Ailsa Nicholson

Ailsa is a well established artist specialising in fused glass and ceramics.  She studied ceramics at Cardiff University graduating in 1999 with a first class (hons) degree and is now back in Whitby on the North Yorkshire coast in the UK.  The beauty of the Whitby area is reflected in her creativity, capturing the land and seascapes in bold, abstract and tactile forms.  In more recent years Ailsa has predominantly focused on fused glass art, her sculptural forms take inspiration from nature with an emphasis on light and shape.  Her work is created through kiln casting and fusing techniques and alongside more traditional methods of glass making she also recycles discarded glass, up-cycling and transforming trash into treasure.  For Ailsa the thought and technical processes are as inspiring as the forms themselves and her work is constantly moving and changing as she push at the boundaries of possibility.   Ailsa's ceramic work incorporates a variety of wheel thrown, hand building and carving techniques which concentrate on form rather than function, clay is never weighed and her work is always cut and carved freehand to ensure each pieces individuality.