Wil van Donselaar

Ceramics and paintings inspired by the Hogeland

About Wil...

I was born and raised in The Hague, in the Netherlands, and had my first encounter with pottery in primary school when I watched a potter’s demonstration. However, it wasn’t until I turned 30, that I tried out the potter’s wheel for the first time. I immediately fell under the spell of the “clay virus” and am captured to this day.

To learn the various methods of working with clay, I studied ceramic techniques at the SBB Gouda in the Netherlands. Throughout my studies and the following few years, I was fascinated by the potter’s wheel, but slowly moved towards handbuilding. This gave me more room for personal expression.

I recently started making glass jewellery , and find glass a fascinating material. Sometimes, I combine glass with clay. In the objects that are formed you may notice the influence of the coastal landscape that I live in.

Before I started working with clay I studied to be an art teacher and taught in secondary schools for five years.

Like many others, I find inspiration in nature, especially in coastal areas, but also in animals and people. I have lived in the beautiful, vast and quiet Dutch northern province of Groningen since 1996, close to the Wadden Sea. Influences of this landscape and the magnificent cloudy skies are evident in my mural reliefs.

Also important to my works are workshops, master classes and seminars run by, among others: Netty Janssens, Joop Beekwilder, Gert de Rijke, Petra van Heesbeen, Matthieu v.d. Giessen, Patty Wouters, David&Margaret Frith, Jim Robison and Netty v.d. Heuvel.
In addition, I am influenced by artists such as: Henry Moore, Bernard Leach, Millet, Bonnard and Gaudi. 

Wil van Donselaar

About her work..

II use stoneware clay in differing techniques. The majority of the forms are built up from rolls or small slabs of clay. 


The mural reliefs are created by cutting or tearing slabs of clay, often textured, then joining them together again. After the bisque firing the works are painted with pigments and/ or oxides. I also use various glazes, including brush-on glazes. The first glaze firing (1100 degrees) is usually followed by a second. My firing is done in an electric kiln. As well as firing in an electric kiln I sometimes use a raku kiln. The latter being gas fired and forcing the temperature to rise a lot quicker to the glaze’s melting temperature (around 1000 degrees).


 At their maximum temperature the works are removed from the kiln with raku tongs. The thermal shock causes the glaze to crack. The burning hot works are then placed in a barrel of sawdust, which quickly ignites. The barrel is sealed with a lid and smoke embeds carbon into the glaze-free surfaces of the pottery and into the crackles of the glaze.

This method of firing is always exciting and usually has surprising results. 


Exhibitions and Selling points

Ongoing exhibitions and selling points:


* Museum Het Hoogeland

Schoolstraat 4

9900 AA Warffum


=> In april, may and june 2024 my ceramics and paintings are on display in the church of  Vierhuizen






* Frame maker and Gallery 'Nou nog mooier'

Baron van Asbeckweg 38

9944 PC Warfhuizen



And of course you will find a present for yourself or a friend at my 'stall along the road'! It's opened all day long. When I'm home you are welcome in my exhibition room and my studio.


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