On Monday 11th March, Paul Greenhalgh gave the 2024 Emmanuel Cooper Memorial Lecture, the eighth lecture in the series set up to commemorate the work, writing, editorship and activism of Emmanuel Cooper. The lecture took place at the Royal College of Art, where Cooper taught, and is a partnership between the Crafts Study Centre and 318 Ceramics in Farnham which Cooper helped found.

Greenhalgh gave an expansive talk on ceramic history, arguing for its distinct place as a discipline in its own right, with examples ranging from ancient pottery in Crete to the experiments with glaze and form in late-nineteenth century French art nouveau. His exploration of ceramics touched on its ubiquity, material weight, narrative and the medium’s particular quality for documenting and surviving time.

For those who were unable to attend the talk in person we have made the audio recording available online at our Emmanuel Cooper Memorial Lecture Series page.