Geoffrey Eastop

Geoffrey Eastop (16 January 1921[1] – 25 December 2014[2]) was an English potter.[3]

Geoffrey Eastop at an exhibition of his work at the River and Rowing Museum, Henley-on-Thames, England, in 2005.
Pots by Geoffrey Eastop, part of an exhibition of his work at the River and Rowing Museum in 2005.

Eastop was born in London, where he studied at the Croydon School of Art and Goldsmiths' College. He also studied at the Academie Ranson in Paris.

During World War II, Eastop served as an office in the Royal Artillery, seeing action in the Netherlands and being lucky to survive.[4] After the war, he spent a year at the Odney Pottery in Cookham, Berkshire.[5] From 1956, he collaborated with Alan Caiger-Smith during the early years of the Aldermaston Pottery (established in 1955) in the village of Aldermarston, staying there for six years. He then started his own pottery in Padworth. He remained in the same area around south Berkshire throughout his working life, finally being based near Newbury from 1985.

Eastop was a potter throughout his working life and collaborated with the artist John Piper, sometimes working at Piper's family home at Fawley Bottom in south Buckinghamshire.[6][7] He first met Piper in 1968 and they started working together in 1969.[8] Eastop set up a pottery at Piper's home in Fawley Bottom and the partnership lasted until 1985. Eastop made the pots and Piper decorated them. From 1985, Eastop established his own pottery in the village of Ecchinswell near Kingsclere, Hampshire.[4]

Eastop's work has been exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London and the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge. In 2005, he had a solo exhibition of his work at the River and Rowing Museum in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. Examples of his work are in the Ashmolean Museum (Oxford), Portsmouth City Museum,[9] Reading Museum, and Southampton City Art Gallery.[4]

Eastop lived at Ecchinswell near Kingsclere in Hampshire[10] with his wife, Pat Eastop MBE (died 2014).[11][12] They had three sons and one daughter. Eastop died at Oak Lodge, Oakley, on Christmas Day, 2014. He had a long-lasting, loving relationship with all his grandchildren.[2]

References
  1. Rice, Paul (2002). British Studio Ceramics. Crowood Press. p. 222. ISBN 1861265298.
  2. "Obituary: Eastop, Geoff". Family Announcements. UK: Newbury Weekly News. 8 January 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
  3. Geoffrey Eastop — Biography, Artfacts.net.
  4. "Geoffrey Eastop: An artist's life in pots". Newbury Weekly News. UK. 15 January 2015. pp. 44–45.
  5. "Geoffrey Eastop". Pottery Studio. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  6. Spalding, Frances (2009). John Piper – Myfanwy Piper: Lives in Art. Oxford University Press. pp. 456–457, 464. ISBN 978-0-19-956761-4.
  7. Eastop, Geoffrey (2011). The Piper Years: A Memoir. Zingaro Books. ISBN 978-0-9566848-2-0.
  8. Bapasola, Jeri (2012). "Working Parties". John Piper at Blenheim Palace. UK: Blenheim Palace. pp. 36–29. ISBN 978-0-9502344-7-2.
  9. Eastop, Geoffrey; Thomas, Elizabeth (1992). Geoffrey Eastop: 40 years of change in studio pottery. Portsmouth: Portsmouth City Museum. ISBN 0904316092.
  10. "Geoffrey Eastop". Artists and Galleries. Newbury & District Arts Association, UK. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  11. Barker, Ellis (11 September 2014). "Family pays tribute to "precious, inspirational and selfless" Pat Eastop". Newbury Today. Archived from the original on 18 January 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
  12. Woods, Vicki (19 September 2014). "I have intimations of mortality every day". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
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