Ben Davis

Ben Davis’ creative journey has been shaped by a lifelong curiosity for the natural world and an enduring love of music. His early years were marked by a fascination with nature and sound, alongside a pivotal encounter with a pottery teacher at school, which planted the first seeds of his interest in ceramics. Although he went on to study Art at Foundation Level, his path initially led elsewhere—pursuing Geography and Geology at university, before training as a cellist at the Royal Academy of Music.

It wasn’t until his thirties that Davis returned to ceramics, reconnecting with clay as a medium of expression. In his forties, he began exhibiting, at first creating without a kiln or formal technical understanding of glazing. This constraint sparked innovation: he experimented with coiled pots, coloured and textured clays, burnishing techniques, and occasional smoke firing.

His current practice continues to be deeply informed by geology and landscape. Textures and patterns drawn from the natural world are integrated into hand-built forms whose surfaces are meticulously worked through repeated sanding and polishing. The result is a body of work that feels simultaneously raw and refined, echoing the slow processes of erosion, layering, and transformation in the earth.

Entirely self-taught as a ceramicist, Davis’ approach contrasts with the rigorous discipline of his musical training. Yet at their core, both practices share a fundamental creative drive—an interplay of structure, rhythm, and intuition. Looking back, Davis reflects on how his diverse passions in art, science, and music, once seemingly separate, now converge harmoniously in his work with clay.