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Laura Crosland | Episode 768
Laura Crosland creates wheel thrown pottery intricately carved with geometric patterns and distinctive glazes, alongside a range of tableware in her studio in St Ives, Cornwall. Laura studied ceramics at Wolverhampton University before working for potters Peter Beard and Penny Simpson before 2 years at the Leach Pottery as a production potter.
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Do you ever find it to be a struggle to put a value on your creations?
Yes, I think it always is. Because I love what I do and I enjoy it, I almost feel bad making people pay for it in a way because it’s such a nice thing to do. And it just seems bizarre because you make a thing and you hold it and it doesn’t feel like it has any value and then you have to decide on a price. It is very tricky.
Do you base your pricing on what you see people who do similar work are charging?
I do a little bit because I am always looking at pots anyway. But I don’t necessarily compare pricing because there are not that many people who do the kind of intricate carvings and things. The amount of time going into one piece is not really comparable to that many people that you see. I spend so long on them. I try not to compare too much to something that is thrown and decorated.
How would you know if you are underselling either your work or yourself? What would be a good indicator that something is being undersold?
It’s hard to know, really, isn’t it? When you look back in the past I sold very cheap. I think you don’t know until after you have done it and after the person walks away with it and you think, Oh no. Like I said before, if things are selling really fast then maybe you are selling them too cheap.
Who sets the prices for your work at the galleries? Do you tell them or do they tell you what they will sell it for?
Usually I will tell them. Some galleries have asked me for the retail price and then they take their commission from that. Or some will ask me for the wholesale price, which is usually fifty percent in England. I don’t know if that’s the same in America, but usually it’s fifty percent. But usually I have decided the price.
I know sometimes when we are making a piece we can get attached to it. Do you ever let your emotions get in the way of your pricing ?
I don’t think I do. But if I make a piece that I think is really nice then I want it to go to a nice person. (laughter) But I know you can’t decide that. When I sell a big vase, I really like it when people send a message saying how they appreciate it. When I don’t hear anything I feel a bit sad.
When you are at fairs do you put prices on the pieces? Or do you need the customer to come up and ask for pricing?
I have these little plastic numbers that you push together and stand next to it so it is visible to the customer. Maybe this is a very English thing but sometimes when you are at shows people don’t really want to interact with you unless they are definitely going to buy. So people like to see the price and not necessarily speak unless they are definitely going to go for it. That might be quite British I think.
In your pricing do you have an hourly rate you are trying to pay yourself? Do you have that set in your mind?
No. I think they just take too long. I don’t really time each piece because they take so long I think they would be very expensive. (laughter)
What do you do in your off time to be able to enjoy life?
I like to read. Because I live in Cornwall right by the sea I like to go for walks on the beach. It’s a really small town so where ever you are you are five or ten minutes from the beach and that’s a really nice place to be. And rock climbing as well. But sometimes just sitting still and reading because it is really physical what I do and I kind of sit in the same position a lot so I come home and stretch and sit down.
Book
A Potter’s Book by Bernard Leach
Contact
Instagram: @lauracrosland