Show Notes – The Potters Cast

Madison Smith | Episode 1246

Ceramics has granted Madison Smith the unwavering power to transform a simple pile of dirt into an external force of her subconscious. Madison creates sculptures to connect to her disorderly childhood and construct wares to spread joy. Madison’s overall themes include the magic of childlike wonder and the undeniable reality of the life she has been forced to reckon with.

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

  TortugaTools.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

In dealing with trauma, how important is accepting the idea that healing isn’t necessarily linear, it’s sometimes all squiggled up like a bowl of spaghetti?

Yeah, I think, I live by that. I I have lived by that my whole life. And if you live that way, then you will have so much more patience and respect for yourself because you just, you have to be patient. And I feel as if, yeah, recovery isn’t a goal, it’s not something you’re gonna reach, it’s an everyday, it’s work, it’s work every single day.

Do you feel that it’s important to tell your story when you’re ready?

Yes, I definitely, I don’t like to talk about myself at all. It’s very uncomfortable for me. So I will opt out of it and choose not to. unless I can tell that the person in front of me, I look in their eyes and I can genuinely tell that they want to know what’s up. You know, that they’re not, they’re not looking at me like, oh, I want some sensational, like artist way. Like, what’s your inspiration? Like, that’s not what I want. Like, if you want to have a real conversation with me, I got to look in your eyes and trust you.

You mentioned the reason you left Humboldt and the reason you landed in Portland and the things that you loved here is relationships and community. How important is staying connected?

I didn’t realize how important staying connected was until I was. I think that it really has. I have a problem. I have very, I have deep, deep social anxiety. So whenever I do connect with a person, it feels like a win. Whenever I do go out of my comfort zone of being, of my social anxiety issues, it feels like I’m making progress, not only personally, but artistically as well.

How important is it just to be compassionate and patient with yourself?

It’s essential. I am a year and a half sober, a year and four months sober off of alcohol, and that has been a real test of being patient with myself. And that has truly impacted every single aspect of my life. and has taught me that the only way for me to move forward in a healthy, more in a healthier way of life is to just be patient at the process, whatever that looks like for you.

How much are you now living a life of appreciation for life itself?

Yeah, I think that sobriety has a lot to do with that. But also, it’s so wonderful having the opportunity to live the life how I want. Because I feel as if I know. that I didn’t get to do that for my entire childhood. So now it’s like, it’s almost, it’s such a powerful thing to be able to do whatever you want. I mean, I’m not, obviously I’m not doing whatever I want, but like having the power to construct your own life is priceless. It’s no matter how financially well off, like, that’s not what it’s about. It’s just being able to own your own life is just something that now that I have, I’ll never give up.

What got you really excited? Like, what are you champing at the bit to get back in the studio and make?

Honestly, my will to create comes in massive, massive waves. My will to create sculptures comes in huge waves, and I can’t force myself to do it. So sometimes it’ll be six months. Sometimes it’ll be two months, but one day, I don’t know when I’ll wake up and I’ll be like, this needs to happen right now. I need to make this right now. And I can’t. It just happens when it happens. So right now I’m preparing for some little, some little things that I’m doing in town, but I don’t really have anything. I don’t, the wave hasn’t come yet. I feel as if it is on the way, but it’s still about a couple miles out in the deep.

Book

In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

Contact

Instagram: @madisonmudworks

Jordan Gale | Episode 1245

Jordan Gale is a ceramic artist working at the intersection of sculptural and functional pottery. Jordan’s embrace of organic textures attempts to blur the line between utility and expressive form. Born and raised in Eastern Iowa, Jordan attended the University of Iowa, where he was introduced to pottery. Jordan currently lives and works in Portland, Oregon.

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

  TortugaTools.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

I’m really intrigued with your journey from photography into pottery and how that transition happened. How does photography impact your making?

It’s hard. There’s definitely been times where I’ve had to go on the road and essentially be gone for a week or two. And when I come back, there’s You know, all my pieces are dried out. I’m starting from scratch. But not not too much. I, I make my own work. I’m freelance self-employed, so I make my own schedule with photography and I work primarily on long term documentary projects. So it’s it’s all kind of up to me, which.

