Rhiannon Gwyn

MEET THE MAKER

I’m a ceramic artist based in Bethesda, a slate quarrying village in North Wales. I explore the full potential of waste slate by incorporating it with clay and ceramic processes to create objects that depict forms of the land as part of a circular process whereby I have been personally shaped by my surrounding landscape form and shape its raw materials. A process of sculpting the materials that’s sculpted me. I started my business in 2020 during lockdown after graduating in 2019 from the BA Artist Designer: Maker course in Cardiff School of Art and Design.

WHAT ARE YOUR FEEDBACKS?

My business objectives includes being represented by two high end galleries in London, create funded work for exhibitions and receive consistent income from collections regularly sold through my own website. Through my business plan I hope to have the time and financial means to work on various research and development projects within my practice for exhibiting and selling. I realised during the process of this course that I need to look closely at where exactly I want to see my work and also where I don’t want to see my work. Rather than trying to tick every box, please everyone and say yes or apply for everything, It’s important that I focus on what I want to be making so that it is also clear to my audience where my work sits. Something I’ve learnt on the Crafting business programme that will help me through out my career is the importance of making clear objectives and goals that are unique to you and your business. Creating a realistic step by step plan on how to achieve them will help you as you make decisions in life and in business. It is also important to remember that your goals should be revisited regularly and changed if they no longer align with your plans.

FIVE THINGS YOU’LL BRING WITH YOU FROM THE EXPERIENCE:

• To make clear objectives and goals and constantly revisit them
• Face the finance side of your business (It’s not that scary)
• Have a marketing strategy
• Ask for advice from someone who is an expert in a field that you are not
• A business plan isn’t the same for everyone it can be what you need it to be