Claudia Rankin (b. 1964, London) is a British artist based in the North East of England.  Following a Foundation Course at Wimbledon School of Art, she received her Fine Art Degree at Canterbury College of Art in 1987 and went on to complete her MA in Sculpture at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. As an art student, she worked in clay alongside various other media. During that time, she was modeling and taking casts from clay as well as finishing sculptures in other materials such as plaster, cement, and bronze.  Through her current practice, she relishes the endless possibilities of working in clay for its own sake by hand building, slip casting, press molding, and then decorating with vibrantly colored underglazes. The final pieces are sprayed with a transparent glaze and fired, which seals the entire surface to make the colors pop. Her work is full of personality, natural vibrancy, and wit, with a contemporary feel that is deeply rooted in history, traditional form and decoration.  Claudia’s mother was an antiques dealer who specialized in Oriental porcelain, and she was brought up surrounded by ceramics and decorative objects which led to her lifelong love of museums, historic houses, auctions, and flea markets. She currently resides in Northumberland, a stone’s throw from Hadrian’s Wall.  Her ceramics are regularly exhibited in the UK at Wilson Stephens and Jones and 8 Holland Street in London, as well as Charleston Farmhouse in West Sussex. In the USA, Claudia is represented by Joanna Williams at Kneeland Co Rarities.