Boy in a China Shop: Life, Clay and Everything

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The exhibition coincides with the publication of his autobiography, The Boy In A China Shop: Life, Clay and Everything, hitting shelves Thursday 3 February 2022. In 2016 Brymer Jones went to Australia to a ceramics festival called Clay Gulgong. He was to give a presentation there, but felt anxious, sure that he would be “looked down upon by the ceramics artists… I had a big chip on my shoulder about them not accepting me.” Once his presentation was over, two of the world’s leading experts on modern ceramics gave their own lecture. It featured Brymer Jones’s signature Word Range, which they described as “pots that talk”. “I was blown away. Absolutely blown away.” He felt recognised. “Isn’t that what we’re all really looking for, to be able to be seen? It’s a wonderful feeling.”

His ability to empathise with the other potters is striking. Perhaps this is because his route into pottery has been unconventional too. “I’ve never had a formal training, as such,” he tells me. When he was first announced as a judge on the show, a lot of people (shall we call them ceramicists?) were nonplussed, he explains. “Who the bloody hell is Keith Brymer Jones? Never heard of him. Oh, he must be one of those business types.” He spent most of his career making commercial pots out of limelight. Now he’s written an autobiography in the hope that he will demonstrate that there are other paths into creative careers that don’t involve art school. Keith was born in London in 1965. His interest in pottery started at a young age but it wasn’t until his starting an apprenticeship, at Harefield pottery in London, that he considered that it could be a worthwhile career. Who is Keith Brymer Jones’s wife? Keith has featured as a judge on The Great Pottery Throw Down since the show first started in 2015, and series 5 is airing on Channel 4 now. Since training at Harefield Pottery, Keith has created ceramics for huge brands such as Laura Ashley, Habitat and Monsoon. He is also Head of Design for MAKE International. Find out more about his work here. Keith Brymer Jones is a British potter and ceramic designer, known for his homeware Word Range with retro lettering and punk motifs. In 2015, he debuted as an expert judge alongside Kate Malone on BBC2’s The Great Pottery Throw Down where his readiness to shed tears at the contestants’ work attracted comment. He has continued his role and remained as a judge when the programme transferred to More4 in 2020 and Channel 4 in 2021.

During downtime on the pottery throwdown Keith made my hair curl with some of his tales - he's a great raconteur and recounts his story in this book as he does in real life - with joy, charm & mischief.' - Sara Cox This is one of the biggest complaints we have from customers is that they think the pottery is made in the UK by Keith. This is understandable in some respects having watched him extensively on the Great British Pottery Throwdown hand making many ceramics. Unfortunately, due to the huge popularity of the ranges, they cannot be made by Keith any more. The process of how they are made was explained by him as the following - They obviously couldn’t do it in words, I say. “No! Of course not! They still call me a c*** now!” he tells me. Perhaps that’s why the Throw Down gets emotional. “Just thinking about it now, maybe that’s what it is with their work. They bring this work to me, and it’s so wonderful. It’s like, ‘Oh, I see you now, I get it. Look, you can do this.’ ” He pauses. “It’s a brilliant, brilliant feeling.”

Every chapter of my book is based around an object (usually a pot) that's been significant in my life. It's just at trigger to let me go off in a lot of different directions and tell a few stories. A lot of stories. Dyslexia. The art teacher who changed my life. My Mother. My Father. A life-changing job interview with a man who lay under his car throughout. That video. An engaging read by an endearing, unassuming man who has always stayed true to his passions.' - Daily Mirror I love watching The Great Pottery Throw Down. It might be a competition but it's so much more than that. It's about a group of like-minded people who like creating and are just enjoying being in the pottery and turning a lump of clay into something beautiful. Keith is married to Marjory Hogarth, who works in the Theatre. Keith has stated before that he is extremely proud of his wife, as he is an obsessive workaholic, with utter dedication to his trade and the quality of his products. A crying Keith Brymer Jones is a frequent occurrence on Great British Throwdown. What makes him cry?Keith has stated before what he loves about his ranges of mugs, cups, plates and bowls, especially in his now famous ‘Word’ range is the simplicity of the design, and the slightly retro feel about them. This has been coupled with some more, shall we say risqué, modern phrases some of which we won’t repeat here although you can find it here on this link😉 Designs range from the simple Happymug, to the wildly popular Daddy and Mummy ones. The whole range of the mugs can be found on this link What collaborations has Keith done? I was really excited to see that Brymer Jones wrote a memoir and I was not disappointed. His charm and self deprecating humour really shine through. The passion and knowledge he possesses of the art of pottery, the love of music, the work ethic, the little nuggets of his live, unexpected meetings with people who made great impact on his life, it's all told in a joyful and endearing way.