£9,000 raised for Mashiko Earthquake Appeal

Arts & Crafts Sale - Wednesday 22nd June 2011

An auction of contemporary pottery at the Woolley and Wallis Arts & Crafts sale on 22 June has raised more than £9,000 in aid of the victims of the devastating earthquake that hit Japan in March 2011.  Some of the very best British potters and collectors had donated twenty-nine works to be sold, with all proceeds going to earthquake victims in the village of Mashiko, a centre for Japanese pottery. The twenty-nine lots achieved a hammer price of £7,600. Woolley and Wallis will also donate the buyers’ premium of 19.5%, taking the total raised to more than £9,000.

The earthquake and tsunami of 11 March 2011 brought immense destruction and misery to hundreds of thousands of people in Japan. The village of Mashiko, an historic centre for Japanese pottery, was badly affected with the majority of the 400 studios and kilns which provide its livelihood being destroyed.

British potters wanted to do something to help their Japanese colleagues and so the Leach Pottery Mashiko Earthquake Appeal was set up to try and provide some timely relief to help Mashiko potters rebuild their kilns and their lives.

The sale was attended by several of the potters who donated work, including Tomoo Hamada, potter and grandson of Shoji Hamada who founded the potteries in Mashiko in the 1920’s. Several lots achieved well over estimate, with Lot 17, ‘Developed Bottle’ by Gordon Baldwin, which had been donated by the artist, achieving an impressive £2,100 including premium (estimate £500-1,000). 

To donate to the Leach Pottery’s Mashiko Earthquake Appeal please call 01736 799703 or visit www.leachpottery.com