Glaze – the skin/layer of melted glass that furnishes pots with non-porous, decorative qualities – was integral to Emmanuel Cooper’s ceramic practice. Prolific as editor, writer and activist, Cooper’s exploration of electric kiln glazes shaped his making career leaving behind a substantial legacy including a large body of work, countless samples, and the indispensable and influential guide, The Potters Book of Glaze Recipes (1987).  

This exhibition unpacks Cooper’s archive on glaze: the tests, the instructive articles written for Ceramic Review and his exploration of colour that stands in marked contrast to the dominant green-brown palette of British studio pottery. Cooper’s experimentation with glaze ranged far and wide as documented in his copious notes and he pushed the chemistry, for example layering matt glazes over reactive slip to obtain rich volcanic effects of the surfaces of his work.  

Emmanuel Cooper: Glazes positions Cooper within wider histories of studio ceramics and will draw from the Crafts Study Centre’s collection of Lucie Rie, Cooper’s friend and mentor, as well as contemporary artists informed by Cooper’s glaze research such as Emmanuel Boos, Louisa Taylor, Tanya Gomez and Linda Bloomfield. 

The exhibition will coincide with the launch of a new book about Cooper’s glaze archive, Emmanuel Cooper Glazes by the exhibition’s curator Linda Bloomfield, published by Herbert Press.