What is it like to be a Ceramic Conservation student
- Lotte Mitchell, GD Ceramics Conservation
Who are you?
Hello, it’s lovely to meet you, my name is Lotte, and I’m currently studying Ceramics Conservation at West Dean College. Before the world of conservation, I worked in the world of beer (sadly, the product design side, not the drinking). Having spent several years at a design company in London, I felt the desire to create with my hands again beyond the keyboard.
That led me to an apprenticeship at a private restoration studio in Deptford, where I worked alongside incredibly skilled conservators. There, I learned to restore and gild frames — and eventually, this path brought me to West Dean.
Why Ceramics?
One typically receives flowers on Valentine’s Day but a few years ago a man walked three miles across the streets of London, carrying a very heavy 19th century ceramic toilet. If that’s not love, I don’t know what is.
This was the first ceramic object that I helped restore and it wasn’t how I expected my love for ceramics and objects to grow. Yet, I have always been fascinated by the craft and history embedded in objects and the chance to help preserve the connection we have with objects is what truly inspires me.
Why West Dean?
I wanted to deepen my practical, theoretical, and scientific understanding of conservation to build confidence in my practice. After visiting courses across the UK, I found that West Dean embodied everything that I believed a creative/educational environment should be.
The first person I met on open day is still a great friend of mine, and I know this will be the same for the majority of the amazing people that make up West Dean. I’ve never felt this kind of support in an academic environment before. The tutors are extremely knowledgeable and generous with their time, and thanks to the small student-to-teacher ratio, there’s always help when you need it — whether from staff or your fellow students. When it comes to students, despite our differences in age and backgrounds, we’re all eager to share our interests, knowledge, and skills, which is what makes West Dean so special.
As a department, we’ve visited some amazing places this year and had the opportunity to work on several group projects, alongside our individual ones. This year has been full of highlights, from late-night pottery classes with Ali, attempting medieval blacksmithing, to stepping past the "please do not touch" sign at the Novium Museum in Chichester to help conserve the 70-100 AD Jupiter Stone. This doesn’t even include the social highlights, as frankly there are too many.
My experience so far has been extremely rewarding and has exceeded any expectations. I already feel more confident when approaching projects and talking to clients, and I look forward to what the last few months of this great year will bring.
What is a typical week at West Dean?
A typical week is a mixture of hands-on practical work, lectures, collaboration and one too many cups of tea. One day a week we have lectures that tie directly into our practical work, allowing us to dive deeper into the science and theory behind conservation. It’s a perfect balance of theory and practice. As a department we’ve received objects from museums, the National Trust, private collections, and the public. This opens up many opportunities to inspire interest in potential career paths during and after studying.
I currently have 15 objects I’m working on. These range from Qianlong Period porcelain plates to fragmented archaeological pots, with each requiring a unique set of skills and knowledge for their care and treatment. In addition to my solo projects, we’ve been collaborating with the Knole Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio to help organize fire-damaged fragments from the 2015 Clandon House fire. We’ve also been working on a large, stubborn Ming vessel, which has taken weeks to dismantle. With Anna’s expertise and the help of the XRF in the labs, we may now have a clearer idea of how to remove the old adhesive.
