Inaugural BCB Awards Shortlist Two Scottish Ceramicists

Two Scottish ceramicists, Dawn Youll and Frances Priest, have been shortlisted for the inaugural BCB Awards, celebrating energy and innovation in contemporary British ceramics, being presented at the British Ceramics Biennial 2009.

The BCB Awards Exhibition opens at Stoke-on-Trent’s Potteries Museum and Art Gallery on 3 October  2009 and will feature work by the 27 shortlisted artists and industries, and is set to form the centrepiece of the ten-week Biennial, a major new project for Stoke-on-Trent celebrating the finest in contemporary ceramics.

The BCB Awards recognise creativity and achievement across the breadth of ceramics design and practice, and the exhibition will display some of the most exciting talent working in ceramics today. The Awards selection panel comprised a number of the sector’s leading names: Alison Britton OBE, Emmanuel Cooper OBE, Ian Dudson CBE, Alun Graves, and Creative Directors of the British Ceramics Biennial Barney Hare Duke and Jeremy Theophilus.

The award-winners will be announced at a ceremony in late October, and selected works from the exhibition will be purchased by the BCB, and presented to the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery for inclusion in their permanent collection.

Selected artists and industries:

Batch Production - one award of £10,000
Ikuko Iwamoto, The New English, Ingrid Ruegemer, Louisa Taylor, Lucy Whiting.

One-Off Ceramics - one award of £10,000
Sam Bakewell, Jacob van der Beugel, Neil Brownsword, Halima Cassell, Phoebe Cummings, Natasha Daintry, Stephen Dixon, Philip Eglin, Catrin Howell, Aimee Lax, Frances Priest, David Roberts, Paul Scott, Clare Twomey, Conor Wilson, Dawn Youll.

Ceramics in the Built Environment - three awards of £3,000
Andrew Burton, Robert Dawson, Gwen Heeney and Vicky Shaw.

Ceramics in Industry - one award of £10,000
Ibstock Brick Ltd, Johnson Tiles, Royal Crown Derby.

Dawn Youll is currently on a crafts residency at Cove Park in Argyll,  following on from Frances Priest who completed a similar residency in 2008.