Janice Tchalenko originally studied pottery at Harrow School of Art and was noted for her thrown domestic ware. At the end of the 1970s she pioneered a changing attitude to decoration and began to apply bright colours in bold patterns to stoneware pottery. Traditionally stoneware has subdued colours. She became the leading designer for Dartington Pottery, one of the most successful studio potteries in Britain producing lively stoneware at affordable prices. Tchalenko has maintained an innovative approach to ceramics over many decades.