An Art To It

A passion for colour, flowers and making all came together for Katie Robbins as she said goodbye to a career in marketing and welcomed a new creative direction as a ceramicist.

In a lively and very open chat Katie - known by many on Instagram with her memorable handle @ceramicmagpie - shares her journey from a career in marketing to becoming a full-time ceramicist, and how creativity was always present in her life - even before she could imagine it becoming her work. She talks about studying French and politics at university, working in marketing, keeping her creative levels topped up with evening classes, and eventually finding her way to clay after having children.

Katie reflects on the slow process of building confidence as a self-taught maker, the challenge of calling herself a ceramicist, and how selling her first pieces helped her begin to believe in her work. She also discusses how her marketing background has helped her shape her brand, understand social media, and bring people along on her creative journey.

We talk about the realities of running a creative business: learning new skills, managing admin, showing up online, doing both general markets and specialist ceramic shows, developing a product range, and balancing heart-led making with commercial decisions.

Katie and I also explore the importance of community, customer experience, and delighting buyers - from sharing the behind-the-scenes process to creating beautiful packaging and memorable moments.

A warm and practical conversation about confidence, creativity, flowers, ceramics, and the many skills involved in building a sustainable creative business.

You can see Katie's work at https://www.ktrobbinsceramics.com/ and on instagram she is @ceramicmagpie

Ceramicists never really retire, but they are allowed to indulge in a sabbatical. In this episode of An Art to It, I chat to Lucy Burley, whose beautifully distinctive ceramic bottles and vessels have been a much-loved part of my gallery https://thebyregallery.co.uk/ for ten years.

In our very lively chat Lucy reflects on her creative path, from a first life in London as a tri-lingual secretary and then working in television production to discovering painting classes, art school, and eventually clay. She talks about developing her now instantly recognisable style, inspired in part by Giorgio Morandi, and explains how she built a ceramic practice rooted in harmony of form, colour and use.

We also discuss what it means to sustain a creative business over decades: learning as you go, building gallery relationships before the internet made everything visible, managing health challenges, and knowing when it's time to step back and reassess. Lucy shares why 2026 has become a "mini gap year" or sabbatical for her - certainly not retirement, but a pause to think, travel, learn, and explore new directions in her work.

This is a very open and honest conversation about longevity, resilience, creative identity, and the delicate balance between making work and making a living. Oh and, as a memorable postscript, Lucy also shares the extraordinary story of the time she ended up in prison in the Indian Ocean.

In this episode:

• Lucy's route into ceramics via painting and art school

• Leaving television and finding a more creative path

• Developing a distinctive style and glaze palette

• The influence of Giorgio Morandi on her work

• Building a ceramic career before Instagram and websites

• Why she chose not to do large craft fairs

• Teaching ceramics and why she eventually had to stop

• Living and working with Lyme disease

• The decision to take a sabbatical from full-time potting

• What success means at different stages of a creative life

• The "fine art of balance" in a creative business

• And the unforgettable story of a spell in jail in the Andaman Islands

Lucy talks about some of the fellow creatives and businesses who have supported or inspired her:

Charles Gladstone: https://gladstonehellen.co.uk/@hawardenestate and @gladstone_hellen

Scilly flowers: https://www.scillyflowers.co.uk/@scillyflowers

Fiona Findlay: @findlayfiona

Thom Hudson: @thom_hudson

Lucy Nicolls: @lucydorothyart

Kyra Cane @kyra.cane

Freedom of choice and taking up all opportunities are just two of the topics I chat about with visual artist Laura Menzies in episode 52 of An Art to It.

From a multidisciplinary arts degree and early love of dance to developing a distinctive painting practice in Cornwall, Laura shares her creative business journey; and reveals how studying, teaching and later completing an MA in Fine Art helped her refine her artistic voice.

We also discuss the reality of building a creative business: learning the business side on the job, approaching and working with galleries, and the inventive collaborations that have helped Laura reach new audiences, including projects with Celtic & Co https://www.celticandco.com/ and Neptune https://www.neptune.com/.

