My name is Nova Cookson and I’m a Brighton based, self-taught ceramicist working out of my garden studio. I’ve built my tiny ceramic empire up over the last several years and am absolutely loving creating new and unique pieces. The quirkier, the better! I draw inspiration from many things, including natural phenomena like volcanoes and Northern Lights to film, music and TV shows. I also collect mini things and have recently been creating dioramas inside my pots. What I find exciting about this is that I can explore so many different subjects - I feel particularly passionate about using my art for good causes and exploring themes such as human rights and animal welfare issues.

I was diagnosed with ADHD back in 2024 and it explains why I’ve always flitted from job to job or degree to degree. The one constant in my life has always been pottery. I have clear memories of making a little ceramic clown face back in primary school and since then, I’ve always dabbled in clay, whether it was taking classes, or working in a pottery painting studio. It wasn’t until 2021, when I did a great pottery workshop in Sussex, that I realised I wanted to do this for a living.