Bernard Rooke
Bernard Rooke (born 1938)[1] is a British artist and studio potter.[2][3] Rooke has exhibited his "Brutalist" ceramics[4] and painting both in the UK and abroad with work in many collections both public and private including the Victoria and Albert Museum, Cleveland Museum of Art, Nuffield Foundation, Paisley Museum and Art Galleries, Leicester Museum, Buckinghamshire County Museum, Röhsska Museum in Sweden and the Trondheim Kunstmuseum in Norway. His work has become sought after at auction houses [5] in the UK and USA.[6][failed verification]
Early years[edit]
Bernard Rooke attended Ipswich School of Art[7] studying painting and lithography before going on to study at Goldsmiths College of Art.[8] It was while studying here that he decided to take up pottery. Although unfamiliar with this craft and tradition, he found that working with clay provided new opportunities for freedom of interpretation and creativity.
Forest Hill studio[edit]
In 1960, Rooke set up his first pottery in Forest Hill in South London along with Alan Wallwork.[9][10] It was a very small room with enough space for a small electric kiln.[11] He was initially using mainly hand building, coiling, blocking and slabbing techniques. While researching ideas, he was supporting himself by part-time lecturing at London University, Goldsmiths College and St Mary's College. In addition, Rooke's membership of 'The Craftsman Potters' Association' enabled him to show his work in a shop in Carnaby Street in London.
The Old Mill, Swilland in Suffolk[edit]
In 1967, both the need for a larger working space and becoming disillusioned with living in London spurred Rooke into moving out of the city and to an old mill building in Swilland in Suffolk.[12]
By the 1970s, a gallery space was opened in the windmill [13] and run by Susan Rooke, Bernard's wife, selling work to locals and tourists as well as to American airmen based nearby. The vision for Mill Gallery was beginning to develop and alongside this a reputation was building bringing in a good source of income.
Later years[edit]
Sons Aaron [7] and Felix were becoming more involved with the running of the pottery, giving Bernard more time to develop new ideas and designs and more time to continue with his painting. In 2004, the Rooke family decided not to sell to the public through the gallery anymore and close the pottery to concentrate more on painting and printmaking.
In 2017 Bernard's lighting was featured in the Exhibition: “Glass, Light, Paint & Clay” [14] at the Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery. The exhibition featured four artists: Bernard Rooke, John Maltby, Duncan Clarke and Sam Herman selected from the Graham Cooley collection. The catalogue (ISBN 978-1-78808-185-6) features an interview with Bernard in which he describes his life and work.
References[edit]
- ^ "Bernard Rooke floor lamp". H is for Home Harbinger. 16 May 2017.
- ^ "Man arrested in auction probe". East Anglian Daily Times.
- ^ "Bernard Rooke". www.studiopottery.com.
- ^ "Brutalist architecture: a concept made concrete". Financial Times. 29 May 2013. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
- ^ "Fake auction helps solve crime; It was the auction that never was, as police tried to solve the theft of £30,000 of paintings and pottery from the collection of Suffolk artist Bernard Rooke". 21 February 2008.
- ^ "HOME". www.bernard-rooke.co.uk.
- ^ a b "Suffolk Artists - ROOKE, Bernard". suffolkartists.co.uk.
- ^ "bernard rooke | afterglow retro". 28 May 2015.
- ^ "Renowned collector brings exhibition to Peterborough". www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk.
- ^ "Alan Wall work". www.alanwallwork.info. [dead link]
- ^ X, W. (30 December 2017). "Alan Wallwork - in his own words 2009".
- ^ Newsletter Suffolk Mills Group [dead link]
- ^ "History of Swilland Mill | Swilland Mill Large Group Accommodation Suffolk". www.swillandmill.co.uk.
- ^ Peterborough, Brave Creative (7 November 2017). "Glass, Light, Paint & Clay".