Paintings by Barry Andrews and thrown ceramics by
Gemma Smale

Storm quest 40 x 40 cm Barry Andrews

Wood fired white stoneware body, coated in wood ash over a Nuka glaze. Placed at the front of the kiln and fired over 4 days in Portugal 2026. 45cm x 22cm by Gemma Smale.

Barry Andrews

Barry Andrews is an Essex coast artist who captures the elements of the Thames estuary and North Sea in all weathers. Barry Andrews is a professional figurative abstract artist working in oils, whose work is rooted in the shifting light, atmosphere and landscape of the Thames Estuary — a place he has called home for over six decades.  

He paints full time from his Essex studio, often taking long walks along the estuary and its marshlands to observe how colour, mood and environment respond to tide and weather. 

His practice explores how paint can evoke a sense of place and emotion, using layered surfaces and subtle colour variations to reflect the rhythm and stillness of the landscape. Colour is central to his work — not only for its visual impact, but as a way of communicating mood and atmosphere to the viewer. 

Barry’s route into abstract painting was shaped by a varied life and a later return to formal study, where he discovered the freedom of abstraction and the joy of confident expression. His work continues to evolve as a response to both environment and lived experience.

Gemma Smale

Gemma Smale's work uses reduction fired atmospheres to create dynamic surfaces on her work. Often using wood to fuel her firings each piece becomes entirely unique from ash deposits landing upon the piece and melting to form a glassy surface. Different woods and different firing lengths very much effect the surface of each individual piece, firings can last up to 5 days to create a build up of ash across the surface of the piece. She often restricts her use of applied glaze to reveal the effect of the kiln on the raw clay body. 

Wood firing can help to capture a fleeting flame that passes over the work that leaves the trail of how it passed across the piece. Each indiviual piece tells the story of its firing, the makers that stayed to help stoke the kiln and the position of the piece against the flame. Her large vessels help to show this collaboration with the kiln, each face of the piece telling its narrative and showing its variations as you move around the piece.