.

How about then, how does being a photographer influence you as when you’re making? Do you think through like how it would look in a frame?

Not at all. I actually think they are two completely different processes. And that is really what I, I really enjoy that and I didn’t really anticipate it coming back into pottery. photography is a very outward process you’re really sort of putting on this hat of like a used car salesman and you’re going out into the world and trying to convince the world you know of these ideas you’re you’re exploring this sort of notion of truth and and documenting um your experience with it and and it’s all kind of like up in the air and random whereas pottery is this for me at least, this meditative alone process with just me and the clay and, a lot of kind of thoughts back and forth, about the clay. It’s very, I don’t want to say isolating because I enjoy it. Meditative, I can’t use that word, but that is the best that I can. I think that’s the best word for it.

What kind of things can only be captured from or in ceramics compared to photography?

That’s a good question. I think Pottery is, you know, this relationship with the earth. It is this, like I’ve been saying, this tactile experience, something that comes from the ground and and we form into, you know, a cup, something that we need, something that gives us nourishment or provides us, you know, as a vessel for for beauty. And that’s that’s very special. I think photography, on the other hand, is a great way to exhibit our relationship with one another. And it’s a human to human experience. You know, it’s community. It it’s about the person in front of the camera just as much as actually it’s about the person behind the camera. And there’s a lot more sort of like to that, whereas For me, again, I’m repeating myself at this point, you know, pottery is that intimate one-on-one experience with the vessel and yourself.

Has pottery thus far at all influenced photography?

I don’t have an answer for you on that one. And I just don’t think that I’ve thought about it. I think that I have, yeah, tried to maintain the two very separately because they both give me something that I need in a roundabout different way. There probably is, though, some influence. And you know what, we’re going to get off this call and I’m going to go on an assignment and notice it instantly. Or, you know, I’m gonna be going and photographing like down the block someday and I’ll be like, shoot, I have the best answer for that. Okay.

You mentioned during our conversation earlier, before we got into the mud meets about round that one of the things you were thinking about is that you wanted a different stream of income. How does selling your photography versus selling your pottery, how does that differ?

I don’t know if it differs too much, primarily because when I got into selling my pottery, it was with the background and experiences I’ve had with photography. You know, this these years that I spent simply trying to be a working photographer, it didn’t really matter what I was shooting or, you know, or if it said anything about me that then eventually changed. And now, you know, it has to be something that really is representation of myself and my process and my interests. And so when I thought about selling my work with clay it was it was it had to be under those same stipulations you know it had to be on my terms and and the way I wanted to do it um with that being said it it’s strange you know I I’m still new to it and that’s that show that we met like I said was the third sale that I’ve ever done and so I I don’t want to act like I know what I’m doing or or or know what to expect from all this, I’m sure a year from now, I might have a different answer for you or a different philosophy on it, but I want it to very much feel cohesive and, you know, like you are getting something that is me. And I think if you come to anything, with honesty and with that individualistic intent, people will respond positively. I think if you come into any artistic endeavor solely as a monetary means, it’s going to feel maybe a little soulless, and that’ll show.

You mentioned earlier in the podcast that you were into your third sale. Without giving us numbers, how’d you do?

I did good. I went in blind. I’m just happy to be here. It’s always it’s always crazy when someone wants to buy something from you. Like, I feel giddy and sort of like, not embarrassed, but just seeing like, you know, when I get hired for photo jobs, it’s cool. It just feels kind of affirming, like, all right, great. You know, like, I’m out there. I get to do this thing, you know, like my this matters. It’s kind of the solidification, but when someone buys a cup from me, it’s like, I don’t know. It’s such a shock. I hope I never get over it because I’m just consistently flattered.

Book

White Noise by Don DeLillo

Contact

Instagram: @mayormcrib

Yoon Hee Kim | Episode 1244

Yoon Hee Kim is a Korean ceramic artist and educator based in the United States. Through Yoon Lab Ceramics, Yoon creates contemporary Moon Jars inspired by Korean heritage and nature. Yoon teaches wheel throwing internationally and online, helping potters create taller, stronger forms while sharing the mindfulness found through making.

