At 54, comedian Johnny Vegas has returned to his first love – ceramics – with a new exhibition at the British Ceramics Biennial in Stoke-on-Trent. The work, titled 'Just Be There', was created in collaboration with sculptor Emma Rodgers and features clay columns shaped by embraces from local residents. Vegas, whose real name is Michael Pennington, described seeing his pieces for the first time as 'a delight'.
Vegas originally studied ceramics at university but earned a third-class degree after insisting on making sculpture rather than technical pieces. His final work was accidentally thrown in a skip, leading him to pursue comedy as 'a big detour'. He now regrets not making time for art earlier, saying: 'I have so much time to make up for.'
His stand-up career in the 1990s was marked by a vulnerable but anarchic stage persona. Television roles later tamed him, and he began questioning his legacy. A chance meeting with Rodgers a few years ago led to an invitation to her studio, where he created a forlorn jester figure. 'Emma really made me go: you're an artist, your ideas are valid,' he said.
Vegas, diagnosed with ADHD in 2022, believes art education saved him as a child. He worries about the decline of art in schools. His joint exhibition with Rodgers at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool ended in June after more than a year, and a Channel 4 documentary followed his public art installation in St Helens, Merseyside.
