Delyth Jones works from a small studio on atmospheric Eel Pie Island. The famous Thames isle, reached by footbridge from Twickenham in south-west London, is a bohemian mix of villas, cutting-edge offices, houseboats, boatyards and artists' studios, all enveloped by a backdrop of jungly foliage and surrounded by lapping water. Here, marooned from urban fuss, Jones taps into the things that inspire her expressive clay animals, whose markings she creates using simple smoke firing techniques. Her pin board is covered in images of cows, sheep, pigs and hens, often snapped at visits to agricultural shows. Another talisman is a heavy tome about the prehistoric cave paintings of Lascaux in south-west France. 'I love the tones of colour on the cave walls and die simple yet beautiful depictions of animals such as the ox,' says Jones, turning the pages as if they were gilded. Childhood memories are another powerful inspiration. 'I grew up on a mixed farm in a remote part of north Wales and we kept all kinds of animals. I remember going out with my dad to help feed calves and sheep. I used to spend a lot of time just looking at them, watching the way they moved and interacted with each other.' After she left home to become an illustrator she always felt drawn back to the farm and visited often. 'It was in our family for three generations and it was a huge part of us.'
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