Plastic and Clay

Do we have a responsibility to inform ourselves about the state of the world? Is the experience of some people valued more highly than that of others? Matthew Sweet investigates the ethics of knowledge in Radio 4's round table discussion programme. With: Quassim Cassam, philosoph ...  Show more

What does trade set in motion beyond the exchange of goods? Anne McElvoy explores the movement of commerce across time as a carrier of habits, ideas, ambitions and influence, as well as of material things. From the early modern world, where trade was entangled with colonial expan ...  Show more

Pottery is one of the oldest and most widespread decorative arts and has enjoyed rising popularity in recent years. At the same time, ceramics are increasingly significant as contemporary art. Kim Chakanetsa talks to two ceramicists about sprigging, drying, firing and smashing ...

The remarkable story of how plastic became such a major player in the worlds of industry, medicine and design (among many others) before becoming persona-non-grata thanks to its intimate involvement in our current ecological plight is Shakespearean in its scale and one of the gre ...  Show more

Canadian artist Shary Boyle is known for her incredible ability to transform clay and ceramic into feats of delicate wonder, using the human body and the history of the material to delve into the undercurrents and meanings often overlooked by contemporary viewers. In the second i ...  Show more

Plastics are everywhere -- they're in our favorite electronic devices, they package our food and insulate our homes. Today, the total mass of plastic is twice the total mass of all living organisms on the planet, and it's starting to change the processes that allow the Earth's cl ...  Show more