A cool spring afternoon, Christina opens her workshop door to a sunday chorus of birdsong. Tantalising reflections of her well loved garden ricochet between the tiny pieces off glass mosaic tiles and mirrors on her workbench. Soft shodows from her stone terraced cottage is all that separates her workspace from an open fielded mountain that is the very top of Bethesda. I pause in thought, wondering how her creativity could be more naturally tendered.
Christina unveils her most recent piece, and talks me through some of her work, carefully placed, hung and snuggled up into corners. She has a home for each piece in a well converted and designed stone outhouse. Fresh meadow flowers tainted with drying clay combine naturally, painting the air with Christina’s understanding of nature and its importance to the grounding sensual materials she works with. A recent circular spiders web, is admired and gazed upon adoringly, as much, if not more than the clay masks and models that adorn it. The elements may be seperated by huge Welsh rocky walls, but nature is welcomed, loved and thrives within Christina’s peaceful studio.
The most enormous tactile mug of tea, spurs on the chatter, warm giggles resonate as our conversation stumbles into a tone of contemplation and reflection. Christina effortlessly begins to explain her story, describing some minor milestones and life changing choices, she begins to pave a path up into her wonderful workshop, studio; space.
When did you start to work professionally as an artist?
I uncovered my talent for sculpture after finishing my degree. Christmas 2005 after being given a lump of clay to play with by friend and ceramic’s teacher Miranda. She was impressed and really it was due to her encouragement, and sourcing me more clay and a kiln, that I am doing this now, I have to thank her for being the artist I am now. I started working seriously in 2009 after being commission and selling the odd pieces, first I worked doing workshops with children at a local theme park whilst making my own stuff but the art sales were what was happening so that is what I went with. I set up as a sole trader with blackcutwitch designs in April 2010.
Overwhelmed by the peaceful rural settings I ask “What do you do for inspiration?” Fighting a double raised eyebrow smirk…
My mind is teeming with creative ideas all the time so I don’t really look for inspiration. I have such a diverse range of interests, which I feed through study and networking (twitter is great for this) and this means that when I think creatively there is a lot there to go on. If I have something specific to make but am having difficulty starting I look to the materials in which I might work and it all follows from there. I live in a very beautiful place with a lot of head space available and this, I am sure, allows the creative juices to flow readily.
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When I use bare clay I speak through texture and form, when using mosaic it is surface, colour and pattern and when doing mixed pieces, it is line and surface. (that was very muddled, sorry!!) I use the face as a sort of ‘meta’ medium, since one can convey so much in a subtle expression but it is also so open to individual interpretation. I think it is important for a work of art to speak on many levels and to be open to different interpretations hence having a longevity in the eye of the viewer i.e. I have made a mask which sometimes I can’t even look at because it spooks me out, however on other days it seems to come into beautiful life!! Surfaces add dimensionality to a piece and can speak almost like a story or a painting, glass mosaic gives a depth of surface which is quite other and I hope conveys a sort of fourth dimension within a piece. Physics comes into play, particularly in the mosaic work. The glass adds dimensionality and the grout distorts the form. Different types and shapes of glass reflect and distort differently so can convey different messages, playing with the way we percieve. (sorry lot more than a paragraph)
W
hen I do Mathematics I often use differential calculus and this is based on the idea of taking a continuous function (i.e. a curved line ) and breaking it into tiny discrete pieces very much like mosaicing in 3D, turning a series of flat (sometimes square) pieces into curved surfaces and curved shapes. In numerical modelling (which I have learnt within the context of Ocean Physics) one uses this concept to model highly complex behaviours using a computer. The smaller the discrete lumps are made the better the computer models the situation and this is like the use of larger or smaller pieces of mosaic to define and sometimes to flatten curvatures.
(sorry hun ) Sexual politics is very strong in the ideas that I have. All of my erotic pieces are based in this, I have some up coming ideas that take this a lot further. I think a lot of societies ills are based in sexuality, much more than people realise. So I guess my erotica is also my political rant!
