CREAM (Centre for Research and Education in Arts and Media), University of Westminster: Future Ecologies of Clay
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Future Ecologies of Clay
Examining how artworks in the ‘expanded field of clay’ can be made accessible in museum collections
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About the Project
Future Ecologies of Clay addresses the challenges of UK museums in collecting ephemeral, live, performative, site-specific and participatory works in clay. The project seeks to ensure that artworks in the ‘expanded field of clay’ can be identified, explored and analysed in the future.
Context
Future Ecologies of Clay is a three-year AHRC-funded collaborative project between the V&A and the Ceramics Research Centre-UK at the University of Westminster. Bringing together artistic, academic and curatorial expertise from the two teams, the project will examine the significant gap between what is being made and exhibited by contemporary artists working with clay, and what is represented in museum collections. It will address the challenge of collecting artworks in the expanded field of clay and the ability of UK museums to make them accessible and visible to future audiences.
Aim
The aim of this research is to ensure recent and historical examples of ephemeral, live, performative, site-specific and participatory works in clay can be identified, explored and analysed in the future. It will identify challenges and gaps in existing collecting strategies and taxonomies in museums and suggest how artists and curators can increase the representation of contemporary clay artworks that are not tangible, permanent objects. We aim to open up a new area of discourse in the field of museology concerning the collecting and archiving of the expanded field of clay practices.
Outcomes
Outcomes will include: a project website to facilitate discussion and idea generation; a ‘long conference’ comprising a series of seminars supporting knowledge transfer and exploration; a Collection and Archives Strategy Document that supports artists and curators in the collection and preservation of non-permanent clay artworks; four new artworks developed as case studies of ephemeral, site-specific, participatory and live clay practice with four UK museums, including the V&A; and a publication of histories, case studies, research findings, journal articles and conference papers.
Project Outputs
Register now for Permanence/Impermanence conference // 24-26 June 2026
The three-day conference addresses how artworks in the ‘expanded field of clay’ can be made accessible to current and future audiences. These works may be ephemeral, site-specific, participatory, or live, thereby posing significant challenges for museums. Conference keynotes include Florence Peake (artist) and Louisa Buck (art critic and author); Alun Graves (Senior Curator, Ceramics and Glass 1900–now, V&A) and Keith Harrison (artist); Daniel F. Herrmann (Ardelan Curator of Modern and Contemporary Projects, National Gallery) and Deborah Smith (curator consultant); Phoebe Cummings (artist); Emily Stone (specialist in public programming) and Alexandra Hodby (Head of Programmes, Yorkshire Sculpture Park); Hanna B. Hölling (Research Professor, Bern Academy of the Arts); and artists Clare Twomey and Linda Sormin.
The Team
Alun Graves
Senior Curator, Ceramics and Glass 1900 – now
Alun Graves is Senior Curator, Ceramics and Glass 1900–now, in the Decorative Art and Sculpture Department at the V&A, London. He is the author of Studio Ceramics: British Studio Pottery 1900 to Now (Thames & Hudson, 2023) and has written widely on 20 ... Read more
a.graves@vam.ac.uk
Natalie Baerselman le Gros
Research Fellow
Natalie is a PhD student at the University of East Anglia studying ‘The Abstract Vessel: defining ‘vesselism’ in the New British Ceramic (1955-1995)’. She is a curator, editor and writer and has worked with important ceramic collections at the Sainsbu ... Read more
n.baerselmanlegros@vam.ac.uk
External Partners
Clare Twomey
- Project Lead, Ceramics Research Centre-UK, University of Westminster
Phoebe Cummings
- Project Co-Lead, Ceramics Research Centre-UK, University of Westminster
Tessa Peters
- Project Co-Lead, Ceramics Research Centre-UK, University of Westminster
Christie Brown
- Project Co-Lead, Ceramics Research Centre-UK, University of Westminster
Lily Crowther
- Research Fellow, Ceramics Research Centre-UK, University of Westminster
Sophia Matthews
- Project Administrator, University of Westminster
Events
‘Permanence / Impermanence: Collecting and archiving contemporary clay practices’ conference
The conference addresses how artworks in the ‘expanded field of clay’ can be made accessible and visible to current and future audiences. It will take place from 24-26 June 2026. ( Find more details under 'outputs')
University of Westminster, London
24 June 2026
This work is supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council [grant number UKRI748]. The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funds world-class researchers in a wide range of arts and humanities areas, from philosophy and the creative industries to art conservation and product design. AHRC's research addresses some of society’s biggest challenges such as tackling modern slavery and understanding the ethical implications of artificial intelligence. It also drives growth in the creative economy, and reveals new stories from the national collections held in the UK’s world-renowned museums and galleries.
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Header image: Phoebe Cummings, Triumph of the Immaterial, unfired clay, 2017 (detail)