INFORMATION Rosemarie Durr Rosemarie started out studying Graphic Design for two years in Athlone R.T.C. and following that she took up night classes on Pottery which introduced her for the first time to clay it immediately appealed to her and she proceeded to do a one year craft course in Grennan Mill Craft School, Thomastown Co. Kilkenny. Where she graduated with distinctions and then went on to complete the Pottery Skills Course run by the Craft Counsel of Ireland where she graduated with a distinction and student of the year. Rosemarie then went on to work in Kiltrea Bridge Pottery, Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford, where she worked with terracotta clay throwing flowerpots and tableware for one year and then took up employment in Badger Hill Pottery Enniscorthy where she worked throwing tableware for over four years. Rosemarie has been in the Castle Yard for two years where she has developed a very distinct range of tableware and one off artistic pieces. Product Information Rosemarie uses stoneware clay, which comes from Stoke on Trent in England, as there are no deposits of stoneware clay in Ireland. All her pieces are thrown by hand on an electric wheel. They are then finished the following day (trimmed and handled where necessary). The drying out process takes anything from one to three weeks depending on the size of the pot. They are bisque fired (which is the first firing) to 1000 C in an Electric kiln. The next stage is the glazing, which involves dipping the pot into the different colour glazes it is at this stage the decoration is done if any is required (Rosemarie makes up all her own glazes from raw materials) the pot is then fired a second time this time to 1280 C in the electric kiln. This is the final process in the making of the pot and the most exciting. Artistic Works Rosemarie's artistic dry glazed pieces are hand thrown and on the following day she draws lilies freehand on to the surface of the pot this gives a rough texture so after the pot is bisque fired the glaze collects in the lines of the drawing and it gives a subtle outline when fired. Over the flowers she then sprays two layers of colour this gives a random unevenness that adds to the organic feel to the pots. All Rosemarie's dry glazed pots are unsuitable for food use they are perfectly functional as vases or fruit bowls. CONTACT Tel: 087-6833639 Website: www.rosedurr.com Email: info@rosedurr.com Rosemarie Durr, Castlecomer Estate Yard, Castlecomer, Co.Kilkenny