About

Jonathan Keep has his studio at his home on the Suffolk coast in the UK. He was born and grew up in South Africa, obtaining a BA (Hons) Fine Art degree from the University of Natal. In 1986 he moved to England and received a MA from the Royal College of Art in 2002. His postgraduate show was awarded overall prize-winner of the Lattice Group Awards and he was awarded a Woo Foundation Graduate Arts Bursary. 

He is a leading exponent of studio based ceramic 3D printing and helped pioneer the technique. As a practitioner at the forefront of his field he  has been invited to undertake residencies, workshops and lecturing in over fifty institutions in more than twenty countries. He has taught at such schools as Florida State University USA, the Royal College of Art London, ENSA Limoges France, the Estonian Academy of Art and The Design School Reykjavik Iceland.

His work has been exhibited widely in the UK and abroad. Notable exhibitions included the British Ceramic Biennial;  The Taiwan Ceramic Biennial; The First Central China International Ceramic Biennale; The Cheongju Craft Biennale, Korea;  Objects in Fux, Boston Museum of Fine Arts; L’arbre de Darwin, Limoges, France; Gmunden Keramiksymposium touring, Austria, Germany, Italy, France;  Officine SaffiAward 4, Milan;  Blue Line Arts, California USA;  Celadon Virtuous, Longquan, China; The Ceramics Brussels Art Fair and Chippenham Museum, UK.

Jonathan Keep's work has been described as sculptural but he calls himself a potter in support of cultures from around the world where pottery has been a vital art form. Less interested in European Fine Art, Jonathan prefers to talk about the Anthropology of Art and the evolutionary origins and cultural function of art. The function of his pots is, as in all sculptural objects, is to communicate, to offer a personal expression and act as objects of existential exploration.

His pots continue the tradition of using earth made containers as a metaphor for the human as container. With a world view derived from evolutionary and ecological processes, he has developed a working practice using computer code, analogous to DNA code, to explore our psychological connection to the natural world and sense of form in particular. A pioneer in the use of digital tools in the ceramic studio, Jonathan’s works are a mix of traditional skills and extrusion 3D printing, or as he prefers to call it, computer guided coil building.  This working process is born out of an interest in the way that computer code can be used to mimic natural patterns, processes and growth structures. Once constructed the clay objects are fired and glazed in a traditional manner. 

 1958 Born Johannesburg, S.A

Training

1999 - 2002 MA, Royal College of Art, London.

1976 - 1979 B.A. Fine Arts (Hons) Natal University, S.A.

Experience

2021 -  2015 Visiting lecturer, Myndlistaskolinn Design School, Reykjavik, Iceland.

2019 – 2017 Visiting lecturer, Royal College of Art, London.

2019 -  2017 Summer School, Estonian Academy of Arts, Tallinn, Estonia. 

2017 – 2015 Visiting lecturer, Ecole Nationale Superieure d’Art, Limoges, France.

2017 - 1990 Visiting lecturer, BA design, University Campus Suffolk, Lowestoft.

2014  Godwit project – King of the Meadow, Leeuwarden, Netherlands.

2018 – 2013 Advisor to EU Comenius/Erasmus+ 3D Printing Schools project.

2013 – 2009 Vice-chair, Suffolk Craft Society.

2008 – 2013 Schools workshops, EastFeast, Suffolk.

2005 - 2000 Specialist Advisory Panel, North Kesteven Arts Unit, Lincolnshire.

2004 - 2003 Working Party, Centre for the Visual Arts, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.

2001  Eaton Park Water Feature - Public artwork, Norwich.

2001 - 1999 INSITE - Commissioned of CD-ROM and explore multimedia technology.

2000 - 1999  Steering Committee, Visual Artist Marketing & Business Dev Scheme, Suffolk.

1999 - 1994 Adviser (Crafts) to Eastern Arts Board.

