Kit Andrews, better known by his Instagram handle @thecornishpotter, is bringing ancientpottery techniques to the contemporary moment. We caught up with Kit, whose hands have been inclay since childhood, to find out what drives one of British ceramics’ most distinctive new voices. ​

HOW DID YOU BEGIN  YOUR POTTERY CAREER? ​

When I was nine, I did a paint-a-pot session. I really enjoyed it and wanted to learn more, but the man running the sessions couldn’t do full-time lessons. My mum went to another local guy, Chris Prindl, whose initial advice to me was to do anything other than pottery! He told me being a potter full-time would be a grind, and that there were other, easier ways to make money. It wasn’t what I wanted to hear as a kid, but I saw the inspiring projects he’d worked on and how he’d made it work for him. I was with him for six or seven years. He always said, “If you want to get better, buy your own equipmentand practice that way.”  I did, and I’m still doing it today.  ​

YOUR PRACTICE IS VERY DIY –  HOW DID YOU TEACH YOURSELF THE TECHNIQUES YOU USE? ​

You really don’t need to go to lessons anymore; there’s so much information out there, and if you want to learn something, you can do it yourself. For me, it was a case of looking through other people’s work on Instagram and YouTube, and figuring out how their methods could slot into my practice. Pottery is quite a traditional field, especially in Cornwall: I understand there is a rich heritage of Cornish ceramics, but I find a lot of the pots a bit brown and traditional. The craft hasn’t moved on in hundreds of years, and a lot of the potters in Cornwall are stuck in their ways. What I do doesn’t seem to fit in that mould.  ​

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“I LIKE THE ASPECT OF BEING PART OF SOMEONE’S HOME AND ROUTINE, BEING USED EVERY DAY, NOT JUST PUT ON A SHELF AND IGNORED.” ​

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WHAT DREW YOU TO PIT AND SMOKE FIRING OVER MORE CONVENTIONAL FIRING TECHNIQUES?​

I wanted to get away from more controlled methods, and the technique dates back 30,000 years. It was one of the first techniques used in ceramics. When it goes into the fire, you don’t have control over textures or patterns, which I find quite freeing. I enjoy letting the fire have a say in how theend product looks. ​

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HOW DO YOU THINK ABOUT FUNCTIONALITY VERSUS CREATIVITY WHEN MAKING POTS? ​

Sometimes I want to create something to be looked at, and sometimes I want something more permanent. I enjoy making functional objects: I like the aspect of being part of someone’s home and routine, being used every day, not just put in a shelf and ignored.  ​

YOU’RE IN THE PROCESS OF RENOVATING  A CHURCH, WHICH WILL BE TURNED  INTO ACREATIVE HUB AND STUDIO  SPACE FOR ARTISTS. ​

Before I started this project, I had been living in Bristol and Bath, spending two grand a monthon studio and living expenses. I felt like I wasn’t taking full advantage of the city because I was working all the time. You can get so much more in Cornwall, so we decided to move down to Liskeard, get the church, and do some learning. It’s a 20,000 square foot space, with seven units we’re going to rent out to different artists. Some of it will be turned into flats, and the main space will be an event space. We’ve been learning as we go: at the moment, it’s a big empty warehouse, but we hope to do open studios and have a lot of creatives around. We’re also hoping to partner with Arts University Plymouth, offering free studio space to the winner of their graduate show. They’d be able to live here for a few months and develop their practice as an incubation programme. It’s quiet in this part of Cornwall: Truro and Redruth have more defined art scenes. Hopefully, we can make a place worth coming to.  ​

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WHAT’S THE BIGGEST MISCONCEPTION PEOPLE HAVE ABOUT POTTERY? ​

That it’s romantic! People think I’m sitting here by candlelight, but it can be pretty gruelling. I recently got a commission to make 1000 plates, and while creating the design and planning it is enjoyable, I still have to make 1000 plates. Being a potter for a living takes a lot of work!