It was recently brought to light that popular and charismatic potter, Eric Nathan Landon, more commonly known as Tortus, has been accused of sexual harassment. Emalee (@softearth.ceramics) bravely opened up about her experiences as his apprentice and the unwanted sexual advances that he made towards her. Her actions prompted other women to open up about their experiences with Tortus in pottery workshops across the globe and the creation of the hashtag #unfollowTortus. He has also been called out for not appropriately paying for studio spaces where he held pottery workshops, withholding payments and unprofessionalism in his general communication.

The accusations were denied by Landon via Instagram, stating that her claims are “simply not true”, and that we “shouldn’t believe everything on social media”. When coming forward to experiences of sexual assault, harassment or violence women are immediately asked: ‘are you sure you didn’t encourage it?’, leading to victim blaming, gaslighting and emotional distress. But times are changing. With greater capacity to share and promote women’s experiences through social media and women’s movements, people are starting to believe women.

So what is it really like in the pottery scene right now? I had a chat to Georgie Proud, co-founder of Rosie and now potter, about her experiences in the world of ceramics from her base in Melbourne…