Our Story

Imogen & Michael

Michael and his twin brother were brought to the UK from Antigua in 1967, to reconnect with a mother they had known for their first six months and a father they had never met. They were seven years old. He remembers around age 9 being obsessed with painting and drawing to the point of going on to win many art prizes and primary and secondary school level. At age 13,having taken judo instruction after school with friends at a youth centre he had an epiphany. It came one evening with the discovery of an “Art room” at the centre, at the back of which someone was standing over a machine with their arm disappearing down into a mound of spinning clay…”it’s 3D you fool”He would go on to do a degree in Ceramics at Central School of Art in London, age 19.
Imogen’s trajectory was very different. She grew up in Camden, North London .Her Mother taught Art teacher at Hackney College in East London.Her Father was a lecturer at the London College of Fashion and her uncle , his twin brother, Victor Margrie, was a well respected potter and founding father of the British Crafts Council. Imogen was steeped in the arts a move to the Central school was a natural progression . The pair met at Central School of Art he in his final year,she a freshman they became an “item” at the end of the summer of that final year. Post degree Michael found part time teaching at St Pauls Girls school,a prestigious girls school in West London and built Japanese gardens with an Ikebana master for over a dozen years. Whilst also receiving random” visiting lecturer” invitations from various art schools and colleges, he took over as pottery instructor at the youth centre that nurtured him. All the while endeavouring to work on his personal ceramics from a semi -derelict studio complex shared with fellow artists in the east end of London and exhibiting in mixed shows.
Post degree Imogen found a workshop space in Kingsgate Workshop, Kilburn. Supporting her clay habit by initially working in the Crafts Council Gallery at the Victoria and Albert Museum and moving on to work at the Contemporary Applied Arts Gallery and eventually becoming a lecturer on the Ceramics Course at Westminster University alongside her uncle. In the early 1990’s now with a young family and juggling several jobs the couple decided to relocate to Antigua and set up Cedars Pottery They initially collaborated to produce a range of hand thrown decorative tableware ,before an architect commission heralded their foray into wall light sconces. Whilst continuing to offer hand thrown pieces to order, they are now developing an eclectic mix of architectural, one-of-a-kind pieces made to commission. Michael continues to work on his personal pieces in stone, wood and ceramic some of which reflect a strong and distinct tug towards teasing out knots of Island history and ancestry.
Imogen continues to experiment with porcelain her pieces reflecting her eclectic sources of inspiration. Her stoneware pieces are more robust in nature and she continues to make sculptures for their garden including her very personal “gnomes”. During lockdown she also began experimenting with paper relief pieces.

Studio

The pottery was set up within the garage of the family home but as production increased It was deemed necessary to construct a Studio/workshop within the grounds of the family estate. The pair designed an airy studio appropriate for the tropics and large enough to accommodate a slipcasting area, a throwing area and a handbuilding section. The galvanised structure has withstood several hurricanes!

Gallery

Michael and Imogen designed a residential property within the grounds of the family estate but with both their children attending schools in the UK and unlikely to return it became apparent that a rethink was required. The pair went on to redesign the property to become a gallery with an Air Band B above . The property includes signature pieces such as hand carved stone sinks. A sculpture garden is being developed with Imogen’s very personal “ gnome home” and significant stone carvings by Michael and of course a wide range of tropical plants including the “aloe berm”