Frank Vining
Encyclopedia
Frank Wilfred Vining was an influential teacher of pottery
who founded and, for over thirty years, led the ceramics course at Cardiff College of Art.
Vining was born in the south Wales mining village of Aberfan
, in a house later swept away in the great tip disaster of 1966. He originally studied pictorial design and illustration at Cardiff School of Art under Ceri Richards
, who was Head of Painting there from 1940 to 1944, but later turned to pottery. He joined the staff of Cardiff College of Art in 1950 and taught there until his retirement in 1982 during which time the ceramics course had become well known and highly regarded in the UK and abroad, with both undergraduate and postgraduate awards being established. He lived in Cardiff
from 1954 where he set up a small studio pottery
in the late 1950s, producing modernist stoneware
vessels and forms which he exhibited widely in the period 1961-1968. His pottery is represented in the collections of the National Museum Cardiff
, Aberystwyth University and Camberwell/ILEA Collection of Design and Craft, and is illustrated in Hamer.
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
who founded and, for over thirty years, led the ceramics course at Cardiff College of Art.
Vining was born in the south Wales mining village of Aberfan
Aberfan
The Aberfan disaster was a catastrophic collapse of a colliery spoil tip that occurred in the Welsh village of Aberfan on Friday 21 October 1966, killing 116 children and 28 adults.-Mining debris:...
, in a house later swept away in the great tip disaster of 1966. He originally studied pictorial design and illustration at Cardiff School of Art under Ceri Richards
Ceri Richards
-Biography:Richards was born in the village of Dunvant, near Swansea, the son of Thomas Coslett Richards and Sarah Richards . He and his younger brother and sister, Owen and Esther, were brought up in a highly cultured, working-class environment...
, who was Head of Painting there from 1940 to 1944, but later turned to pottery. He joined the staff of Cardiff College of Art in 1950 and taught there until his retirement in 1982 during which time the ceramics course had become well known and highly regarded in the UK and abroad, with both undergraduate and postgraduate awards being established. He lived in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
from 1954 where he set up a small studio pottery
Studio pottery
Studio pottery is made by modern artists working alone or in small groups, producing unique items of pottery in small quantities, typically with all stages of manufacture carried out by one individual. Much studio pottery is tableware or cookware but an increasing number of studio potters produce...
in the late 1950s, producing modernist stoneware
Stoneware
Stoneware is a vitreous or semi-vitreous ceramic ware with a fine texture. Stoneware is made from clay that is then fired in a kiln, whether by an artisan to make homeware, or in an industrial kiln for mass-produced or specialty products...
vessels and forms which he exhibited widely in the period 1961-1968. His pottery is represented in the collections of the National Museum Cardiff
National Museum Cardiff
National Museum Cardiff is a museum and art gallery in Cardiff, Wales. The museum is part of the wider network of Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales...
, Aberystwyth University and Camberwell/ILEA Collection of Design and Craft, and is illustrated in Hamer.