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

What is it about a moon jar that keeps pulling you back to want to make more?

For me, moon jars is a way to reconnect with my Korean heritage and learn about my ancestors and take pride in the traditions they left behind.

So there are round pots in the world. At what point does a round pot stop just being a round pot and become a moon jar? What makes a moon jar a moon jar?

So moon jars are traditionally made in two separate half-spheres joined together at the center, and the joining process creates a subtle asymmetries, and those imperfections are considered beauty of moon jar.

So imperfections are okay for a moon jar? That’s part of the characteristic of the actual form? Is that accurate to say then?

Yes.

Okay. What’s something that you would think most people who admire moon jars misunderstand about a moon jar?

Just like you said before, that a circular form with the opening rim is a moon jar.

Does it always have to be thrown in two pieces?

Not really, but traditionally, moon jars are considered a moon jar if there are about over 40 to 50 centimeters in height and width. which is about 16 to 20 inches. And because it’s so tall, it was difficult in the Joseon dynasty, which is late 17th to mid 18th century when it was first made. It was difficult for potters to make in one piece.

Do you follow the traditional method and always join 2 separate pieces together?

If I’m making large moon jars, yes.

Have you ever, have you ever had a moon jar come apart?

I never had a moon jar that came upon me.

What has the moon jar taught you that no other form has been able to teach?

It taught me to learn about my ancestors and have the pride in my traditions they left behind.

Book

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami,

Contact

yoonlabceramics.com

Instagram: @yoonlab

Jordan Munro | Episode 1243

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

  TortugaTools.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

What makes a good design for one of your pieces?

Yeah, I definitely think it’s a combo. You need to be able to be draw and do design with design. For me, it’s definitely it has to be usable. I have to be able to use it in every scenario. I have to put it in a microwave, put it in a dishwasher. go and do my goat chores and it needs to be used. So that goes into my design.

Do you feel like design is something that you notice or something you don’t notice?

I feel like good design is something you don’t notice. I feel like it’s something in your hand and you just, you know it feels right and that’s why you grab that mug every time.

Because your work is definitely functional, do you feel like the function is more important than a design or the function has to fit into the design?

The function has to fit into the design. And I feel like that’s how I come up with a lot of my designs is I think of what I would want something for and that’s what I make it for.

Have you ever made something that was technically correct, but still felt like it was a bit dead or a bit flat?

All the time.

What’s the difference between something that feels alive and when it feels dead?

I feel like you just have to make so many iterations of something and be able to use each one in order to know that. Because I feel like when you draw it on a piece of paper or you just make one of something, you don’t get that whole experience.

You have “decorations” on your pieces, but is decoration the same as design?

I don’t, that’s a hard question. No, but yes, I guess it depends on the potter or the maker. I feel like it would be very subjective on whether or not the decoration, because you could have what I have without the images. But I feel like it increases what I think each piece is worth in my mind and how I appreciate a piece if I add a design.

You don’t tend to clutter your work like a collage with a lot of stuff going on and a lot of moving parts. Why is subtlety or a simple look such a strong design?

I definitely find with screen printing, I’ve moved backwards with adding too many details. But it’s just that you you only learn from putting too much on a pot. And once you’ve put too much, you decide that that’s not what works and then you scale back. But I feel like you have to hit that point in order to find that that is too much.

Is it harder to design something beautiful or design something people want to live with every day?

I feel like it’s harder to design something people want to live with every day because I feel like you can make something beautiful and people will just look at it. But if somebody wants to use it every day, I feel like you have a competition with the 50 other mugs in their cupboard and just being beautiful sometimes isn’t enough. It has to be functional and it has to be beautiful.