Laura speaks openly about growing in confidence, learning to market herself in ways that feel aligned, and the value of staying open, flexible and resilient in a creative career.

Topics covered

• Laura's early creative life and multidisciplinary arts degree

• Why visual art, rather than performance, became her focus

• Moving to Cornwall and the draw of the coast and creative community

• How her painting practice developed during and after her MA at Falmouth

• Landscape, memory, movement and "visual poetry" in her work

• Learning the business side of being an artist

• Building confidence in promoting and talking about her work

• Collaborating with Celtic & Co on a range of clothes using her painting

• Using books, branding and beautifully styled imagery as part of her business

• Growing into a more entrepreneurial mindset

• Her thoughts on success, freedom and creative choice

• Advice on resilience, flexibility and running a successful creative business

You can see Laura's work at https://www.lauramenzies.co.uk/ and on instagram she is @lauramenziesart

Exhibiting - and wearing - a maker's work for a decade is definitely something worth celebrating. This week I'm chatting with Cornish jeweller Lucy Spink, a Byre Gallery regular for ten years since I first discovered her work thanks to two clients who were wearing her jewellery; surely the best kind of introduction. Since then I've got a considerable collection of her work myself - as have many of the gallery's clients.

In our lovely chat we talk about how the jewellery world has shifted over the last decade, the eye-watering rise in metal prices, Lucy's love of unusual stones, and the way photography, texture and storytelling all weave through her practice. Lucy also shares the real behind-the-scenes of creative life: fairs, imposter syndrome, the juggle of life, dogs and studio time… and why residencies can be pure creative gold.

We chat about:

• How I first discovered Lucy's work a customer-styling recommendation!

• How the jewellery market has changed: trends, saturation, and shifting tastes

• Why unusual gemstones sparked a new direction

• Metal prices rising fast - and what makers may do next

• Lucy's photography background and why it helps her in her practice

• The quiet power of "back story" in a creative practice (nothing is wasted)

• The reality of fairs: visibility, energy, and "bearing your soul"

• The role galleries still play, and how online selling has changed things

• The art to running a creative business: persistence, hope, and adapting

You can see Lucy's work @lucyspinkjewllery and www. lucyspinkjewellery.co.uk

Word play and the serenity of printing are under discussion in this episode of An Art to It, when I'm joined by artist and maker Megan Fatharly. An exciting talent, Meg has won a deserved reputation - and fan base - for her witty and distinctive embossed metal work.

In a lively and honest chat we talk about Meg's relationship with place (Scottish beginnings, Cornwall now), her diagnosis of ADHD in her late twenties, and how art-making became both a way to process the world and a "capsule of process" she could return to when things felt too much.

Meg shares the behind-the-scenes truth of building a creative business: the push-pull between play and commercial demand, the exhaustion of systems and delegation, the emotional reality of visibility, and why success can feel strangely rigid when your work becomes known for "one thing".

We also discuss taking part in the trade show Top Drawer, the difference between that and a market, how audiences connect with the person behind the work, and a line that Meg wrote in her blog about showing her work at Top Drawer that stood out for me: "paying attention to where the work naturally wants to go, rather than where I think it should go to be more easily understood." I asked how that fits in with being an entrepreneur

We chat about:

• The pull of geography and "sense of place" in creative identity

• ADHD, hyper-fixation, and the relief of processes that slow the mind down

• Meg's love of printmaking

• Poetry, collage and using words to anchor ambiguity

• When your art becomes a business: contracts, VAT, systems and structure

• The tension between exploring new work and "will it sell?" mentality

• Visibility and boundaries: when people want to meet the maker

You can see Meg's work at https://meganfatharly.com/ and @printcessmeg

Meg very much admires: The Fabled Thread

Website: https://www.thefabledthread.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefabledthread

Meg worked alongside the Institute of Imagination facilitating workshops.

Website: https://www.instituteofimagination.org

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/instituteofimagination

Meg took part in Top Drawer with Cornwall Shop Small and Creative Kernow Associates

Website: https://www.cornwallshopsmall.co.uk

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cornwallshopsmall

Website: https://associates.creativekernow.org.uk

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/creativekernowassociates

John was one of Meg's tutors during foundation and degree, and his open-access print studio remains an invaluable creative space in Cornwall.

