Denise Dooley Artist and Maker

Hello fellow pottery lovers

Just a little background information about me.

I began drawing many years ago and a lot of the credit must go to my big brother Steve Dooley who has been an outstanding artist for many years in Cornwall and Devon. He encouraged my talent very early on and taught me about tonal values and looking more than drawing. My mum also had a talent for realistic oil painting and she had a brilliant understanding of colour, although we had our minor disagreements about the abstract work I produced both during my Degree studies and since.

I tried pottery many years ago and decided to try again about 3 years ago and have found a new passion! My tutor at evening classes said that I ‘had a feel for the clay’ both hand building and on the wheel. Clay is so tactile and as long as you respect it’s qualities it will do anything you ask of it……within reason of course.

Unfortunately I don’t have the space for a wheel at home so I have found some sessions I can attend locally to keep practicing this means that my work is all hand built. I start with a lump of wet clay and using one of the tried and tested methods I create wonderful work. Methods include coiling, slab work both soft and leather hard. I can imprint textures either from nature, fabric, wood or my own stamps that are made from bisque fired clay in fact the list is endless.

My work for the future will include more organic pieces and animal sculpture hopefully to combine my drawing skills and translating them into 3D pieces.

Denise will appropriately be placed under the beautiful Della Robbia panels in Birkenhead Central library between 10-4 on the 3rd of June 2023.