Book

Developing Glazes by Greg Daly

The Kiln Book by Frederick L. Olsen

Contact

highcountryart.me

Instagram: @highcountryceramics

Michelle Grimm | Episode 1241

Michelle Grimm approaches clay with curiosity, experimentation, and patience. Shaping by hand, Michelle explores diverse glazing and firing techniques, often incorporating organic materials and research. Embracing unpredictability, Michelle’s work balances control and surrender. The resulting vessels—both functional and sculptural—are original forms that reflect a connection to nature, history, and the elemental forces of making.

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

  TortugaTools.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

How many pieces would you feel you could actually do without being overwhelmed within a two-month period?

That’s a great question. I think it depends on what those pieces are. On the wheel, in a two-month period, I would say a hundred. It really depends on the piece. Yeah, it depends on what I’m making.

How important was that batching in the making process?

Very important. Having a schedule, I think, is what kept me on track. Knowing Knowing each step of the way and how long that would take and you have to factor in the drying time too So, you know, you can you could make all let’s say a hundred pieces at once But then you’ve got to make sure that they’re right for trimming for any other finishing work that you might need to apply So that that batching is is very important

How important is it to keep the simple the form simple but yet the decorations elegant enough to be able to meet the demands of being production, but also high aesthetic?

I think that depends on the… to the expectations of the project that you’re meant to deliver. For example, the plates that I the little catchalls that I made, those vessels, they were incredibly simple. The only thing that I think was decorative about them was the glaze that I made for the client. So with something of that scale, I think if you can streamline and make things as simple as possible and if that works for the client, that’s that’s the other thing. these pieces were incredibly simple to make. So that really cut down on a lot of the guesswork and a lot, I was able to know how long I needed for each piece.

Was there any part of the process that you could do that could seed up the process such as like candling your work or whatever the shortcut would be?

100% you could candle, candle. I didn’t have a kiln for the first part of it, so I did have to transport all 500 pieces to another potter to fire in their kiln. So that was just, I did add a couple days for that in my process. But that’s another reason why I chose to make everything with, you know, using a template as opposed to on the wheel, because that was my way of kind of What’s the word? Just making more of a production line so that I could also ask for help.

How much did you allow the “collaborative” input from the request from the customer?

For this project, the client already knew my way of working and I had, when I made the dinnerware, the four-piece dinnerware set for that long table dinner, they were aware of what I was working on and they came back to me and said, we want that. So that actually made it quite easy that they already kind of… were okay. They already knew what they wanted and they knew that I could give them what they wanted. They weren’t asking me to do anything out of my kind of wheelhouse or something that wasn’t authentic to me. So that really helped, I think, yeah.

As a handmade potter, how okay was it to have variations between pieces?

For my philosophy and the way that I work, where I strive to make every piece one of a kind, I was very okay with each piece being subtly different. And I wanted that because I wanted people to really know that they could see the mark of the maker, so to speak. I wanted them to understand that these are made by a real person, not in a factory. And that’s also something I value in the work that I make. And the client understood that and accepted that. And they knew that every piece was going to have a little variation of the glaze, there might be a fingerprint here or there that really gives it that kind of one-of-a-kind bespoke quality. So I’m okay with that.

Book

Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers by Leonard Koren

Contact

michellegrimmceramics.com

Instagram: @the_mgrimm

Jacqueline Wei | Episode 1240

Jacqueline Wei is a Los Angeles–based architect and part time ceramicist. Jacqueline established Wei.ware in 2018 as an extension of her architectural voice. Influenced by brutalism, Jacqueline’s ceramic work explores structure and sensory experience through intentional studies of form, scale, and texture, translating architectural ideas into tactile objects.

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

  TortugaTools.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

With brutalism as your interpretation and taking that architectural form and bringing it to ceramics, is there room for delicacy, for making it delicate?

Yeah, definitely possible. But I think that would be my, I think that would be like a site series, not as my regular collection, because Briolas is, something thick, thick edges or something a little bit more substantial. And delicate items, definitely, I would really like to explore more of the softer side of my design ability. Yeah, I can see that. Societies.

Does the firing method affect the brutalist feel like wood or soda versus electric?

