Collection Blog

“The main work is not to make pots, but allow them to come, to allow them to grow, to allow them to be alive.” – Richard Batterham (1981)

Richard Batterham (1936 – 2021) produced a wide range of studio pottery exploring different forms including teapots, bowls, jugs, beer jars, caddies and bottles. He made each one in his own distinctive style, creating pottery which was beautiful, functional and informed by everyday need.

In 2022, Dorset Museum & Art Gallery acquired over fifty examples of his work – representative of the various designs, sizes and colours of studio pottery that he made in Dorset between 1970 and 2012. They were acquired from the Estate of Richard Batterham through the Arts Council England Acceptance in Lieu scheme that allows those who have a bill to Inheritance Tax (or one of its earlier forms) to pay the tax by transferring important cultural, scientific or historic objects and archives to the nation for the enjoyment of all via public museums, archives or libraries.

This acquisition showcases a selection of Richard’s favourite pots from his collection and fills an important gap in the Museum’s ceramic and craft collections. Many pieces of the collection bear his distinctive techniques including faceting, fluting, ribbing, incising and chattering. They feature soft natural colours and tones from the glazes he used including wood ash, salt, iron and manganese glazes.

The collection has now been accessioned and we have started cataloguing and photographing the pieces. Examples of the pottery can be viewed through the glass frontage of the Collections Discovery Centre, and we are exploring ways to exhibit parts of the collection in the permanent galleries in the future.

To discover more about what goes on behind the scenes in the Collections Discovery Centre, why not book into one of our tours? View our What’s On page to see when our next tour is scheduled and to book your place.