Kim Morgan Pottery and The Potter's Cottage

General information

When Kim Morgan first entered a potter's workshop and plunged his hands into a lump of wet clay at the tender age of nine, he know instinctively he wanted to be a potter.

After more than 30+ years as an artisan potter, Kim has lost none of that early fascination and still has a deep admiration for older potters, who work their clay into amazing forms with uncanny ease.

His goal is to remain at the leading edge of his craft as he continues to experiment with different techniques and ideas to produce new designs that are both functional and artistic.

Back in the early 1970s when Kim Morgan first stepped into a Palmerston North potter's workshop during a primary school trip, the small of the clay, the sight of muddy industrial age wheels, the shelves of pots in varying stages of completion and the blast of heat from the kiln, took him quite by surprise.

Once he got his hands into the clay, he knew that this was something he could be good at. Even today when he steps into his own gallery or visits other potter's workshops, there's often a sense of deja vu as he recalls that primal moment.

In 2000 Kim Morgan returned to New Zealand with his young family, opting to live in the rolling farmland along the banks of Hawke's Bay's rambling Tukituki River, where they established a lifestyle block and purpose built potter's workshop.

It's a constant learning curve, and as Kim gets older he reckons a new quality is starting to show in his work. Perhaps it's that X-factor that he observes in older potters who've been doing it for decades. "You can just see when it comes naturally. They poke their finger at a pot and it works: what comes through is life experience."

Kim quotes some seasoned expert who told him that it takes 20 years to learn, 20 years to forget and then you start making some good pots. "I've been making pots now for 30 plus years so I figure my best years are still a head."

When asked what's been his most satisfying experience, Kim's quick response is: "The pot I made last night and the pot I'm going to make this afternoon".