Oh, I definitely I don’t have enough knowledge with soda firing or wood firing. But I would see that the, you know, the fire marks or You know, I think that could work well with the idea earlier I was saying with the water stain on the building. And then, yeah, so then if I play with fire, wood firing, maybe I could play with watermarks or any like debris marks and then that could make it even more brutal look. Definitely.

Even the word brutal, It’s very imposing. Is there room in your brutalist ceramic approach for the feeling of warmth and the human touch?

So I definitely see that because I, all these objects, they’re all meant to be touched. And you could see that I like to make teapots, I like to make handles. They’re all very specific design because I would like the users, I would like to attract people to actually touch it and interact with the handles, interact with a spout and something. Yeah, it’s definitely very intentional that is inviting people to touch.

Do you feel like the style could still lend itself to a timelessness?

I don’t think so, even though it will, yeah, I think because brutalism is been 80 years now since it started. I would think that I think realism is timeless. That I think forms, I think if you’re expressing forms and then I’m not chasing after new materials and then I have this, it’s just human center in mind, I think, I don’t think it’s timeless.

You even mentioned something about there needs to be a strong boldness to the form and the structure. Does that mean that the piece would ultimately be heavy?

Not quite. I think the weight is more visual and I think I still want comfort. for the user. So I don’t want anything that’s like way too heavy that I cannot lift a mug. But I think visual weight is important. And but then the actual weight is has to be more ergonomic

Book

Patented by Thomas Rinaldi

Contact

Instagram: @wei.ware

Karyn Gabriel | Episode 1239

Karyn Gabriel is a San Francisco Bay Area artist with a BFA from the University of Michigan and post-baccalaureate studies in ceramics at Oregon College of Art and Craft. Grounded in pattern as a visual language, Karyn’s sculptures are inspired by structural references from architecture to textile construction. Pared down, elemental forms expose a slightly brutal beauty while emphasizing the interplay between surface and structure.

Photographs by John Janca

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

  TortugaTools.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

Do you have something like that in your studio that it’s a “mistake” that you find yourself repeating from time to time.

I think I find myself, sometimes I back myself into a corner by making too complicated of a detail that I can’t get my fingers in like to push something together. Things like that.

What are you doing right now that’s got you super excited that you’re looking forward to get back in the studio to chase down?

I am just about to start a new testing, some new testing in terms of some constructions. created back in January when I was on a residency. So I’m going to take some of those and kind of make them larger.

Do you have things in the studio that you tend to drag your feet on? Like for me, I tend to postpone glazing.

Well, you notice I don’t use any glazes. So I definitely postpone, I think surfacing, My work is not about the actual surface. It’s more about the integral construction. So it works that I don’t do a lot of surface work. I use oxide sometimes and that’s sufficient. But a part of my work is all about the fact that I don’t have to use glazes. It’s funny you mentioned that because I don’t have an affinity to surface treatments in those ways. So I do avoid that.

Your work is so quiet and subdued. Have you ever, have you ever tried to step out of that box and done loud work, bright work?

Well, the idea of starting to use some color has been sitting with me for the last six, seven months. So I think I am going to be using color in the future. I. feel like it will probably be color within the wheelhouse what I’m comfortable with, but the fact it might not be an earth tone would be pushing me out of my current boundaries. So integral color into the clay body. It’s really important for me that it’s integral as opposed to surface treatment. That just goes back to a philosophical way that I like to approach. almost anything. I saw it in my architecture world. I see it here. I just really feel like it’s not decorate, you know, like there’s this idea of decoration on top of something. And I… not for other people’s work at all, but for my work, I need it to feel more integral. So maybe there’s a way I do that as I develop it that it’s not necessarily like intricately colored clay or something to that nature, but I need to explore. So I see that coming. I feel it coming, I should say.

Your work that have necessarily an overt message or idea behind it, but what do you as an artist hope someone will feel when they interact with your work?

