My Art: The V&A Ceramics Collection

Tucked away on the sixth floor of the V&A, the ceramics section is my little artistic idyll in London. Even on weekends it is virtually empty, so you can sit back and enjoy the craftsmanship without the hassle you get with the better known art establishments. Huge glass cabinets filled to the brim with ceramics extend the whole length of hallways, ensuring totally immersive experience. It is little wonder then that one can spend hours utterly transfixed!

As you follow the collection around, you are taken on a tour through the history of the artform, from the Far East through to Europe.

But don’t despair, it’s not just row after row of Ming vases and Wedgewood tea sets, there is also an excellent collection of modern ceramics from the 20th and 21st centuries that is unlike anything you have ever seen. One artist in particular, Ryoji Koie, is a favourite of mine in the way he gives the clay such a fluid and dynamic feel that makes you doubt whether the clay has been fired at all!

The argument is often made of the V&A that it can feel a bit stale, more a catalogue of artifacts than something thrilling. But this cannot be said of the ceramics section because every time I visit, the same sense of magic and excitement returns to me as if it were my first time visiting. And such is the breadth and depth of the collection that you do see something new to fascinate you every time, leaving you with a child-like wonderment.