Ceramic Sculpture Residency at Shaws of Darwen for the Batley Bats Project

Ceramic work
Timber and Steel
Lighting
Water Fountains

We sculpted the ceramic features for the Batley Bats sculpture during an intense 8 month residency at Shaws of Darwen ceramics factory in Lancashire, UK. 

Shaws of Darwen has been producing architectural ceramics since the beginning of the 20th century. Today they produce a variety of ceramic components for buildings: butler sinks and glazed bricks/ tiles for elaborate architectural restorations, most famously for London's Natural History Museum and the Savoy. 

We worked along side skilled craftsmen to build our 150 ceramic components, using traditional techniques. The most challenging pieces were the bats themselves. Standing 1 metre in height, the bats were fired in one piece, taking all the available expertise to make them a success.

Picture (left) shows one of the bats ready for drying and firing. (right) shows a section of the ‘Bat and wheat' cornice in the drying room.