Janet Leach

Structurally sound. There are one or two tiny glaze imperfections visible upon extremely close inspection, but these excepting the work appears in very good overall condition. Please contact the department on +44 (0) 207 293 6424 if you have any questions regarding the present work.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

To many Janet Leach is a potter better known for her marriage to Bernard Leach than her own bold and original ceramic style, yet during her lifetime, alongside Lucie Rie, she held a position as one of the most important international post-war ceramicists. Texan-born Leach (née Darnell) did not come into contact with clay until she was in her early thirties, and further to studying with Shoji Hamada at his pottery in Mashiko in Japan in the 1950s, she settled in England, becoming the third wife of Britain’s then most famous living potter. Living alongside Leach in St Ives, and befriending leading artists including Barbara Hepworth, she maintained her own unique approach with a combination of thrown and hand-built pieces that incorporated characteristics of traditional Tamba and Bizen wares, with her characteristic palette of blacks, browns and whites.