The Kiln Shed
@ Whichford Pottery
The Kiln Shed is a new space where we plan on hosting a programme of events, workshops, demonstrations and seminars with a focus on education, craft, gardening and food sustainability. We will be hosting a few events in 2023 whilst preparing a full programme ready for the start of 2024.
Learn about the story so far below.
Over the past 47 years Jim & Dominique have created Whichford Pottery, a place which has romanced, intrigued, taught and welcomed people from all walks of life and the world over.
The Kiln Shed grew from a conversation around the Keeling kitchen table; an idea for a space for people to come together; potters, gardeners, mothers, foodies, environmentalists, children, farmers, growers. People that make up the community around us, people with ideas, skills and ambition.
Through The Kiln Shed we aim to:
*Maintain a sustainable, rural working community.
*Educate and promote wider public knowledge of traditional handmaking processes and ancient craft.
*Provide a space that is open, inclusive and fun for all.
The Kiln Shed will be a space for people to convene, to hear lectures, to build and create, to fire kilns, to practice yoga or simply to meet others and walk away inspired and invigorated.
In 2022 we began the conversion of the tin roofed building behind The Straw Kitchen into The Kiln Shed.
The Kiln Shed started with a traditional Douglas Fir timber frame that was handmade, finished and fitted by Jim & Dominique Keeling’s youngest son, Columba using mortise and peg construction methods — one of his biggest project to date!
Autumn and winter see work on the project continue with all the hallmarks of a classic build — plus a few extras including: an extension to the prep area for our café, The Straw Kitchen, the installation of 52 solar panels onto the roof, the design and build of a block of two waterless compostable toilets and much more… never a dull day onsite!
What’s on Spring 2023:
April 22nd 2023: We will hold our first practical workshop in The Kiln Shed: Design & Decorate
May — June 2023: Building of Wood-Fired Kiln
July 15th 2023: Our first guest speaker, Adam Frost gives a talk ‘Gardening for Success’
We will regularly update this page along with our Events page with news of upcoming happenings at The Kiln Shed.
As so often in business, ideas grow organically — in 2015 Jim founded the Oxford Anagama Kilns in Wytham Woods in association with the University of Oxford. Two Japanese climbing kilns were built and fired with the help of volunteers from all-over-the-world. The success of these firings and the joy of the process of slow firing with wood inspired the building of our own wood-fired kiln on site here at Whichford, The Whichford Anagama.
Throughout the spring months we will be designing and building the Whichford Anagama and as we don’t like to do things by half we will be going larger than normal and building it over 6ft high to house large sculptural pieces.
We hope our first firing will take place in September … watch this space!
