Bricks and China Clay | An Evening of Talks and Discussion

About

Artist Rosanna Martin and historian Ivor Bowditch will contribute to an evening exploring connections between brick-making and china clay industries.

China clay has a vast range of uses, from ceramics to paper and from pharmaceuticals to building materials. It was first discovered on Tregonning Hill near Helston in 1745 and that discovery led to the establishment of a brick-making kiln on the slopes of the hill in the 1780s.  As china clay production moved northwards to the St Austell area, brick making followed. 

Rosanna Martin will introduce her Brickfield project, which draws on the heritage of brick making in the region and is based in a disused clay pit in St Austell, using waste materials from the industry. Rosanna aims to reconnect local people with this vast lunar landscape, working with them on site to mix clays, mould and fire bricks. Ivor Bowditch, founding member of the China Clay History Society, will discuss the wider historical context.  

Brickfield builds on a project that took place on the site of an old brickworks at Trelonk on the Fal estuary, organised last year as part of Groundwork. This new iteration is part of Whitegold, an arts and regeneration project in St Austell funded by Coastal Communities.

Dr. Katie Bunnell, co-curator of Whitegold Festival will provide an introduction to the evening. There will be time for questions and discussions at the end.

Free admission, all welcome. CAST Café food from 6pm, something hot and something sweet from £7.50. The talk will begin at 7pm.