My practice is an act of ecological remembering — a reconnection to time as an amalgamation of bodily, seasonal, and earthly cycles, through the language of traditional craft.
Working primarily on the potter’s wheel, I make vessels and sculptural forms that explore landscape as an archive of memory, sociocultural history, and deep time. Much of my work is site-specific, made in response to particular landscapes — questioning inherited frameworks of late capitalism, and the separation between human and land.
Pottery is one of humanity’s oldest languages — shared across cultures, carried across time. Modern studio pottery has become a globalised practice, with clays and minerals sourced from across the world. Residencies have been foundational to my work, allowing me to respond to place with local material — taking me to Latvia, Mexico, and most recently to Japan, where I spent two months at Shiro Oni Studio in Onishi.
I graduated from the Royal College of Art in 2023 with an MA in Ceramics and Glass. Since, I have exhibited with galleries as part of London Design Festival and London Craft Week. Alongside my practice, I manage and teach at Culford Studios in London, as well as international courses at Salemi Ceramics School in Sicily.
CV
Education/Residencies:
MA Ceramics and Glass Royal College of Art 2023
Artist in Residence, Laima Ceramics, Latvia, 2020
Artist In Residence at Arquetopia Foundation and International Artist Residency, Puebla, Mexico 2022
Artist in Residence at Shiro Oni Residency, Onishi, Japan, 2026
Exhibitions/Features:
Shiro Oni Residency Exhibition, Onishi, Japan, 2026
Winter Collection, Thrown Contemporary December 24 - February 2025
Wallpaper Magazine, November Art Issue 24 - Terra Incanta featured in ‘ Sculptural fall fashion, inspired by the shapers and textures of contemporary vases.’
‘Alchemy’ Thrown Contemporary Gallery, London Craft week, Chelsea Fringe, Omved Gardens, London, May 2024
‘Ceramics Space’ at DOMUS, London, June 2024
‘Primordial Realms’, Galleria Objets, London, June 2024
Any Creative Form’ - series - Loft Films 2024
‘PLANET ROCK’ - Charles Burnand and Gallery, London Design week, London 2023
Teaching
Teacher at Culford Studios, London 2023 - present
Guest Teacher at Salemi Ceramics, Sicily October November 2025 - Returning October 2026
Contact
Email - estherpalmer@outlook.com
Instagram: esther.ceramics