reyaz badaruddin: 2010

2009, When I got selected for Charles Wallace India Trust (CWIT) Award, I decided to join Cardiff School of Art and Design (CSAD) for MA Ceramics. My main focus was to work with plaster. In India, my training was on the potter's wheel. I had always worked through the wheel or slab building process and had never worked through plaster. I knew that CSAD had a strong plaster department along with ceramics.

From day one when I entered the school, I knew that I was going to have a great time. I was overwhelmed by the presence of ceramics in CSAD. It was the first time I was in an art school which gave such an important place to ceramics. It was exciting to see the facilities and meet the staff. The library was my favourite place. It has all the books and magazines on art and artist; I had not seen so many books on ceramics in my life! I felt like the school had everything one can ask for and I was ready to make full use of this opportunity.

I spent most of my first few months working in the plaster room. I had no clue about the potential of working with plaster, and this opened up a whole new world to me, full of possibilities. I had an amazing learning experience and feel there is still a lot to explore. The tutors and technicians were of great help at every step. They were always available and ready to answer my questions. They helped me understand and define better my work and my motivations, which made me reflect on my identity. I also enjoyed the constructive debate with international fellow students. With them, I could understand different points of view and see how things can change according to different backgrounds and cultures. Working in this environment was very stimulating: it raised questions but also helped me find the answers. And it has led me to consider many directions which I wish to explore in the future.

In addition to a working environment, this place created a platform for me to meet many artists and provided me with information on what was going on in the world of ceramics in the UK. I went to many art and ceramics fairs, festival and exhibitions, including the International Ceramics Festival in Aberystwyth, where I worked as student help, and got an opportunity to meet many artists from around the world and worked with Nina Hole.

All the work below are from CSAD, Cardiff, 2009.