About ‘A View from a Distance’ a China Clay Country Panorama

In partnership exhibition with Whitegold Festival and the Austell Project, Tana West, winner of the Whitegold International Ceramics Prize Feldspar Award 2019, presents a large semi-circular ceramic panorama. Made up of 18 panels, the scene is over 5 metres in length and is based on the early 19th century panoramic wallpaper that once hung in the White Hart Hotel in St Austell. 

Taking inspiration from this wallpaper by Dufour & Company depicting views of the Bay of Naples, Italy, Tana has drawn on St Austell’s rich vein of interactions between the social and the geological to create an alternative theatrical spectacle of place. The rise in popularity of such panoramic wallpapers occurred at a time when travelling for most people was not a viable option. Drawing parallels with this original context and in response to the challenges of Covid 19, Tana has made this work at a distance, tapping into local social media channels to gather stories and imagery, and using waste materials from china clay extraction collected and posted to her by Whitegold Prize curator, Dr. Katie Bunnell, to create a range of colours for her panorama.   

The Whitegold International Ceramics Prize is designed to bring St Austell’s wealth of history and global connections through china clay to the attention of outstanding ceramic artists from across the world. The prize aims to bring new perspectives to St Austell as a place of ceramic significance and to re-imagine it as a place of inspiration, innovation and creativity.  

The Austell Project is a cultural regeneration initiative repositioning St Austell Bay and its clay country as a leading Cornish destination for local people, business and tourism. Find out more about Austell Ceramic’s Whitegold Festival, public art commissions, community arts projects and international prize  at www.staustell.co.uk/austell-project/  

Exhibiting Artist

Tana West
Tana West website link.

Supported By

  ‘A View from a Distance’ a China Clay Country Panorama is supported by Whitegold Festival.

Learn more about Whitegold Festival.