Throw Down star champions design course at Staffordshire University

TV star and master potter Keith Brymer Jones is continuing to talk up the Potteries by lavishing praise on Staffordshire University’s 3D Designer Maker course.

The Great Pottery Throw Down judge talks about his links to Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire University in a video shot on campus while he was filming for the Channel 4 show which is being aired on Sunday evenings.

Keith tweeted: “I have a lot of respect for @3ddesignstaffs. If you have any sons or daughters thinking of a design course really you couldn’t go far wrong with this. At the heart of the country and the soul of design!”

Keith is a familiar face in Stoke-on-Trent and alongside his television appearances as judge on the Great Pottery Throw Down, he has featured at the British Ceramics Biennial and as opener and guest at the University’s annual art and design degree show where he also judges student artwork.

In 2019, Keith was also awarded Staffordshire University’s highest honour – Honorary Doctor of Arts – for his passionate support of Stoke-on-Trent and its ceramics industry. (See main image.)

He said: “Over the last 30 years as a professional potter, I’ve been coming up to Stoke time and time again. In the last five or six years, since filming the Great Pottery Throw Down, I’ve really made a connection with Staffordshire University. I go to their degree show every single year and it’s just amazing, it blows me away. The level of work from the students is just incredible.

“The facilities are amazing, whether it be furniture design, lighting, ceramics, or even jewellery it’s absolutely incredible. But what makes Staffordshire University so special for me is the passion and the care and the support that you get from the tutors all the way through the course.”

The award-winning BA (Hons) 3D Designer Maker course supports students to develop their passion for designing and making innovative and contemporary objects using a diverse range of materials, skills and techniques. The MA Ceramics degree is also recognised worldwide as one of the leading postgraduate programmes in ceramics for small and mass manufacture.

Both courses have strong links with industry and provide opportunities for students to develop ‘real world’ skills by undertaking live, external client-led briefs with the likes of Marks & Spencer Homeware, SCP, Sainsbury’s Home, KMF, Royal Doulton and Wedgwood.

Course Leader Tim Forrester said: “We’re incredibly lucky to have such a great relationship with someone as experienced and talented as Keith. His continued support, advice and encouragement is invaluable to our students.

“I’m sure there are lots of people who have been inspired by watching The Great Pottery Throw Down. Whether you’re a ceramicist, interior product designer, focussing on furniture and lighting or even contemporary jewellery, the 3D Designer Maker course here in Stoke-on-Trent is for you.”

Staffordshire University’s specialist workshops allow students to work with a range of materials including wood, ceramics, resin, and metal. Students also have access to the £1.3 million Smart Zone where they can access laser cutters, 3D printing in clay and metal, 3D scanning and VR.

Prospective students can discover more about the 3D Designer Maker degree at Staffordshire University’s Undergraduate Virtual Open Day on Wednesday 20 January or the MA Ceramics at the Virtual Postgraduate Open Event on Wednesday 3 March.

Tim added: “On our degree, you’ll gain practical knowledge and a repertoire of skills, developing your understanding of the designers’ essential toolkit as well as contemporary techniques and processes. What better place to study 3D Design than in the heart of the Potteries, so why not join our Open Days and find out more about what we do.”