Website: https://www.johnhowardprintstudios.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnhowardprint

Celebrating 20 years as a beacon of creative excellence in jewellery, I'm delighted to be joined this week by Vicky Sewart, founder of Victoria Sewart Contemporary Jewellery Gallery in Plymouth, Devon.

In a lovely chat with Vicky we talk about what's changed in the jewellery world, and why, with a very clear vision of what she wanted her gallery to be, she "stuck to her guns" through recessions and retail shifts.

Vicky also shares how teaching has become a huge part of her creative life, the reality of navigating breast cancer just two years into opening the gallery, and why she's now embracing a fresh "next chapter" with mentoring and renewed energy.

What we cover:

• How the contemporary jewellery landscape has changed over 20 years

• Why Vicky chose "gallery" over "shop" - and what that means in practice

• Sticking to a clear vision (even when the market pushes you mainstream)

• The joy of teaching design-led jewellery

• Whether you need university to become a jeweller today

• The role galleries still play in a world of Instagram selling

• What Vicky wants next: lifestyle business, career business… or something she can eventually sell?

You can see the gallery at https://victoriasewart.com/ and on instagram @victoria_sewart_gallery

Vicky talked about the work of one of her gallery team, Rachel Darbourne whose work you can see @racheldarbourne, also part of the amazing team at the Gallery is @valmuddymanjewellery @kathleen.ashcroft.jewellery and @donna.burns.jewellery

If you enjoy An Art to It podcasts, please, please do follow us on Apple and help more people find us. It's really easy, open the Apple podcast app, go to An Art to It; the top three little dots on the upper right hand corner, touch that and it will offer you 'Go to Show' select that, you're on the home page, and then back to the three dots, select that and tap FOLLOW. Thank you v much!

In this episode of An Art to It, I'm joined by ceramic artist Carolyn Tripp for a very enterianting and thoughtful conversation about finding your voice, building confidence, and taking the long view in a creative career.

Carolyn shares her journey from advertising to ceramics, how loss shaped a deeply personal body of work, and why success in the art world often comes slowly - through consistency, clarity, and community rather than quick wins.

In this episode we talk about:

Finding your true creative voice later in life

How personal experience can become universal in your work

Why Carolyn describes her work as a "visual diary" of things she notices

The value of getting help with words, storytelling, and communication

Imposter syndrome - even when showing your work at a prestigious event like Collect

How previous careers can quietly support a creative business

Selling work through galleries and how collectors engage with ceramics

Why evolution in your work needs to be careful and considered

What success looks like when you play the long game

Carolyn also shared businesses that she loves for their brands and their authenticity: her local bakers @august.bakery_ and skincare specialist @drsambunting

You can find Carolyn's work at https://www.carolyntceramics.co.uk/ and on instagram she's @carolyntceramics

Carolyn is showing her work with the Cynthia Corbett Gallery https://www.thecynthiacorbettgallery.com/ at the Craft's Council https://www.craftscouncil.org.uk/ international event, Collect at London's Somerset House https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/ from 26th Feb

If you enjoy An Art to It podcasts, please, please do follow us on Apple and help more people find us. It's really easy, open the Apple podcast app, go to An Art to It; the top three little dots on the upper right hand corner, touch that and it will offer you 'Go to Show' select that, your on the home page, and then back to the three dots, select that and tap FOLLOW. Thank you v much!

In this episode, I'm joined by ceramic artist Sonya Wilkins, whose vessels are inspired by the natural world - particularly trees, woodland textures, and the quiet power of time spent outdoors. Sonya shares how creativity has been woven through her life since childhood, from early painting lessons with her father to discovering clay at school, and why ceramics became both a practice and a refuge.

Sonya also talks candidly about her "two pulls": a creative identity alongside an entrepreneurial streak, and how her earlier career in people development eventually found its way back into her work. A turning-point moment brought her full circle to teaching ceramics, and reignited her own studio practice.

