Ilona Sulikova

After completing a course in studio ceramics, Ilona established her workshop in York.

She later spent several years working for NGOs in refugee camps in Somalia and Sudan. This work, with the help of local potters, involved setting up workshops to produce large water jars, cooking pots  and small portable ceramic stoves, using traditional methods of making and firing. 

On return to the UK, Ilona’s practice evolved further, concentrating mostly on distinctive, round-bodied vessels, influenced by the techniques she learnt in Africa.

Making larger vessels allows Ilona to develop more complex designs,  such as her geometric patterns that repeat, expand and contract as they progress round the vessel, creating the illusion of rhythm and movement.

She employs simple design elements that have been used across all cultures, which interact in a dynamic but harmonious way with the volume of the vessel. 

Ilona enjoys the quiet process of hand building and the contemplative decorating process that follows.