Katie Braida

Katie studied ceramics as part of her degree in Cheltenham and went on to teach in secondary education specialising in ceramics. Drawn to working with clay from a young age and inspired by the landscape and seascape around where she lives, Katie is particularly influenced by the manmade and natural marks in the environment. She enjoys the nature of the material and the meditative quality of hand building, as well as the malleable quality of clay which retains a sense of the maker’s hand.

Katie makes earthenware sculptural vessels and forms using a variety of hand building techniques. Working with soft clay coils and slabs, allowing the material to move and suggest direction, the forms grow and invite exploration of the surface. She creates textured surfaces based on rhythms and patterns within the environment. Colour is applied with combination of oxides, underglaze, and slip. This generates a depth of hue while retaining a soft and tactile quality that invites interaction. It is important to Katie that the work remains open to interpretation.