1998 Sculpture in Water Meadow Garden (Gold medal), Chelsea Flower Show.

Awards

2010 Arts Council, Grants for the Arts, Equipment for Ceramic 3D Printing.

2007 Craft Pottery Charitable Trust, Travel Award.

2005 Arts Council, Grants for the Arts research and development award.

2003 Regie Hyne Memorial Award.

2003 Woo Foundation, Graduate Bursary Award.

2002 Overall prizewinner, Lattice Group Awards, The Final Show, RCA.

2002 The Man Group Drawing Portfolio Prize, RCA. 

2001 The Sir Po-Shing Woo Scholarship, RCA.

2000 Bombay Sapphire Cocktail Glass Award.

1999 Suffolk Craft Society travel award.

1989 First Impressions promotion Award, East of England Arts.

Residences/Visiting Artist

2024 Artist in residence,   Longquan Wangou Taoxichuan Art Centre, China.

2020 Artist in residence, ManiLab, Assemini, Cagllari, Sardinia.

2019 Visiting Artist, Ecole Superierure d’Art, Quimper, France.

2019 Resident Artist, Lidkoping Porcelain Festival, Sweden.

2019 Visiting artist, National Centre for Glass, University of Sunderland.

2018 Visiting Artist, ArtLab Accademia Sironi, Sassari, Sardinia.

2018 Ceramic Residence Symposium, Gmunden, Austria.

2018 Visiting artist, The Eugeniusz Geppert Academy of Art and Design in Wroclaw, Poland.

2018 Visiting artist, Boise State University, Idaho, USA.

2017 Invite guest, Estonian Academy of Arts, Tallinn, Estonia.

2017 Visiting artist, Central Saint Martins School of Art, London.

2016 Visiting artist, Cardiff School of Art & Design, Wales, UK.

2015 Artist in residence, Institute of Making, University College London.

2015 Artist in residence, British Ceramic Biennial, Stoke-on-Trent.

2015 Visiting artist, Myndlistaskolinn Design School, Reykjavik, Iceland.

2015 Visiting artist, Denver University, Colorado, USA.

2015  Glass/Clay Collaboration, Konstfack - Stockholm and Glass Factory – Boda, Sweden.

2014 Masterclass & Lectures, Applied Arts Ulster & Ulster University, Belfast, Londonderry.

2014 Visiting artist, Florida State University, Tallahassee, USA.

2014 Visiting artist, The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and Visual Arts, Copenhagen.

2014 Visiting artist, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, USA.

2014 Visiting artist, Burg-Halle University, Germany.

2013 Visiting artist, Plymouth University, Devon, UK.

2013 Visiting artist, Autonomatic research group, Falmouth University, UK.

2012 Visiting artist, Danish Design School, Copenhagen, Denmark.

2012 Visiting artist, Royal Institute of Art, Stockholm, Sweden.

2008 - 2009 AA2A Residence, University Campus Suffolk, Ipswich, UK.

2008 Ebb & Flow, Artist in Residence, Sailors Path Suffolk, UK.

2002 Network Europe, Museum of International Ceramic Art, Denmark.

2000 - 2001 Year of the Artist Residency, Leiston and Aldeburgh Surgeries, Suffolk, UK.

1998 Six schools artist in residence project, Suffolk County Council Education, UK

1997 Potter in residence, Arts in Rural Norfolk, UK.

1996 Artist in residence, Stowupland High School, Suffolk, UK.

1991 Potter in residence, Ipswich Museum, UK.

Talks, Lectures and Workshops Presented

2021 (remote lecture), Potting in a Digital Age, Hood College, Maryland, USA.

2021 (remote lecture & demonstration), Plymouth College of Art, UK.

2020 (remote lecture), Ten Years of Clay  3D Printing, Estonian Academy of Art, Estonia.

2020 (remote lecture) The Will to Form, Applied Arts Ireland & Northern Ireland.

2019 Lecture & Staff Development, Nottingham Trent University, UK.

2019 Staff development workshop, Centre for the Creative Arts and Media, Galway, Ireland.

2019/15/14 Annual lecturer, De Montfort University, Leicester.

