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Gary Turner Living in Colwyn Bay, North Wales, Gary enjoys creating ceramic sculptures. With a passion for walking in the mountains and along the magnificent Welsh coastline, he also experiments with elements and textures straight from the surrounding landscapes. He also gains inspiration from influential artists like Salvador Dali, Roy Lichtenstein, and Tamara de Lempicka to create expressive, thought-provoking ceramic figures. The use of stoneware clays, bright colours, bold textures, and repetitive patterns have become a strong aspect of his unique characters. Gary is a self-taught ceramicist that enjoys the freedom of sculpting - not being confined to the edges of a canvas, and the wide possibilities that working with clay allows for. He describes his sculpting process as spontaneous with little planning in hopes that his art captures a snapshot of the moment. He has most recently been awarded highly commended at The Royal Cambrian Academy’s open exhibition 2025. “From an early age I had always enjoyed making things and in the 70’s before the mobile phone and 200 channels on the TV, an empty cornflake box, sticky tape and some paint was all you needed. That, or I would be in my fathers shed ruining his nicely sharpened wood working chisels. Art and craft have always been an important aspect of my life and in 2010 I enrolled on a Pottery evening course at our local college. Modelling with clay seemed like a natural thing to do and I found the expressiveness that you could achieve working in 3D very enjoyable. In 2021 after everything that we had all been through with Covid during the previous year, I was presented with another major setback and was diagnosed with incurable Neuroendocrine cancer. I was unable to work for two years and then decided to retire. Not being able to work was a huge change and I needed something to do that would help me to process and focus my emotions. My own life had turned into a surreal one. During this period, I rediscovered clay and started making sculptures with little expressive faces that undoubtedly reflected the mood that I was in. I prefer art that makes you really stop and ask, ’What’s it all about, what’s the message and what’s going on in the mind of the artist.’
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