Managing my time is very difficult. My partner is amazing and it is thanks to his continued support that I have been able to work as an artist. My son has watched my artistry develop as he has grown older and was so good last year; it was his summer holiday when we were building the studio but he kept himself occupied as much as a nine year old can! I have to work part time @ 5 – 6hr a day. In general my average day goes like this; I drop my son off and walk the dog, do my webby housekeeping while I have breakfast then try to be in the studio by 10.30am, sometimes the admin and sales stuff takes over the whole day which can be quite frustrating. I try to have a huge breakfast these days so I can skip lunch then do the school run. As my son gets older he has his own thing to do so sometimes I can pick up work again after we’ve had a chat and a snack. Other times we do the shopping, go and see Nana, go and see friends, attend appointments or go for a swim; the usual things children and part time working parents do. Working full time will be quite a jolt. Occasionally I take time out during the week to help my partner’s elderly grand mother, I usually make up the time at the weekend or in the evening. I have not had enough income to start having Jake in childcare after school or I would for at least three days a week. At the moment the extra time I need is found at the weekend while my partner does what has to be done at home I work on pieces or net/admin stuff. Like he is right now!!! 
) funny yeah!
I was brought up in and around London, born in Hillingdon, Middlesex.
About 19 yrs ago I moved to Wales since it was where my ex husband had been brought up and we visited often. I was lucky enough to find a good bar manager job here which was actually a promotion from my position in Kingston, Surrey, and now own my own little stone cottage in the hills. I always pined to be in the hills and cried when we went home after visiting mid Wales when I was about 12. I understood ‘hiraeth’ (Welsh language; a longing for home, and the things of home i.e. smells, sights) even before this place had become my home. I used to have an ache in my soul and it quieted when I moved here and was silenced once I started to create in clay.
Whilst ‘down sowf’ I worked as a model, in exhibition promotions and in various temp office jobs. I settled for a few years in the hotel and bar trade before moving up here. I moved out of the bar trade into owning my own shop selling fairtrade clothes and local art work before going to college to study science. I spent 10 years in all studying Mathematics, Physics and Oceanography (even a little electronic engineering) this was with a break in the middle when my partner got his Psychology degree, our son was born and we moved into our long term home. I now have a degree in Mathematics and Physical Oceanography and a Diploma in Physics from the Open University. I have taught Physics and Maths,at foundation level, to foreign students coming to the local university to study. This September I shall be studying for an MSc in Applied Physical Oceanography at the prestigious School of Ocean Sciences at Bangor University. I am excited about this as due to crossover with my degree I couldn’t sit this MSc when I finished at Uni 6 years ago. I am hoping to specialize in the numerical modelling of the dynamical effects of the placement of renewable technologies in the ocean environment. It should be easier now since my son is older but now I have another baby – my art business!!
My son and my partner are both wonderfully supportive and continue to be, probably because I recognise what they do and do not take it for granted. My friends have been vital, every time I have felt like giving up one of them either asks for a present idea, tells me how great something is, or even tells me how they find what I am doing inspirational. This kind of support is so important and really helps to keep me going. I am also very lucky to have some very talented friends who helped with suggestions for building a web presence, writing marvellous press releases and articles, doing classy photographs and even just giving me constructive feedback about my pieces and ideas. They have always been so understanding about the slow speed of an artist’s cash flow!!
I started working professionally as an artist in April 2010, with the commissioning of ‘Heather Sprite’.
I work between 20 and 40 hours a week, I think!! It just doesn’t stop when you’re self employed and you are doing something you love.
Clay costs between @ £10 and £25 per bag but the postage is @£10 per 2 bags. I tend to go and get it myself in bulk whenever I can, it’s good to go and visit Potclays because I can discuss new clays and glazes and sometimes get sample bags etc. The glazes cost between £3 and £15, the stoneware glaze that I use on tableware is quite expensive but it is totally non toxic and because it fires so high it is very durable. I use an electric sitter kiln of hobby size which sits in the corner of our kitchen, this limits the size of my pieces but is convenient. I try to fire as little as possible being conscious of environmental impacts and all my glazes are non-toxic. Each firing costs about £5 to £7, depending upon the time required, and can take up to 13 hours. Cooling then requires a further 13 hours before you can open the kiln.
My mosaic all comes from Mosaic Heaven and cost @£3 to £5 a bag. A recent piece cost @ £30 in all for materials and firing but took many hours and will be worth over a thousand, so cost doesn’t really hold me back unless things have been very slow and I want a specific finish or clay. In this case I will compromise but this often brings new and interesting results so I don’t mind too much, I just see it as fate playing a hand in my work again. Quality and correct colour are very important to me but it’s up to me to make it right as best I can. If I can’t I won’t do it.
