This unique pot epitomises the articulated, inventive, organic qualities and tactility of Wallwork’s early work, for which he is best known. The totemic form and pitted and pierced surfaces draw on the abstract landscape and tactility of elements in nature. Matte glazes and oxides have been skilfully used to enhance the rich textures of the surfaces and the organic aesthetic. Alan Wallwork was one of Britain’s most distinctive potters, known for sculptural work that was pivotal in the development of studio ceramics and the broader artistic developments in the country in the 1950s and 60s. Wallwork favoured clay as the ideal expressive medium for organic and preternatural objects that explored forms in nature and the landscape, such as gourds, seeds and fossils, as well as archaic and, as can be seen in this stunning piece, totemic shapes from early human history.