2018 Beyond Pattern and Chaos Symposium, Norwich University of the Arts, Norwich.

2018 Lecture & Workshop, International Museum of Ceramics, Faenza, Italy.

2018 Short course, UCA, Farnham.

2018 Lecture, NCECA, Pittsburgh, USA.

2018 Lecture, Stuckeman Center for Design Computing, Penn State  Uni, USA.

2017 Lecture Panel, Clay Matters, Hasselt, Belgium.

2017 Lecture, Alfred University, New York State, USA.

2017 Lecture, Digitally Engaged Learning Conference, Central St Martin’s, London.

2017 Staff Development workshop, Swansea College of Art, Wales.

2017 Lecture and Workshop, Ceramic Art London, CSM, London.

2017 Lecture and Workshop, Fablab Limerick, Ireland.

2016 Retune Festival of Art, Design and Technology, Berlin.

2016 Staff development, Engelsholm Folk High School, Denmark.

2016 Lecture and demonstration, Emily Carr University of Art, Vancouver, Canada.

2016 Lecture, Ceramics and New Technologies, Holburne museum, Bath.

2015 Lecture, European Craft Summit, Mons, Belgium.

2015 Demonstrator, International Ceramics Festival, Aberystwyth, Wales.

2014 Lecture, Ecole Nationale Superierure Des Arts Visuels, La Cambre, Brussels.

2014 Lecture & Workshop, Ecole Superieure d’Art & Design, Valenciennes, France.   

2014 Workshop in Chocolate 3D Printing, W.I.R.E & Barry Callebaut, Zurich.

2014 Workshop and Lecture, Argilla Ceramic Festival, Faenza, Italy.

2014 Presentation, ‘All Makers Now’, Autonomatic research group, Falmouth University.

2014 Presentation, Replic_age Fest, Madrid.

2014 Lecture, Potting in a Digital Age, Ceramic Art London, RCA.

2014 Workshop, Sainsbury Centre for the Visual Arts, Norwich.

2014 Presentation, Additive Manufacturing – Will ceramics miss out?, Camden, London.

2014 Workshop, Digital Sound & Form Lab, Engelsholm Folk High School, Denmark.

2013 Talk & Workshop, International Ceramic Research Centre, Guldagergaard, Denmark

2013 Crafts Council Hothouse, Digital Crafts, Plymouth University.

2012 Presentation – Towards a New Ceramic Future, V&A London.

2009 Lecture and workshop, Cape potters association, South Africa.

2007 Presentation - Digital Media and Physical Form, Denmark.

2003 Workshop - The International Ceramic Work Centre, Skaelskor, Denmark.

2003 Lecture - 'Art in Health', Royal College of general Practitioners, East Anglia Faculty.

2002 Panelist - 'The Artistic Kitchen', Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, Norwich.

2001 Lecture - 'Virtual Pots', The Pearoom Centre for Contemporary Craft, Lincolnshire.

2001 Lecture - 'Virtual Reality and the Imagination', Form and Content Conference, London.

Selected Exhibitions

2025 Subversive Forms, Revolutionary Approaches to Clay, Chippenham Museum, UK.

2025 Ceramic Brussels, Lélia Mordoch gallery, Brussels, Belgium.

2024 Celadon Virtuous, Wangou Taoxichuan Art Museum, Longquan, China.

2024 3D Printing in Practice, Vijay Patel Gallery, De Montfort University, Leicester, UK.

2024 Earthly Bodies, Sarah Myserscough Gallery, London, UK.

2023 Beatrice Guilleman and Jonathan Keep, Puls Ceramics, Brussels, Belgium.

2023 The Geography of Objects , Cheongju Craft Biennale, South Korea.

2023 Fair Machine, The International Museum of Modest Art, Sète, France.

2022 E-Ceramics, The Benyamini Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.

2022 Artful Craft, Make Southwest, Bovey Tracey, Devon, UK.

2021 The Ceramic Code - Galeria Dizajn BWA, Wroclaw, Poland.

2019 Morphologizing - Manhattan Beach Art Center, California, USA.

2018 - 2021 Gmunden Keramiksymposium Touring Exhibition - Austria, Germany, Italy, France.

2018 Exhibit60 (Solo) Printroom, Suffolk, UK.

018 L’arbre de Darwin - Fonds Regional d'Art Contemporain, Limoges, France

2018 Flow - Old Big School Gallery, Tonbridge, Kent.

2017 La Sculpture Ceramique - Expression Contemporaine - Giroussens, France

2017 Future Forwards - Technology & Digital, Bluecoat Display Centre, Liverpool.

2016/17 Shaping the Future, touring – Finland, Germany, Ireland, UK, Slovenia, Czech Rep.

2016/17 Future Artist Makers, touring – Ireland, Madrid.