I really want people to be curious and I want people to quiet themselves and kind of wonder. And so I want them to feel present with the work. And I think that there is a very subtle, my work is so abstract, but there is a subtle, subtle conceptual idea behind it, which is, you know, relating to how I see what I see outside in the world. And that is that everything has an underlying structure to it, but we don’t really see that because it’s buried on like, just like our body, our skin is covering the skeletal aspect of our bodies. The way in the desert, like a cactus has this like, incredible thorny, thorny skin. But when you take that off, there’s like an amazing skeletal structure filled with holes that allows it to have to hold the water. We don’t see that quiet. So like my work is about pulling back the surface to express that underlying rawness of the world of an object, of a building, whatever the case. So, but that’s not where, that’s like, for me, that is my intent. But people can bring to it what they want to the work. And I think it’s an open-ended, when something is about an abstraction, it allows other people to bring their own interpretation. And I feel that completely fine.

What makes you decide if a piece is worth leaving your studio?

It’s kind of a gut thing. Because I actually have a number of pieces now that are not leaving the studio. So it just doesn’t, there’s something that doesn’t resonate. It’s not feeling, it’s not pushing. It’s not, it’s not, I’m not curious about it. just is, it just kind of doesn’t resonate. doesn’t have a strong point of view. That makes sense. It feels a little one note. It’s that’s it’s a hard it’s really a hard it’s a hard thing to put into words because I really just feel like all the work that I put out there is is an expression of me. So I need to feel really, really good about what goes out in the world because I, you know, for better or worse, you’re going to think something about who I am by the work that I choose to put out in the world. And so I really feel like something has to sing. And if it doesn’t sing, then I don’t feel like I hit the mark.

Book

Ninth Street Women by Mary Gabriel

Contact

karyngabriel.com

Instagram: @kgabrielstudio

Bethany Yorgason | Episode 1238

Bethany Yorgason is a ceramic and resin artist inspired by the natural world. With over a decade of experience in pottery and about 5 years with resin, Beth found it so profoundly interesting and amazing to preserve nature through incorporating real flowers, insects, and organic textures into her work. Beth loves creating pieces that are slightly unsettling, but in a way that you can’t help but see the beauty in it —each one completely unique.

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

  TortugaTools.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

Is there a particular time of day that you feel more creative? Are you a morning person, night person, that kind of thing?

That’s very interesting because I love waking up early, but I feel like my creativity really starts between like 3 P.m. and 7 P.m. I love working in the afternoon, evening.

Is there a specific environment or setting that you need to be able to get the juices going?

Yes. It’s called a clean space, which is really hard as an artist. So anytime I clean up the space, I feel way more creative walking into it. An hour or a day later, I’m just ready to create.

And when you look at yourself, would you use the word creative to describe yourself?

Yes, like I am creative, like as an adjective, yes. I am constantly coming up with ideas of what to make next. And I run into this issue where I actually have way too many ideas that I can never do all of them, but I can only execute one. So it’s really that process of narrowing it down to like what I actually can do that’s really difficult. And yeah, so I definitely think I’m creative and The hard part is actually just deciding what to do.

Do you ever face creative blocks or get stuck?

The only way I get stuck is by not wanting to do something. So that happens with resin A lot. I have to wear a mask. It’s toxic. I have this setup. It’s a lot harder to get started. Once I get started, no issues. It’s the getting started that’s hardest for me, but I wouldn’t say it’s a creativity barrier. I would say it’s like an action barrier.

How does working with your hands kind of different? Does it make you different from people who work with their brains?

I don’t know. I can do, I really can do both. And I’ve seen myself in a lot of different career paths. Math was always probably my favorite subject in school, besides pottery, ceramics. So I kind of tap into both. I don’t know what’s, I can, yeah, how I would say it is I think there’s a way to tap into both in different settings and situations and times of your life. And the last couple of years, I’ve been really able to tap into my creative side. But before that, like no one at my work, I was working a corporate job, would have guessed that I did pottery or resin or pinning spiders because I was very organized, structured, and just detail-oriented. So I have very different sides to me.

When you’re not in the studio making or pouring resin, what’s one of your favorite activities to do?

Those are my main activities. I do love hiking and being outside. I usually say hiking and pottery are basically my life. Resin has become a second to pottery. But if it’s not those two things, then just a different craft. I’m learning how to knit right now on my free time.