We chat about the tension many artists face between commercial demand and soul-led making, how Sonya uses variety (and a range of price points) to support both creativity and sustainability, and why she sees Instagram as a visual portfolio rather than a creative prison. We also touch on other subjects close to Sonya's heart: Reiki, wellbeing, and Ikigai, and how she believes that all of these frameworks can help artists build a business that doesn't flatten their joy.

We chat about:

• How Sonya's father taught her observation - and why that shaped everything

• Fossil hunting, earth materials, and the "magic" of what's hidden inside rock

• Why clay became a companion, and why Sonya always needs to go 3D

• A "pre-art" career, and the confidence rebuild that brought her back to making

• The commercial temptation: growth vs. conveyor-belt creativity

• Trees as muse, symbol, and subject

• Her MA at Bath Spa University https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/

• Client stories, significant trees, and creating vessels that hold memory

You can see Sonya's work at https://ceramicsinspiredbynature.com/ and on instagram @sonyawilkinsceramics

2026 - and series five - kicks off with An Art to It's first ever transatlantic episode: this week I'm joined by gallerist Liz Lidgett of Liz Lidgett Gallery + Design in Des Moines, Iowa. https://www.lizlidgett.com/

Liz shares how growing up with a free local museum - and a grandmother who bought her art lessons every Christmas - shaped her belief that art should be for everyone. After studying art history and working as an in-house curator for a major corporate collection, she left the corporate world after exactly one year to become a freelance art advisor before opening her own gallery in 2019… just months before the pandemic.

In our lively chat we talk about how being based in the midwest - rather than LA or New York City - gave Liz the space to experiment with selling art, and how Instagram and lockdown turned a her local gallery into a global business. and why Liz treats her gallery as her biggest artwork – built on joy, ethics, and a strict "no jerks" rule.

Inspired by her belief that art really IS for everyone, 2026 sees the launch of Liz's book, Art for Everyone where she demystifies buying, hanging and living with art for people who "love art but don't know where to start." It can be pre-ordered now on Amazon.

In this episode, we chat about:

• Why being in the "overlooked" Midwest gave Liz freedom to play, make mistakes and experiment

• Moving from art history and corporate curation into art advising - and what she learned from seeing behind the scenes of galleries.

• How her Midwest gallery now ships to all 50 US states and 11+ countries, and why location matters less when your voice and eye are strong

• The values at the heart of her business: accessibility, kindness, paying artists on time, "no jerks", and approachable (never snooty) language

• Building a community for artists: annual surveys, honest questions, and a legendary 5-year party that brought 35–40 artists together in person

• The emotional and as Liz says, "slightly woo-woo" side of gallery work: believing that each artwork has a person it's "meant" for – and her job is to connect them

• What galleries can still offer artists in an age of direct sales and social media

• Treating the gallery itself as her biggest artwork, and why joy is non-negotiable in how she runs her business.

@lizlidgettgallery @lizlidgett

@elaine_dye_ @thebyregallery

Ever wanted to eavesdrop of gallery owners in conversation? Now is your chance . In this Christmas Special edition of An Art to It, I'm joined by two fellow gallerists: Sharon Harvey (Sanctuary Gallery, Gloucestershire, and landscape artist) and Sara McKee (Life Full Colour gallery and music venue, North Wales).

Together we unwrap what 2025 has really been like for independent galleries: the tough months, the surprising highs, the "Dunkirk Spirit" of a Private View in a rainstorm and flood, and why layering income streams and experiences has become essential.

We also answer questions posed by artists and makers on:

• How galleries choose new artists

• Whether being a "Northern" artist limits your gallery chances

• Following up when a gallery goes quiet

• The reality of pricing for galleries vs. art fairs

• Whether galleries worry about "missing the next Van Gogh"…

It's a cosy, honest, very real conversation about art, money, risk, resilience - and why your relationship with a gallery matters as much as your work.

You can visit each of our galleries here: https://thebyregallery.co.uk/

https://www.thesanctuarygallery.com/

https://www.lifefullcolour.com/

And find out more about me https://elainedye.com/

An Art to It will be back in mid January 2026