Domestic Bliss in Public Collection

“Domestic Bliss” has gone to Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery to be part of their permanent collection. I am very pleased; it was made just under a year ago. It is the fifth pot I have done on my Dyson which I adore. I have a theory about the machine, that it has this ingenious plan to turn itself into human form.

I began this theory when after visiting people I would see their Dyson standing in the kitchen, or the hall, or the living room; you name it, there it was. Far too big to go into a cupboard, it stalks the home. Like The Third Policeman’s bicycles I wondered if they (the Dysons) were taking on human characteristics by human contact too. My much traveled Dyson in Spain (the utter envy of the village) sits in the inner hall; there is no space big enough for it. When it was in England it was the same and I even considered sewing it a dress at one point.

A few years ago in England “Dyson” stopped sucking, eventually I called the helpline and went through all its serial numbers while lying face down on the carpet next to the machine which was also face down. An engineer was dispatched; I was told I would have to pay a callout fee plus any parts. Well, this guy came, all tooled up and in uniform (it was this that gave me the idea for the dress) and joy of joys he had a little rug upon which to work. Woven into the rug were Dysons, actually knotted in the tuft. He set to work in my living room on hands and knees (it was like mouth to mouth resuscitation) I watched intently and then suddenly the engineer realised that next to him was the biggest pot I have ever made (actually it was made by my apprentice not me at all). Anyway the vase matched his knotted carpet piece exactly. It was a double take moment, he looked, looked again and then again. A funny moment you will agree.

I could not get him to part with his Dyson test carpet, I really tried. However, he didn’t charge for the call out or the new motor or the new cylinder and the machine is as good as new. The pot was over a meter high and I dropped it packing it up to go to Germany for an exhibition! Picture below of the giant pot. Circa 2000.