Studio Visit: Guy Ringwood’s Ceramics Grace the Tables of Some of the Country’s Best Restaurants

If you’ve ever dined at Adelaide restaurants Arkhe , Shobosho , Shosho and Restaurant Botanic , chances are you’ve enjoyed your meal off a hand-crafted dish by Guy Ringwood.

Ringwood specialises in tableware. The Adelaide potter is continually inspired by a concept he came up with at the end of university, which draws from Zen Buddhism.

“The concept that lingers through my work is the idea of capturing a moment in time and using a vessel as a carrier of meaning,” Ringwood tells Broadsheet. “Whether it’s plates, cups, bowls or decanters – I want people to enjoy food at a restaurant, or a bottle of wine in a beautiful decanter I’ve made, and create memories with loved ones.”

Ringwood went from pouring beers at local pubs during his time at the South Australian School of Art (2004–2009) right up until 2020, when he decided to dedicate his focus to potting.

“It was never my intention as a potter to just make for hospitality,” says Ringwood. “Working with restaurants will always be a part of my practice, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to create beautiful pieces for them, but I want to make beautiful things for people to use in their homes and continue to do exhibition work, too.”

Stepping into his studio – a rough and rustic space he built in 2015 behind his property in Torrensville – is like entering a world of “organised chaos”, as he describes it. It’s a warm and homely space.

“I’m in the studio every day, even on public holidays,” Ringwood says. “If I have a big order of 50 plates, I’ll come in as early as possible because making that many can take all day.”

Besides stacks of clay, prototypes for new commissions, a chalkboard covered in measurements, and notes and sketches of orders, the studio also features two kilns. One is bought, the other Ringwood built himself.

“The gas kiln outside gives me different effects, effects I prefer, and is fully manual. I’ve got control of everything,” he explains. The kiln, built in 2019, is a replica of a design by NSW potter Steven Harrison, which Ringwood modelled and modified specifically for his studio. “It’s like a race car compared to the automatic Rolls Royce I have inside.”

After graduating first in his class with honours in ceramics in 2009, Ringwood rented a space at the Jam Factory to continue creating before moving into his home studio.

“I spent a day in the ceramics studio at art school and loved it. I found myself connecting to the techniques and concepts of ceramics much more than painting or drawing, but I wasn’t very good to begin with,” he says. Now Ringwood teaches at Hahndorf Academy. “I tell my students … I was horrible at throwing.”

After participating in several exhibitions after art school, including his debut solo exhibition in 2019, Ringwood’s journey as a potter took a significant turn at the start of 2020 when he was introduced to chef Adam Liston. That led to his first major project with restaurants Shosho and Shobosho.

“I met Adam through a friend, and he mentioned he needed some plates made for his restaurants. Then the pandemic hit, and we went into lockdown, so unfortunately, everything was put on hold.”

Despite the disruptions, this partnership marked the beginning of Ringwood’s work with the hospitality industry. “When we came out of lockdown in 2020, and Shosho opened, it was quite amazing – many of the venues around Adelaide were looking for nice handmade things.”

He’s made ceramics for Topiary , Tapanappa Wines, Cobbs Hill Estate, and LVN Restaurant at the Adelaide Hills’ Bird in Hand (a project for which he collaborated with four other potters). One of Ringwood’s most substantial partnerships has been with Arkhe chef Jake Kellie.

“Jake approached me early in Arkhe’s journey, before they’d even secured a site for the restaurant. It was a massive job – 400-plus pieces to start – making all their plates, bowls and fermentation vessels. It was a rare opportunity – there aren’t too many large restaurant openings in SA compared with the bigger states.”

When he works with restaurants, it’s a collaboration between chef and potter.

“I love when a chef has an idea, but it’s also interesting when you get to create the restaurant’s identity through the plates, too,” says Ringwood. “Sometimes I’ll come up with something, and it will hit right and other times I’ll put a pic up on Instagram and a chef will reach out and say, ‘Hey, can we have something like this?’.”

Despite his success, Ringwood believes his artistry is undervalued in today’s society and advocates for greater recognition of potters’ roles in the culinary world.

“We’re the silent craftsmen … the plates are such a huge part of a restaurant’s experience.

“We have some awesome potters here in Australia and all over the world who make plates for amazing restaurants, but it would be really incredible to see pottery valued more than it currently is in hospitality and beyond.”

@ringwoodartsco

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