Book

The Art of Spending Money by Morgan Housel

Contact

gertybeth.myshopify.com

Instagram: @the_gertybeth

Michelle Rmadan | Episode 1237

Michelle “Meesh” Ramadan is a potter chasing joy, color, and expressive play in clay. After recently moving from her home studio in Melrose, MA to Montpellier, France, Michelle is navigating the adventure of rebuilding her ceramics practice and letting curiosity lead the way. Michelle loves teaching, throwing big bowls, tiny vases, and sculpting whimsical pinch-pot sculptures.

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

  TortugaTools.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

You are starting over from scratch. Not that you are like going back to being a newbie, but you are definitely starting over from scratch. As you’re starting to over now as a potter, how are you going about learning the local ceramic culture?

So one of the first things that I’ve been doing is meeting the potters in the city. I will, a lot of them have their own storefronts, and I will pop in, say hello, and just ask a whole lot of questions.

Do you think that you’re gonna have to change your style of ceramics to be able to meet the cultural market or the local market?

Oh, that’s a good question. I think that I’m going to have to adapt to the clay and the glazes that I’m going to be using. I’ve been doing a lot of experiments to see how close I can get to my preferred style. I do think that there is a lot of appeal for my style. I’ve been getting some compliments so far, so I’m hoping I’ll find my audience.

When you do find a studio where it’s going to be your own place, have you decided what kind of studio you’re going to make? Is it going to be production, a teaching studio? Is it going to be a hybrid type of a place? What are you thinking?

The vision for the studio is that it’s going to be a, what they call here an atelier boutique, which is a teaching studio and a working studio, and also a boutique where you can purchase items. And it’s going to be a hybrid in the sense that it’s going to have both flameworking and pottery.

Is finding the right space, is that a hard task? 

It is exceptionally difficult to find a place to rent a studio in France. The real estate market is so slow. They very rarely get back to you. And because of this pay to enter fee that you have to pay the tenant in order to be able to get a lease. The cost of entry is pretty high too. Anything around 40K just to be able to rent a place.

How about equipment? Is equipment going to be a difficult thing to come by?

Initially, I’m going to be sharing equipment and renting equipment from a potter friend of mine. And I just went shopping for a pottery wheel today, secondhand. And I’m hoping as much as possible to get things secondhand at first so that I can save up for other items later on.

When you had your business in the United States, there’s a very specific set of rules and regulations we have to go by. What’s one thing that is completely different in France for running a business that’s definitely foreign to the United States?

So one of the things that I’ve been learning to navigate is what actual business structure to register with in France. There are different kinds of levels and they have different impacts on your business. And I’ve been working with the, what’s called the Chambre de Metie d’Artisana. So it is an organization in the city that helps artisans open their business, run their businesses to try to find what business structure is most suitable for me. And because the costs of ceramics are so high, equipment, et cetera, I’m going to have to pick a structure that actually accounts for my expenses, because there are some structures that don’t account for expenses, so you pay taxes. without taking, not on your profits, but on everything. And I wanted to make sure that I could actually have a business that functioned, that I would have some money at the end of the year. So that’s been a learning curve for sure, is figuring out how to navigate the business side of things in a new country.

How does knowing your taxing structure impact your pricing strategy?

Okay. Well, one of the things that I’ve been doing, part of my research and meeting with potters, and I have a notebook and I just have questions and answers, questions and answers, is really doing my own market research and identifying what are other artists doing here? What is the market like in France? And pricing accordingly. So really, that’s been the biggest that’s the piece that’s going to drive my pricing. I really have to think about what are people paying for a mug, for example. I know that in the States, I could sell my mugs for 60, sometimes 70. And a lot of the artists here tell me that that’s just too high and that’s not going to work in this particular market. So I have to adjust for that. And I think I’m going to have to do a lot of experiments that way.

Contact

meeshpottery.com

Instagram: @meeshpottery

Blog: meeshpottery.com/blog

Shelby Trahan | Episode 1236

Shelby Trahan is the owner of Jacques’ Pottery Shop in her hometown of Welsh, Louisiana. Shelby graduated from McNeese State University in 2018 with a Bachelor’s in Art and opened her studio the following July. Shelby creates mostly functional dinnerware pieces. Shelby is passionate about using her studio to bring clay to others.

