My name is Marnie Waghorn and I am a potter based in Sheffield.

I make functional pottery, hand thrown on an electric wheel and fired either in an electric kiln or a wood kiln. Each piece is thrown and trimmed on the wheel, fired, glazed and then fired again; there is a rhythm to the process, with each step involving decisions that affect the final outcome and result in every piece of pottery telling a story.

Since my art foundation course in 2015 I have been working with clay and I am forever amazed by the versatility of the material and the transformation from soft malleable clay into hard, vitrified ceramic. Three years ago I started wood firing my pots in the Peak District and this has propelled my work in a new and exciting direction as it has opened my eyes to the endless and unpredictable effects that reduction, flames, and flying ash can have on clay bodies and glazes.

I take inspiration for my work from the landscape and natural forms around me. Living next to the Peak District, I see this landscape reflected in the textures and surface designs on some of my pots, whilst other pieces bring to mind the pebbles and tidelines of the North Cornish and East Yorkshire coasts where, ever since I was a child, I have spent lots of time with always an eye out for the perfect pebble or shiny flash of sea glass.