Based in Edinburgh, ceramic artist Frances Priest explores the cultural histories of ornament through the creation of intricately made ceramic objects and is represented in collections of international significance.

This Vase Form is from her Kirkcaldy Patterns series. These pieces follow on from a commission the artist created for the Edinburgh Haematology Centre in 2021.  While studying the industrial heritage of the Firth of Forth and the intriguing collections of Fife Museums in Scotland, she discovered a treasure trove of pattern books relating to the prolific heritage of Kirkcaldy, once renowned for its linoleum and tileworks industry. Based on this research Frances has created a collection of vase forms that depict patterns and motifs extracted from the linoleum pattern books. Each surface begins as a complete pattern that gradually disintegrates into its component motifs. In this work, Frances examines how this disintegration, or unpinning, of the pattern structure alludes to the mutable nature of decorative motifs.