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John Maltby (1936 – 22 December 2020) was a distinguished English
John Maltby was born and brought up in
sculptor
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
and studio potter
Studio pottery is pottery made by professional and amateur artists or artisans working alone or in small groups, making unique items or short runs. Typically, all stages of manufacture are carried out by the artists themselves.Emmanuel Cooper, ...
.
Education and career
John Maltby was born and brought up in Cleethorpes
Cleethorpes () is a seaside town on the estuary of the Humber in North East Lincolnshire, England with a population of 38,372 in 2020. It has been permanently occupied since the 6th century, with fishing as its original industry, then develo ...
in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...
. He attended Clee Grammar School, then went on study for a degree at Leicester College of Art specialising in sculpture and then Goldsmiths College
Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wor ...
in South London.
After a period of teaching art at a small private boys' school at Caterham
Caterham () is a town in the Tandridge District of Surrey, England. The town is administratively divided into two: Caterham on the Hill, and Caterham Valley, which includes the main town centre in the middle of a dry valley but rises to equal ...
in Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
near London, he visited Bernard Leach
Bernard Howell Leach (5 January 1887 – 6 May 1979), was a British studio potter and art teacher. He is regarded as the "Father of British studio pottery".
Biography
Early years (Japan)
Leach was born in Hong Kong. His mother Eleanor (née ...
after reading Leach's ''A Potter's book''. On Leach's advice Maltby joined his son David Leach in 1962 at Lowerdown Pottery in Bovey Tracey
Bovey Tracey () is a small town and civil parish in Devon, England, on the edge of Dartmoor, its proximity to which gives rise to the "slogan" used on the town's boundary signs, "The Gateway to the Moor". It is often known locally as "Bovey". It ...
, Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...
where he was Leach's apprentice for nearly two years. He then set up his own pottery at Stoneshill near Crediton
Crediton is a town and civil parish in the Mid Devon district of Devon in England. It stands on the A377 Exeter to Barnstaple road at the junction with the A3072 road to Tiverton, about north west of Exeter and around from the M5 motorway ...
in 1964.
Maltby was a member of the Craft Potters Association
The Craft Potters Association (CPA) is an association of potters formed in 1958 in London. It has two wholly owned operating companies: Craftsmen Potters Trading Company Ltd and Ceramic Review Publishing Ltd.
It owns a shop and gallery, the Con ...
and the British Crafts Centre, he was also an advisor to the Leach Archive.
His work has been exhibited worldwide and is represented in many public collections including Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
.
Maltby's life and work was celebrated in a retrospective exhibition and accompanying book in the summer of 2022 at the Yew Tree Gallery, Morvah, Cornwall
Style
His early pieces were in the Leach Anglo-Japanese style. It was after he set up his own pottery his individual style developed. From an early age he loved the sea and this remained an influence throughout his career as were his European travels and abstract artists. Following a major heart operation in 1996 Maltby was unable to undertake the work of kneading clay and manipulating large pieces, this lead him to start making smaller more sculptural works.Personal life
Maltby's parents were John a fish merchant and his wife Gladys. Whilst at Caterham he met Heather Helmore who was working as the school matron and they married in 1962. They had two children children Joe and Philippa. Heather died in 2007 and John in 2020. He was still working in his pottery till shortly before his death.References