2016 Cont{r}act Earth, First Central China  Ceramic Biennale, Henan Museum, China.

2016 Self Made Shapes - Summer Science Exhibition, The Royal Society, London.

2016 Impression 3D, l’usine du future - Le Lieu du Design, Paris, France.

2016 The Best of British - Clay Gulgong, Australia.

2015 Random Growth: Contemporary European Ceramics - Phos Art + Design, London.

2015 Elements of Art and Science - Ars Electronica, Linz, Austria.

2015 Crafted, Objects in Flux - Boston Museum of Fine Arts, USA.

2014 Formed - Djanogly Art Gallery, Lakeside Arts Center, University of Nottingham, UK.

2014 Pippin Drysdale & Jonathan Keep - Puls Contemporary Ceramics, Brussels.

2014 Nature Features - Ann Linnemann Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark.

2014 Makers of Today - Kunsthal Nord, Ålborg, Denmark.

2014 Taiwan Ceramic Biennial, Yingge Ceramic Museum, Taipei, Taiwan.

2013 British Ceramic Biennial - The Potteries Museum & Art Gallery, Stoke-on-trent, UK.

2013 Agents of the 3D Revolution - FADA Gallery University of Johannesburg, SA.

2013 Echo of Leach - Leach Pottery Museum, St Ives, UK.

2013 Nordes Conference Exhibition - Royal Danish School of Design, Copenhagen.

2013 3D Printed, Solo 2013 Solo Exhibition - Ann Linnemann Gallery, Copenhagen.

2012 Stratigraphic Manufactury - Istanbul Design Biennial, Istanbul.

2012 London 3D PrintShow - The Brewery, London.

2011 Exquisite - William Humphreys Art Gallery, Kimberley, SA.

2011 Littoral - Chalk Hill Contemporary Art, Guildford.

2010 Affordable Art Fair - Batersea, London.Represented by Sarah Myerscough Fine Arts.

2010 Subtle Edges - Unit 2 Gallery, London Metropolitan University, London.

2009 Vessel - Sarah Myerscough Fine Arts, London.

2009 Parameters, Resident Artists - The Waterfront Gallery, University Campus Suffolk.

2009 Solo exhibition, Drawings, prints and pots - The Cut, Halesworth, Suffolk.

2007 Ceramic Art London - Royal College of Art, London.

2007 Collect Art Fair - V&A, London. Represented by Sarah Myerscough Fine Arts.

2006 Jonathan Keep and Merete Larsen - Carlin Gallery, Paris.

2006 Jonathan Keep and Barbro Åberg - Puls Contemporary Ceramics, Brussels.

2006 Collect Art Fair - V&A, London. Represented by Sarah Myerscough Fine Arts.

2005 Jonathan Keep and Margaret Mellis - Strand Gallery, Aldeburgh, Suffolk.

2005 Collect Art Fair - V&A, London. Represented by Sarah Myerscough Fine Arts.

2004 Jonathan Keep and Ellen Schöpf - Carlin Gallery, Paris.

2004 Group Exhibition - The Warehouse, Lowestoft, Suffolk.

2004 Intimacy - Sarah Myerscough Fine Arts, London.

2004 Collect Art Fair - V&A, London. Represented by Sarah Myerscough Fine Arts.

2003 What is Craft, British Contemporary Craft - The Hub, Sleaford, Lincs.

2003 Network Europe - Museum of International Ceramic Art, Middelfart, Denmark.

2003 Contemporary Decorative Arts - Sotheby's, London.

2003 Unexpected Too, Contemporary Applied Arts - Sotheby's, New York.

2004 Drawn Together - Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery, Suffolk.

2005 Recent Drawings - Halesworth Gallery, Suffolk.

2002 Kettle's Yard Open - Cambridge.

2002 Ceramic Contemporaries 4 - London, Wrexham, Glasgow, Aberystwyth.

2002 Five Alive - Wolsey Art Gallery, Ipswich.

2000 Newton Showcases - Bonington Gallery, Nottingham Trent University.

2000 Window Show - Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, UEA, Norwich.

1999 Artist in focus - Harley Gallery, Welbeck, Nottinghamshire.

1999 Collaborative instillation with Les Bicknell, Angel Row Gallery, Nottingham.

1999 Earthness, Solo Exhibition - The Pearoom Centre for Contemporary Craft.

1999 Sticks - Southern Arts Touring Exhibition.

1998 Life Forces - Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery.

1998 On The Border - Suffolk and Essex open, Minories Colchester.

1997 Earthworks - Mid Pennine Gallery, Burnley.

1995 Fletcher Challenge Ceramic Award Exhibition - Auckland.

1995 Bridging Cultures - Northern Arts Touring.

1995 Cultural Connections - Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery.

1994 - 1997 Exhibited at Chelsea Crafts Fair.

