Who are We?

7 Spot Pottery

7 Spot is a 420sq.ft ceramic studio located in Islington Mill, Salford.

We run handbuilding and throwing courses, and offer studio memberships.

We currently have 12 members from all walks of life who either work as artists or enjoy ceramics as a hobby. We pride ourselves on being an inclusive educational environment for people of all ability levels and experience. We believe in the benefits of clay as a therapeutic tool for everyone, whether as a personal practice or professional endeavour.

 

Our studio equipment includes 2 toploading kilns, an extruder, a slab roller and 4 pottery wheels. We prepare our own studio glazes and decorating slips, and we glaze fire to cone 6 oxidation

 

We can be found at this address (links to Google Maps):

 

Parking & access:

Our site does not have private parking facilities, however there is plenty of roadside parking available close by on James Street on evenings and weekends. If attending weekday daytimes, we recommend using the 2-hour spaces, on James Street, or next to Co-op on Chapel street, or Cleminson Street Car Park.

The studio is a 10 minute walk from Salford Central train station, or 15 minutes walk from Albert Square.

The studio is located on the first floor of a renovated Victorian mill, and unfortunately we do not currently have lift access. We do hope to get this in the future so that our space can be fully inclusive of people with mobility issues. We apologise for the inconvenience. 

 

Contact details:

7spotpottery@gmail.com

07570415909 (Pascal) 

 
Studio managers & tutors:
Pascal Nichols - manager and tutor
Pascal founded 7 Spot Pottery in 2017, to carry out his own ceramic practice, and to offer ceramics facilities and education to the local community. He is a qualified teacher (Ceramics degree and PGCE Art & Design) and has over 13 years experience of teaching as a freelance practitioner to learners of all ages and abilities.
Pascal's own work references the aesthetic qualities in late medieval pottery of boldly formed functional everyday wares with roughly applied decoration such as faceting, incised and thumbed embellishments.
Eva Elliott - tutor
 
Eva is a self-taught ceramicist and fine jeweller, qualified Art & Design teacher (PGCE) with 11 years experience working in colleges and schools, working with learners of all ages. She has a BA Hons degree in Fine Art Sculpture and continues her practice in applied arts, alongside teaching, and other ventures.
Eva is a versatile and flexible practitioner and is always up for new challenges, practically and creatively. In Eva’s workshops you can expect a chatty, relaxed environment where all learners are actively included and supported to make the best of their potential. She is a pro at making people feel at ease and differentiating the learning so that everyone understands and doesn’t feel intimidated.
 
Meg Beamish - technician and tutor

Meg Beamish is a potter working and living in Manchester, UK. Graduating with a Ceramics degree from the Cardiff School of Art and Design in 2017, she went on to apprentice part time with potter Jeremy Steward at Wobage Workshops in Herefordshire. Meg now works as a technician and tutor at 7 Spot Pottery in Salford, offering private tuition and scheduled courses at varying levels.

Meg specialises in producing simple tableware alongside more explorative and expressive pots. She draws inspiration from traditional studio pottery practices and allows the making process to be evident in her work. Her use of slips and oxides are dynamic and purposeful and are used to highlight the movement encapsulated in the playful nature of the creative process.

The use of materials sourced directly from the local landscape is at the centre of Meg’s practical and creative ethos. Sand and clays found in her immediate environment are used to create a one-to-one link between her pieces and the organic surroundings in which she finds herself.

Sheenie O'Connor - guest tutor
Sheenie has over 10 years experience of ceramic practice, specialising in the potters wheel. She studied BA(hons) in History of Art, and went on to complete the Design & Crafts Council of Ireland’s renowned Ceramics Skills and Design Course in 2018.
Sheenie is currently studying a Masters in Ceramics and Glass at the Royal College of Art, and delivers occasional masterclasses in intermediate and advanced throwing. 
"Always present in my work are the eclectic visual influences of my art historical training. The influences for form and function stem from the opulence of the Netherlandish vanitas paintings of the 16th and 17th century. The new imports of exotic tea and flora called for the ingenuity of the craftsman of the age to create luxury objects, for new purposes, for consumption of a burgeoning merchant class. As much as we have changed, we remain constant in our love for tea and flowers. The imagery of the past is alluring and decadent, and I aim to revitalise this zeitgeist for luxury."