The life and legacy of brilliant but elusive potter Lucie Rie is investigated through interviews, letters and the analysis of her elegant, modernist vessels

Lucie Rie (1902-1995), one of the 20th century’s most celebrated and iconic potters, combined an acute understanding of modernism with the skills of her chosen craft. Emmanuel Cooper, a distinguished potter who knew Rie, interviewed many of her friends and acquaintances to produce this complete and detailed account of Rie’s life and work. The author was given unrestricted access by the Rie estate to previously unpublished letters and other material, which provide fascinating new insights into her life and work and allowed him to reevaluate Rie’s creative output within the broader context of modernism and the emergence of the studio pottery movement in Britain.

‘It [is] unlikely that this biography of Rie will ever be surpassed.’ -Frances Spalding, Literary Review

‘A precious gift, from the only man who could have written it.’ -Glenn Adamson, Crafts Magazine