On today's show, Bob Acton @bobacton, interviews Deana Bada Maloney, an Illinois-based ceramic artist and wildlife sculptor whose work brings together hand-built clay, animal anatomy, drawing, expressive surface, and mixed media.

With a background in drawing, painting, anatomy, and scientific illustration, Deana has developed a highly observational approach to ceramic sculpture. She often thinks about working in clay as a form of three-dimensional drawing, using gesture, texture, and carefully observed anatomy to build animals that feel both physically convincing and full of character.

Teaching has also become an important part of Deana’s practice. Through workshops and mentoring, she shares her approach to sculpting animals, studying anatomy, developing form, and using clay as a way of seeing more closely.

Surface is another distinctive part of Deana’s work and teaching. She uses oxides to emphasize the marks made during sculpting and also works with inks on fired ceramic surfaces, allowing drawing and mark-making to continue after the firing process. Her workshops on inking ceramics explore how these materials can add depth, contrast, and character without completely covering the clay beneath.

In this episode of the Colour and Ceramics Podcast, we talk about ceramic animal sculpture, drawing in three dimensions, studying anatomy, hand-building techniques, working with ink on ceramics, developing expressive surfaces, and what Deana has learned through teaching and mentoring other ceramic artists.

If you are interested in ceramic sculpture, wildlife art, hand-building, clay workshops, animal anatomy, ceramic surface techniques, or using drawing as part of your ceramic practice, I think you’ll enjoy this conversation.

My guest today is Drew Caines, a ceramic artist based in Leeds in the north of England who has been working with clay for almost 30 years.

Drew creates richly textured, often sculptural work that brings together influences from very different points in human history. He draws inspiration from ancient Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic art, folklore and ethnography, while also pulling in contemporary influences such as street art and Pop art.

There is a wonderful sense of something both ancient and strangely familiar in Drew's work. Pattern, texture and intricate detail are central to his making, but beneath the surface is a deeper interest in memory, emotion and our connection to the people who made things thousands of years before us.

You can find his work here: https://www.instagram.com/drewcainesceramics/

In this episode of Colour & Ceramics, Bob Acton @bobacton speaks with Susie Kathol, a ceramic artist, wildlife biologist, and botanist based in Revelstoke, BC.

Susie brings her scientific knowledge and deep connection to the natural world into her ceramic practice, using sgraffito to carve images of plants and wildlife into the surfaces of her work.

We talk about the relationship between science and art, learning ceramics within a supportive studio community, and how close observation of the natural world can find its way into clay.

A lovely conversation about curiosity, nature, and developing an artistic practice alongside a life in science.

Susie's Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/susiekatholceramics/

Susie's Website: https://susiekatholceramics.ca/

SPECIAL EDITION: In this episode of the Colour & Ceramics Podcast, we explore the Surface Stories Collective, https://surfacestoriescollective.lovable.app/, a Toronto-based initiative bringing non-ceramic artists from equity-deserving communities into the world of ceramic surface design.

Through workshops, studio sessions, and a culminating exhibition at Gallery 1065 from July 24 to August 2, participants are expanding their creative practices, experimenting with clay, and building new connections across Toronto’s arts communities.

It is an inspiring conversation with Natalie Waddell https://claygirl.ca and Christina Leslie https://www.christinaleslie.com/ about access, collaboration, and the possibilities that emerge when artists step into unfamiliar creative territory.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.

Produced with the support of the City of Toronto through the Toronto Arts Council.

#ColourAndCeramics #SurfaceStoriesCollective #CeramicArt #TorontoArts #ContemporaryCraft

My guest today is British ceramic sculptor Paul Smith, who has worked full-time from his studio in North Derbyshire since 1998. Paul is known for his bold, semi-abstract animal sculptures, combining simplified forms with expressive, richly layered surfaces.

