In 1982, having gained a reputation for one area of my work [predominantly woven textiles], I felt I was in danger of not developing all my other ideas. My love of patterns and the methods of applying pattern to printed textiles led me to explore methods of applying pattern and decoration to ceramics, particularly tableware and tiles. - John Hinchcliffe
White Flower platter majolica circa 1994, Charlton Cottage Studio
Sgraffito Zebra majolica plate
Sixpenny Handley Studio, 1991
Designed and decorated at Dartington Pottery for a Hinchcliffe and Barber exhibition at the Cider Press, 1999
Sixpenny Handley and Normandy Studio, 1992
Dartington Pottery 1999
Majolica
Normandy Studio, 1995
Majolica plate circa 1984 Charlton Cottage Studio
Connegar Farm Studio, 1999
Dartington Pottery, 1999
Materials fascinate me. As soon as I left RCA I established my own weaving studio. I produced furnishing and fashion fabrics and towards the end of this period I concentrated increasingly on the large colourful wall hangings that were exhibited widely and for which I gained an international reputation. Later, I also carried out extensive research into dyeing, printing and weaving in the Punjab and Rajasthan in India under the auspices of fashion retailer Tom Singh. Of particular interest to me was the range of low and high technology involved in the production of a wide range of fabrics often using simple craft techniques to achieve wonderful results - John Hinchcliffe
Sample: Silk, Wool and Cloth (some indigo dyed) circa 1981, Charlon Cottage Studio
Dyed cut cloth Arundel Studio, circa 1977
Hand blocked, discharged print. Raw silk 1984, Charlton Cottage studio
Sample: Double weave, wool warp, cloth weft Charlton Cottage Studio 1982
Lino blocked and screen printed fabric (detail)
Connegar Farm Studio, 2000
Hand blocked indigo dyed fabric
Sixpenny Handley Studio, 1987
Dyed cut cloth woven in strips and joined
Arundel Studio, 1977
Lino blocked and screen printed cushions
Dewlish Studio, 2008
My constructions, comprised of twisting and painting strips of canvas or clay are about containing and controlling what would otherwise be a rather chaotic mass of abstract colour.
Since leaving the Royal College of Art in 1973, I have worked predominantly in textiles and with clay. My work [in the constructions] is an amalgam of what attracted me to each of the areas in the first instance - fleece, clay and fibres are all very tactile elements, waiting to be formed and controlled. -John Hinchcliffe
Acrylic and canvas
Dewlish Studio, 2004
Underglaze and slip decorated earthenware
Dewlish Studio, 2004
Handmade paper
Dewlish Studio, 2005
Canvas, plastic and acrylic, Dewlish Studio 2006
Underglaze and slip decorated earthenware, 2005
Linen and cotton canvas and acrylic, 2006
Handmade paper and laminated recycled plastic 2004
Mixed media paintings which celebrate Hinchcliffe's love of the decorative. He uses flowers from his garden placed in pots he often made with fabrics from his collection.
Gouache on paper
Dewlish Studio, 2006
Gouache on paper
Connegar Farm Studio, 2001
Gouache on paper
Connegar Farm Studio, 2001
Gouache on paper
Connegar Farm Studio, 2001
John Hinchcliffe loved the precise application of print. He was a great observer - in his own words he liked to focus on the 'particularity of things, everything from tin roofs to road signs' - observations he transformed into bold linocuts, which capture seasons, places and history.
Notably in 2006, Hinchcliffe was selected, along with other very well established British illustrators and artists such as Peter Blake, Anthony Gormley, Lucinda Rogers and David Nash, to produce original lino cuts for the book 'England in Particular' - A celebration of the commonplace, the local, the vernacular and the distinctive' for the arts and environmental charity, Common Ground. John's love of the rural environment, the power of the land and the sea, is always at the forefront of his work, whether in representational or abstract forms.
Limited edition lithographs of John Hinchcliffe's Months of the Year Collection are available to purchase from
https://www.wendybarber.com/prints-for-sale
Lithograph from original lino block
Months of the Year Collection for Dorset Life Magazine
Curwen Studio 2011
Lino cut from the Decorative Dorset series
Connegar Farm Studio, 2002
Original Lino cut from the Decorative Dorset series
Connegar Farm Studio, 2002
Lino cut from the Decorative Dorset series
Connegar Farm Studio, 2002
Commissioned by Common Ground, 2003
Lithograph from original lino block
Months of the Year Collection for Dorset Life Magazine
Curwen Studio 2011
I believe an artist/ designer can and should have a much bigger impact on product design and development - also the way that it is marketed and sold. So, with my partner Wendy Barber, I created a small studio in Dorset, which eventually emplyed seven people. The purpose of this studio was to research and to develop ideas as well as produce. The studio concentrated on bath production as opposed to mass production, but one one-off pieces. By working closely with industry, media, retailers and consumers, we were able to produce a distinctive style and as a result Hinchcliffe & Barber (the brand we created under which to sell our ceramics) received worldwide commercial success. - John Hinchcliffe
Today the brand continues to draw from John Hinchcliffe's prolific archive of work with ceramic and giftware ranges in production in the UK & Japan. Hinchcliffe and Barber continues to be managed by Wendy Barber and their daughter Georgia. For more information visit: www.hinchcliffeandbarber.com
Hinchcliffe & Barber Dorset Delft range for Saville Pottery 1994
1987 - to present day. Originally hand decorated in the Sixpenny Handley Studio. Later made in Stoke-on-Trent
Hand decorated in Stoke-on-Trent
Majolica
Hand decorated in Sixpenny Handley Studio
Selection of majolica spongeware Higher Melcombe Studio 2011. First produced 1980.
Saville Pottery, 1989
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