Duncan first became interested in clay and attended lessons at the Auckland Studio Potters as a teenager.
It wasn’t until he started studying ceramics at UNITEC in 1994 that he realised it was a lifelong occupation. In 1998 he graduated with a bachelor in 3D design, majoring in ceramics and since then has been working as a studio potter.

"I love to experiment with new clays and since moving to Rahu Road I have been using clay from my land – a rich, wild Coromandel clay. I respond to the different characteristics of the clays, seeking out qualities that I enjoy when throwing pots on the slow moving treadle wheel.
My firing methods of using a wood kiln and spraying a small quantity of soda ash solution in at high temperatures creates the variegated flashings and speckled glaze patterns – different on each piece. The combination of the clays and the firing process is why I get such rich surfaces on my functional work."