Ceramic Reparations

Research by design – Award for Public Engagement

London’s manufacturing history has left behind a legacy of contaminated land and water, especially in the Lea Valley now its post-industrial brownfield land is being redeveloped. In response, this design research investigates the potential of clay-based site strategies to rethink the Lea Valley Filter Beds in an age of pollution and climate change. This theme is explored through site-specific ceramic prototypes, models and drawings which were created in liaison with the ‘Save Lea Marches’ pressure group. Tests were carried out into making ceramic glazes from locally foraged clay, applying this to design clay-brick structures within a new orchard landscape.