YORK.- The first major retrospective exhibition of one of Britain’s leading ceramic artists is taking place at York Art Gallery this November.

More than 50 works by Sara Radstone are being featured in the exhibition which looks at how her work has changed and developed over the course of a career spanning nearly 40 years.

Radstone’s work has been shown all over the world and constantly tests and challenges many of the preconceptions of what ceramic art should be.

The exhibition, which takes place in the gallery’s Centre of Ceramic Art (CoCA), also includes new work created by Radstone especially for the show.

Helen Walsh, curator of ceramics, said: “Sara is one of the most respected ceramic artists of her generation. Her work is always looking to push the boundaries of the genre of ceramic art, using highly personal themes to explore memory, history and place through clay. Often it is inspired by the small traces of human activity which are overlooked or discarded.

“This exhibition is a unique chance to see some of her finest works on show together and to consider how Sara’s emphasis on different ideas and themes have shifted during her career.”

The exhibition has been designed by Martin Smith and follows Radstone’s life in ceramics, progressing from her early works which reinterpreted the vessel form through to freestanding sculptures and installations.

The exhibition features works from the Anthony Shaw collection, which is on long term loan to CoCA, alongside loans from the artist herself. It also displays her installation Corpus, an autobiographical work which consists of 44 clay books and explores themes of volumes, history and memorial.

The exhibition also features a new film narrated by Radstone as she discusses her work and the making process.

Sara Radstone was born in London and trained at Herefordshire College of Art and Camberwell School of Art, London. Her ceramic sculptures are a highly personal exploration into history, memory and place, and the trace of human activity. In her recent practice, formerly enclosed shapes are ripped open and residues of thoughts and the notion of ideas gradually accumulating over time are represented on parchment like surfaces

Radstone has exhibited internationally and her work can be found in numerous public collections including the Los Angeles County Museum, USA, Shigaraki Cultural Park, Japan, and the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.