Inspired by ancient sculpture and pottery, Inuit and folk art, and his lifelong fascination with the natural world, Paul is especially drawn to horses, cattle, wolves, bears, and big cats. His recent work uses layers of slips, engobes, oxides, and underglazes to create sculptures that feel like treasured objects, marked by age and history.

Alongside his studio practice, Paul now teaches his distinctive hand-building methods through masterclasses in the UK and internationally.

You can find him here on his website: https://paulsmithsculptures.co.uk/ and on his Instagram page here: https://www.instagram.com/paulsmithsculptures/

This week we're joined by Mary Fox, a self-taught BC potter who turned a lifetime of "learning at the school of hard knocks" into an acclaimed artistic career. Mary shares her journey from functional pottery to exploratory art, her approach to surface design and colour, and why she created the Legacy Project Apprentice Program — a rare two-year apprenticeship helping young Canadian potters become studio professionals. 🎧 Listen now!

See her work and all about her apprentice program https://maryfoxpottery.ca/

In this episode, Bob Acton joined by interdisciplinary artist Kristine Zingeler.

Kristine works across photography, collage, drawing, painting, and sculpture, creating subtle but powerful work that explores interconnectedness, time, and the constant state of change in both humanity and the natural world.

Her practice begins with close observation and collecting, giving new significance to rocks, feathers, nests, insects, plants, and other overlooked fragments of the everyday. Her recent work moves beautifully between image and object, ancient and immediate, tiny and monumental.

Listen in for a thoughtful conversation about attention, process, material, and the quiet power of noticing.

You can find her work on her website at: https://www.kristine-zingeler.com/ and on her Instagram page at: https://www.instagram.com/kristinezingeler/

This week on Colour and Ceramics, Bob Acton is joined by Sarah Pike, one of Canada’s top ceramic artists. Sarah is a full-time potter based in Fernie, British Columbia, where she makes functional slab-built pottery from her home studio. Her work carries a wonderful sense of movement and personality, shaped by the mountain landscape around her and inspired by antique tinware, textured metal, and old handmade objects. Sarah studied ceramics at ACAD in Calgary, and also studied at the University of Colorado and the University of Minnesota. It was a real pleasure to talk with her about clay, making, and the ideas that continue to shape her distinctive body of work.

Find her website and Instagram page here:

https://www.sarahpikepottery.com/

https://www.instagram.com/sarahpikepottery/

In this episode of the Colour and Ceramics Podcast @colourandceramics I @bobacton speak with Calgary potter Teresa Wyss @teresawysspottery about her striking functional ceramics, made with porcelain stoneware and decorated using hand-carved sgraffito. Inspired by wildlife, landscape, and the vivid colours of nature, her work has a bold, graphic presence that really stands out.We also talked about something many artists wrestle with: the business side of art making. From delegation to managing time and energy, Teresa shared thoughtful insights into what it takes to sustain a creative practice beyond the studio bench.

See her work on her website at https://twpottery.ca and her Instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/teresawysspottery/

Today on the Colour and Ceramics Podcast, host Bob Acton shares his interview with Robbin Harris.

Robbin Harris is a crystalline ceramic artist based in Calgary, Alberta, whose creative path reflects both resilience and reinvention. A former jazz musician, Robbin turned to clay after a life-changing accident ended his drumming career, discovering ceramics in 2017 under the mentorship of Dave Settles at Fairview Studios.

His artistic direction shifted again in 2020 when he encountered crystalline glazes, a discovery that opened a deep exploration into their unpredictable beauty and technical complexity. Through a practice rooted in experimentation, Robbin creates work that balances cosmic imagery with organic decay, revealing the delicate tension between creation and destruction. Each firing becomes an act of discovery, inviting viewers into a conversation about fragility, transformation, and the unexpected beauty that emerges when control meets chance.

You can find Robin here on his website https://robbinharrisceramics.com/ or on his Instagram page here https://www.instagram.com/robbin.harris.ceramics/