Andrew Walford

Andrew Walford lives in Kwazulu Natal with his wife Leanda and four children in the rolling peace of the Shongweni hills, halfway between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. Indigenous bush surrounds his mountain studio and working alongside Gumede, his Zulu handyman,
Andrew draws much inspiration for his decoration from the many trees and birds there.

Andrew Walford is one of the few potters who digs his own stoneware clay and meticulously prepares
it to his own high standard. Working in the Japanese tradition with thick chun glazes sifted by hand
from wood ash, colours of rich resonant tenmokus, fatty whites and shades of celadon, he then
decorates the pots with specially imported Japanese brushes.

The kiln which he designed and built himself is fired about eight times a year with paraffin oil to a
temperature of 1380 degrees celsius. It takes 18 hours to fire and 3 days to cool.