Miles worked in textile design for over twenty years. From designing clothing, he knows how the cloth fits the body and how draping material creates silhouettes. Having spent the last eight years working with clay, it feels natural for Miles to work with human figures. There is an instinct that knows when to exaggerate and when to minimise.

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Miles is inspired by the spirit he sees in people; the determination and the sensitivity, how the angles of the head and shoulders say so much at a glimpse. He is drawn to character and expression, and loves to work with clay to show life coming out of a solid, fired materiality.

Working with local dug clay is very exciting to Miles. He uses his hands and simple wooden tools to push and shape it. The lack of waste in Miles’s work is impressive. What fails in the process can be recycled back into rougher forms of clay. Every fingertip and mark made by his hand gives each piece of work a raw energy and an imprint that will last forever.

“Each piece I make has its own thing going on. I think of them all as aspects of me and of everyone I’ve ever got to know. I believe that clay is a great healer. Feeling the squelch of clay slipping through the fingers requires no skill, but the real thrill is in developing techniques that transform the muck into objects we can relate to”.