Val Toft taught ceramics at Lowestoft College from 1980 to 1995, shaping countless lives through clay and a deep commitment to making art. The Horse Series emerged between 2004 and 2010, during a period of heightened energy and sustained creative intensity. In this phase, Toft worked with monotype printing with mixed media and continuously, returning again and again to the image of vivid red lips—an emblem of self-expression that pulses through the work. The lipstick remains; she still wears it, a quiet thread of continuity.

Now living with dementia, this series stands as a tribute to a life shaped by art. It honours Val Toft’s practice as both painter and ceramist, preserving a time when making was instinctive, urgent, and deeply felt.

Private View 5th February 2026 6-8pm