"Over the years I have made many thousands of pots. Here is a tiny selection. The earliest was made in 1958 when I was a boy and the joy of making something useful in clay first touched me. Then there is a little bowl made for friends who have kept it. It shows only that I struggled then.

Two were made while working in Scotland for a younger professional potter- Joe Finch who made pots as easily as he breathed. The rest are mostly pots I have kept because I liked them, and some are there to show how we struggled with lustre. It is hard to resist the idea of progress meaning improvement. There has been improvement, but this 'Art Business' is not about arriving anywhere, it is rather an endless exploration where the work of today becomes the raw material of tomorrow.

The vast bulk of what I and my many helpers have made over the years have found new homes. Some reappear in car boot sales, charity shops or auction houses. Many have returned to the earth from which they sprang."