Born into a meagre background, Cecil Bough entered the world on 22 November 1908 in Bangor Ridge, Portland. His parents were farmers and Cecil attended the local all-age school, after which he was widely expected to follow his brother Headley into engineering. But while visiting Headley at his apprenticeship in Kingston, Cecil became fascinated by pottery and gravitated towards a pair of local female potters. He began helping the women in the school holidays, first producing only basic pieces but soon progressing to the traditional Jamaican earthenware known as ‘yabbas’.

His passion for pottery persuaded Cecil to abandon any plans of becoming an engineer, and he moved to Kingston aged 17 to take up his preferred profession full-time. This was an unexpected career move as pottery was then the preserve of society’s lowest class, but it appears Cecil’s decision was driven by love of his craft rather than social or financial advancement – he stated that ‘pottery as a lifework appears to have sought me out’.

Three years after moving to Kingston, Cecil married potter’s niece Beryl Ebanks, with whom he would go on to have three children. In the 1930s the couple relocated to Montego Bay, where Cecil traded his creations door-to-door. By now he had started to develop his pots from functional vessels to works of art with eye-catching shapes and vibrant glazes, most popularly the bright Egyptian blue.

In the mid-30s, Cecil entered an experimental phase in his pottery while working with renowned Jamaican potter Wilfred Lord. At the beginning of World War II he enlisted in the Royal Engineers of the British Army and travelled to Cairo, where he was transfixed by Persian blue ceramics. Determined to evolve his expertise, in 1948 Cecil won a British Council scholarship and ventured to England to train with British studio potter Bernard Leach. Undergoing tutelage at Leach’s studio in St Ives, Cornwall, Cecil further developed his craft.

Returning to Jamaica in 1950, Cecil began exhibiting his work and tutored at Mico College. As well as introducing the island to techniques including stoneware and reduction-firing, he co-founded the Jamaica School of Arts and Crafts along with Edna Manley and other artists.

Cecil’s work was internationally acclaimed and he exhibited in America, Europe and the Caribbean. He has created pots for several important names including Queen Elizabeth, Nelson Mandela and the Emperor of Japan, and garnered a plethora of awards. Cecil also built Jamaica’s first updraught pottery kiln and developed numerous indigenous glazes.

Cecil Baugh passed away on 29 June 2005 aged 96. A warm and friendly character who remained unchanged by his success, he is one of the Caribbean’s most celebrated artists. Tourists planning Caribbean holidays can visit Jamaica’s National Gallery, where the Hall of Ceramics is named after him in honour of his contribution to Caribbean art.

Peter Rose writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.