1994 Studio Ceramics 94 - Victoria & Alberts Museum.

1990 Eastern Arts Touring Exhibition - Norwich, Ipswich, Koblenz.

1989 First Impressions - Touring five National Trust properties.

1983 Solo Exhibition - Jack Heath Gallery, University of Natal.

Collections

 Longquan Wangou Taoxichuan Art Centre, China.

Centro d'esposizione Ceramica Artistica, Assemeni, Sardinia.

K-Hof Kammerhof Museum, Gmunden, Austria.

A drien Dubouché National Museum of Ceramics, Limoges, France.

Henan Museum, Zhengzhou city, China.

Aberystwyth University Ceramic Collection, Wales.

Design Museum of Gent, Belgium.

The Nelson Mandela Museum of Art - Port Elizabeth, SA.

Thatham Art Gallery – Pietermaritzburg, SA.

William Humphreys Art Gallery – Kimberley, SA.

University Campus Suffolk – Ipswich, UK.

Mayer Brown – London, UK.

Museum of International Ceramic Art – Denmark

Lattice Group – London, UK.

Norwich Castle Museum, UK.

Eastern Arts Board – Cambridge, UK.

North Kesteven District Council – Lincs, UK.

Margate Art Gallery, Natal, SA.

Durban Art Gallery, SA.

Corrobric Collection - Natal University, SA.

Publications

• 'Materiality & Computing: Proceedings of the SCDC Flash Symposium 2018, PenState University, USA.
• 'Formes Vivanies’, Jean-Charles Hameau, Musee National Adrien Dubouche Limoges, 2019.
• ‘Potting in a Digital Age’, Jonathan Keep. Studio Potter, Winter/Spring 2019, vol1 no 1.
• ‘Keramik Symposium’, Gmunden, 2018.
• ‘La Ceramique Comma Experiance, Vol 1,2 & 3’, Michel Paysant, Ensa Limoges, 2018.
• 'Contract Earth and Contract with the Earth’, Wendy Gers, Science Press, Beijing, 2017
• 'La Sculpture Ceramique’, Journées Internationales de Céramique, Giroussens 2017
• 'Ceramics and its Dimensions: Shaping the Future', Maarit Makela, Aalto University, 2016
• 'Elements of Art and Science’ edit Gerfried Stoker, Ars Electronica 2015
• '3D Technology in Fine Art and Craft’, Bridgette Mongeon, Focal Press 2015
• 'Crafted: objects in flux’, Emily Zilber, MFA Publications 2015
• 'La revolucion 3d en la ceramica’, Revista Ceramica, Issue 136 2015
• 'Jonathan Keep, Nature Software’, di Matteo Zauli, LaCeramica No 23 Dec 2014
• 'The Fourth Way’, Ceramic Review Magazine, Nov/Dec 2014 Issue 270
• 'Terra-Nova, Critical Currents / Contemporary Ceramics’ Wendy Gers, Yingge Ceramic Museum, 2014
• 'Printing Things, Visions and Essentials for 3D Printing’ C Warner & D Verbruggen, Gestalten, 2014
• 'New Morphologies: Studio Ceramics Digital Processes' D Harrow & S J Scott, Alfred University, 2014
• '3D Printing for Artists, Designers and Makers’ Stephen Hoskins, Bloomsbury 2013
• 'Reinventing the Wheel’ Lucy Etherington,  Suffolk Magazine, Nov 2013
• 'Welcome to the 3D Revolution’ Tamaryn Greer, Classic Feel /55 2013
• 'Ceramic and Print’ Paul Scott, Bloomsbury, 2012.
• 'Art and Nature' Bonnie Kemske. Ceramic Review Magazine, July/Aug 2010 Issue 244.
• 'Contemporary Ceramics' Emmanuel Cooper, Thames & Hudson, 2009.
• 'More access to art colleges' AN Magazine, July/August 2009.
• 'Market Forces' Bonnie Kemske. Ceramic Review Magazine, July/Aug 2008 Issue 232.
• 'Breaking the Mould: New approaches to Ceramics, Barnard/Daintry/Twomey, Black Dog publishing, 2007.
• 'Åberg and Keep at Puls Gallery' Ceramic Art and Perception, 2007 Issue 67.
• 'Pots not pills' Jonathan Keep. Ceramic Review Magazine, Jan/Feb 2005 Issue 211.
• 'The Language of Pots' Ceramic Review Magazine, Jan/Feb 2002 Issue 193.