A Conversation With Freya Bramble-Carter

How did you get into ceramics and the world of clay?

I remember when I was doing my GCSEs, for my case study I chose to investigate Earth and its properties. I spent a lot of time digging up dirt and sampling it; I remember feeling really free and connected, taking samples and looking at the different qualities, smells, textures, colours.

My father taught me a lot about working with clay. He is primarily a sculptor, but he taught me everything. He gave me a huge understanding as to what a bit of discipline can do for you. So I found myself in the studio a lot helping out and squeezing the clay between my fingers. I definitely did not have plans for working with clay, in fact much the opposite. However, when I was doing my Fine Art degree at Chelsea University of the Arts, I found myself always in their ceramics studio. It felt like the most enjoyable thing for me to do and easy for me to express myself in…no doubt that’s because I knew how! It took me a little while after graduating and hating my job before I realised, ‘Hey, that clay stuff was fun and felt like you!’.

Touch and tactility have definitely always been my language. In fact, I was born with a sensorial condition, high sensitivity i.e walking into a shop I’d have to touch everything to see how it felt if there was a puddle I’d be in it, my sister and I responded to mud in the garden by taking all our clothes off and rolling in it. Apparently, you grow out of this condition.

Ss soon as I gave into my passion, I dived straight in. I spent the first couple of years learning how to teach in my own way; I was very interested and inspired to pass on the craft I had grown so increasingly fond of and knew I would pick it up with more ease the younger I started and I got to grips with it. The ball started rolling from there!

Clay is very versatile and goes through many stages. It also comes in a variety of textures and colours. You can make it watery, putty-like, squidgy, plasticky, pliable…also stiff, leather-hard and hard enough to carve through it or bone dry and fragile, so brittle it breaks like a biscuit if you misjudge your hand pressure. As you learn to caress and mould the material into your desired form, along the way you learn many life lessons, patience and perseverance being the basic and fundamental ones for anything you set out to achieve in this life. I learnt that I am the master of myself just as I am with transforming the clay. I see it as one of the same, but it was also the master of me: it taught me to teach, share and articulate in my own way. And in parallel how to guide myself.

Who are some artists/designers you admire?

I’m in love with Kate Malone’s work, always have been. Also naturally I’m inspired by the work that my father and mother produce, but especially growing up I used to stare at the sculptures in my living room and think how beautiful they were. I always wanted to know a little bit more about them, and how on Earth he did them. I was in awe, never really got used to how much beauty he presented in his work. I literally think I’ve got the best dad ever!

My mother sometimes would be up all night making puppets out of sponge, felt, some really beautiful materials and glistening fabrics. She is an uncontainable creator, her talent is wild! She could fill a whole stage. My twin sister was heavily inspired and went more down the theatre route. I’m inspired by so much, don’t know where to start really but these were my strongest starting points.

You’ve said that you feel a strong physical connection to the clay you work with, what other creative outlets or processes do you feel energise and inspire you?

I have always been inspired by my twin sister, Yolande as she quite literally mirrors my growing. She does these fascinating, sensorial performance-based workshops with people of a totally different life experience. Some are completely mute, blind, deaf and move on the ground with hands as eyes. I have had some really incredible moments connecting with some people. There are many different kinds of humans out there. How do we communicate? How would we go about communicating to an off-planet species? I’m sure there is always a way. It absolutely fascinates me…I wonder what their world is like, inside their minds thoughts and feelings, or perhaps that is different too. We are learning new ways to understand the human mind every day.

My father taught me how to make things ‘well’ and functional so at least I have the skills needed to do this stuff. So I have an appreciation for well made…in the studio we often compare the rim and the base of the pot metaphorically to our lips and feet when we are talking to someone; for example, one might look up and down, looking at their lips and their teeth when they talk, they provide a point of focus on a face. Similarly, a pot will have a ‘good’ solid rim that doesn’t chip easily and a flat, wide-enough solid base: two important elements for a conventional pot!

