Janet Leach
Janet Darnell Leach, (15 March 1918 to 12 September 1997), was an American studio potter working in later life at St Ives, Cornwall in England. She was married in 1956 to Bernard Leach, the famous British studio potter.
Life
Janet Darnell was born in Grand Saline, Texas, USA, in 1918.[1] Her colourful early years involved moving to New York to work with sculptor Robert M. Cronbach and becoming involved with Federal Works Art Project. She was briefly married during Second World War and worked in a shipyard, undertaking welding.
Eventually she started work with clay and learned to use a potters wheel, coming to teaching pottery at mental health hospital in New York.
After meeting Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada at Black Mountain College, North Carolina she gained Hamada's agreement to work with him at Mashiko and travelled there in 1958, by cargo boat. Janet spent a great deal of time with Bernard Leach and eventually they agreed to marry, initially intending to live in Japan. However with Bernard's son David Leach leaving the Leach Pottery to establish his own studio they returned to England.
Janet Leach's independent spirit ensured that her work was quite different to much of the Leach style. She never felt the need to pay reverence to her husband's work, and indeed could be openly critical of it. In return her own work was not always valued within the St Ives Studio and indeed much of it lay hidden for many years. Clearly influenced by the oriental style and form her work is free flowing and energetic.
Leach's work has grown in popularity in recent years, particularly helped by the 2006-7 Tate St Ives retrospective.
References
- Cooper, Emmanuel. (2006). Janet Leach: A Potter's Life Ceramic Review Publishing Ltd. 10-ISBN 0-9523576-8-2
External links
Further Information
- Independent's Obituary by Emmanuel Cooper
- Article by Joanna Wason about Janet Leach
- TATE St Ives Retrospective Exhibition (2006-7)
- Janet Leach Biography at Aberystwyth University Ceramics Collection
- Article on Bernard Leach, includes photo of Janet & Bernard together
- Letters from Bernard & Janet Leach to Warren MacKenzie, includes draft article by Janet Leach