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Pottery expansion project unnecessary

FRINGE manager Benny Chia's response (South China Morning Post, July 20) to concerns about the Pottery Workshop Showroom sound so reasonable and reassuring. He assures readers soothingly that he only wishes to extend the Fringe's 'open' policies and objectives to managing the downstairs showroom - implying it is somehow improperly managed - and then states the Fringe's expansion plans for the workshop would not conflict with the 'overall' goals of the Pottery Workshop.

The Pottery Workshop's management philosophy can hardly be called 'closed'. It has always encouraged local artists to exhibit. For 10 years the showroom has held to a simple vision of promoting the art of pottery and the spirit of handmade crafts. It has done this mainly through classes and exhibitions involving constant interaction with the public. The showroom has been an integral and essential part of the process of nurturing, developing and promoting the art of pottery, and has established itself as a respected gallery of local and international talent in the field of ceramics and handmade crafts.

Clearly, the 'expansion' envisaged by Mr Chia would undermine this simple yet worthy vision that staff and students at the workshop, led by the director - local potter Mak Yee-fun - have worked so hard over the years to bring to life. It seems to me that the workshop studio is doing just fine as it is.

PAUL MEREDITH Central

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