So it’s a process of trial and error?

Yes, I think designing through trial and error has become an essential part of the process for me, especially recently. I think about what I want it to look like, feel like, and then I think about if it is a functional object: how well do I want it to function as that could be critical to the object, i.e,  pouring ability, heaviness, holding ability and so on. That is where I have Studio Krokalia, interior designer and my collaborator, to help with detailed qualities of design.

I used to be solely focused on expression, as thinking about calculating the functional design can hinder my freedom and with clay, this can be difficult because it moves and changes a lot throughout the drying process and in the firings. But design has so much beauty and intelligence in itself. And I would always rather buy something that works well and I can use with ease and confidence over something that is difficult. But I also like buying things because I like looking at them. So now I build all the freedom of expression into the design and don’t concern myself too much.

Can you tell us about some of your previous collaborations?

I worked with Joy Meiessi on a piece; we spent a few weeks practising as carving into the clay was new to her. We spoke about anxiety, depression, sexuality, gender, race, very heavy topics for us at the time at the forefront of our minds. It was done in a way that one could read the text and images on the pot. At the time we were suddenly aware of the platform that Instagram had given us and people like us could use our voice a lot more easily. It suddenly felt like a gasp of fresh air, like we could start releasing tension. This was actually quite an awakening moment: ‘Wow, look at what we can achieve using this, now that we can showcase our work easily and freely worldwide’. I think we felt unstoppable at the time but it was the acknowledgement of ‘Yes, we are here and we have lots to say’. I also really enjoyed working at the Love Festival at the Royal Festival Hall also collaborating with Tia Simon-Campbell who set up BBZ and Tate’s ‘Thicker Black Lines’…

What would be your dream commission or project?

Hmmm, good question! I’m thinking about moving around a bit. I’d like to go abroad and set up a studio workspace there, and move a bit more freely with my work and the practice itself, meeting people around the world, inspiring them and being inspired, learning new things and peeling that onion of discovery. And a million other ideas…you’ll see which comes to the surface first!

You also teach regular classes from your London workshop – can you tell us a bit about what one can expect from a class or course at Freya’s Clay Club?

I teach with my father, who runs sessions during the daytime and I focus on beginners during the weekend and evenings, so you can expect to see us both around throughout the day. We have similar but very different working styles; we bounce off each other. During the daytime, there are artists/learners independently working on sculpture, hand-building or wheel-thrown techniques. People that are new on the wheel tend to need a lot more attention, which is why I hold beginners sessions on the weekend or private one-on-one sessions. They are fairly focused and intense, just like when you start anything new. It’s like learning to swim or play an instrument: when you find your own ‘aha’ moment and find your own balance point and your own connection to the material, it becomes smoother sailing from there.

The space is very relaxed and calm. We see the studio as our second home and we see everyone in it as a family, so it’s always good vibes. We make sure everyone is happy so that positivity and creativity can thrive. Most people attend once a week for 2 1/2 hours and many of our students have been with us for years. They start off not being able to centre a lump of clay all the way through to making vases, teapots, platters…you name it. We take things step-by-step as there is a lot to learn in the field of clay and it’s about creating that solid footing to begin with. When students have confidence in their skills they can do absolutely anything.

During the daytime, my father’s sessions are very relaxed and maybe slightly slower-paced, because people haven’t come straight from work, and often the sculpting and hand-building processes can take a little bit longer than using the wheel. The wheel is quite fast-paced in comparison: mistakes happen quickly and you create whole forms quite quickly if you know how to. But learning to work with clay is a bodily, feeling process, not just a mental one, and that’s why it’s so important to create a comfortable space and for the student to be patient with themselves.

Everybody who comes to the studio gets something slightly different out of clay and the classes. Some people are respected artists in their fields and they are selling and exhibiting their work internationally; others are just starting out and just want a little taste to see what it’s about, to learn something new; then you have people that really enjoy their hobby and are now semi-pro, venturing out there and turning it into a full-time career. It’s all love!