For over 30 years Maureen Michaelson has been at the forefront of contemporary British sculptural ceramics. An agent for several ceramists of international standing, she also represents artists working in other media, including jewellery, metal, wood, glass and paper.
Maureen's aim has always been to provide a showcase for work by artists that is either challenging in its subject matter; innovative or experimental in the use of materials; or difficult to pigeonhole in terms of conventional categories. The artists she shows make work of the highest standards and are responsible for every aspect of design and making. Maureen is very proud to have been instrumental at the start of the careers of ceramists such as George Walker and Paul Scott who are now recognised internationally.
Maureen's other guiding idea has been to hold exhibitions within a domestic space. As long ago as the early 1980s when this was an relatively unknown idea, she sought out a home that could be used as a showcase for artworks. She still believes this to be an ideal setting for demystifying the owning of art, and of allowing visitors to experience the ease and pleasure with which they can integrate art into their own interior or garden environments.
In recent years, the most public face of the Gallery is the acclaimed annual summer exhibition of garden sculpture and ceramics, first established in 2000. The lushly planted private garden is the smallest outdoor sculpture gallery in the UK, and is only open to the public for a few weeks each year. Behind the public gaze of exhibitions however, Maureen is constantly busy on behalf of several artists she represents. Clients are welcome to make appointments at all times whether or not there is an ongoing exhibition.
In the past, the Gallery was well known for participating at the London Contemporary Art Fair held every year at the Business Design Centre, and also at the first "Collect", held at the Victoria and Albert Museum in 2004. Prior to the opening of the current Gallery, Maureen's previous gallery was the specialist sculptural ceramic gallery Michaelson & Orient in Portobello Road, London.
Maureen has a doctorate in Social Anthropology from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), London University. Her specialist subject is the Gujarati population from East Africa in the UK. She still takes an interest in current research in this field. She has published several articles in anthropology as well as on ceramics.