Bernard Leach:
Life and Work

'Cooper must be congratulated for writing this much-needed biography. It is a book which will become the standard reference for Leach, and appeal to a general audience as well as the specialist reader.'—Julian Stair, World of Interiors

Widely recognised as a pioneer of studio pottery, Bernard Leach (1887–1979) cultivated an identity for artist potters in Britain and around the world. This outstanding biography provides a vivid, detailed account of Leach’s life and art.

Now available in paperback to mark the one hundredth anniversary of the founding of the Leach Pottery, Emmanuel Cooper’s insightful book explores Leach’s working methods, the seams of his pottery, his writings and philosophy, his recognition in Japan and Britain and his continuing legacy, bringing into sharp focus a complex man who captured in his work as a potter the “still center” that eluded him in his tumultuous personal life.

Emmanuel Cooper was a distinguished potter, writer and visiting professor in the ceramics and glass programme at the Royal College of Art in London.