Helen Kemp

Helen Kemp

Award-winning Scottish maker Helen Kemp studied ceramics at Edinburgh and Glasgow Schools of Art in the mid-1970s before setting up her studio in the rural Scottish Borders. Her decorative work is full of whimsy and warmth, featuring images of people, animals as well as mythological narratives.

We have worked with Helen for several years and her ceramics have always been popular with our customers and collectors due to their individual style and one-off nature. Opening a box of Helen’s work when it arrives at the Harley is something we always look forward to. Discovering the unique stories in each piece; whether it be a mermaid dancing with fish, or a woman gazing at her reflection while wearing a beautiful bird nest hat, is a delight and surprise.

“I work in a narrative style, producing unique dreamlike ceramics which are hand-modelled in earthenware and decorated using a sgraffito technique which allows me to create detailed drawings on the surface of the clay. There are lots of things I am inspired by from Victorian Staffordshire figures, Mexican and North American folk art, to Latin American magic realism. I constantly develop my themes, with one piece leading to another.”