Clay Call

Lets hear from YOU! Click HERE.

SPONSORS

  You can help support the show!

GRPotteryForms.com

  TortugaTools.com

BuschKraft.shop

Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com

For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com

When you were making the decision to develop the studio, you had one idea where you’re going to be a maker and a seller. Then you developed into being a teacher-focused studio. How important is it for a person to be willing to pivot to be able to keep their business thriving?

Hugely important. Hugely important. I, like you said, starting the business, I really wanted to be able to just make and sell my work and that be the basis of my business. But in a small town, making things work, pivoting into the direction of teaching. And now I love it. I love that I’m able to bring it to the community and bring things for kids and adults to do here in town. So that pivot was very, very important in my business and just in the scheme of bringing clay to the area.

It sounds like one of the approaches you’re employing is that you’re keeping open multiple streams of revenue for yourself, which to me feels like that would be critical in a small town. So you’ve got your classes, you’ve got your one-off classes, workshops, and even some members. So how do you know when to open a new stream of revenue for your business?

A lot of the different ideas that I’ve employed have come from times of burnout or times where I’ve hit a wall in terms of what I’m doing and where I want to go with the business. Sometimes teaching classes in the beginning got very repetitive. As I mentioned earlier, I was just teaching just for fun classes over and over and over… And only teaching cylinders and bowls for two years! It kind of started to wear on me a little bit. And so that’s when I started branching out and turning and offering different types of classes from that period of do-I-want-to-continue-only-doing-cups-and-balls-for-the-rest-of-ever, or do I want to change things up? I kind of hit some burnout and had to figure out how to overcome that. And so that’s when I start to attack new areas and bring new things in and create new offerings.

One of the secrets to a community studio is really building community within the community . It feels like relationships are probably more important than advertising. Not that advertising isn’t important, but I feel like that’s probably really important. Is that the case for you?

Absolutely. Most of my studio members now started as students of mine here in the studio. So because we’re working in a pretty small space and we’re a small community to begin with, we have to make sure that everyone fits really well. We all have a good working relationship. And I’ve never actually advertised any membership openings specifically because I’ve always had students to fill those roles. I’ve always had a student say, hey, I would really like to do this more. I’d like to be able to branch out in my work and things like that. So all of our studio members, we’ve already had relationships, be it student and mentor or friends through ceramics or whatever. And then we’ve rotated that into becoming studio members or doing our open studio program. things like that. When you community and the relationships are hugely important.

When you start looking at pricing strategy, in a bigger city your classes will tend to be at a certain price point. Does your pricing strategy have to be a little bit more accessible in a small town?

Yes. Yes, I try to look at pricing from other local areas. And local for me is, you know, our closest ceramic studio to where I’m at is about 35 miles away and then 45 miles in the opposite direction. So I try to make sure that I’m staying in a comparable price point to what those around me are doing. but I never compare my pricing to large cities because then I just start to feel kind of bad. Yeah, I cannot price here in my small community the way that other studios are able to price, and I’m okay with that. I’m okay with keeping it accessible because that means that I’m able to reach more people.

Tthere’s a financial reality to running a studio. How long did it take for your finances to stabilize before you felt like, we are making it?

Honestly, that depends on the month. We are just like any small business or any self-employed person, there are always highs and lows. I’d say after the first two years, I felt comfortable continuing to grow my business. But there were definitely periods after that, that were tricky. The reality of owning a small business anywhere, you know, you’re you’re not going to be paying yourself as much as you could be making other places. And that’s okay. But in a small community, especially, Uh, it, it tends to be a bit trickier. Um, January, February is always our slow season. So I’m always preparing for this time of year after Christmas where everyone has kind of spent their, their Christmas funds. Um, so we save up and then we use that to get through our slower times. But yeah, it’s, it’s always up and down. Um, But the first couple of years is when I finally started to feel, after the first two years, is where I finally started to feel secure to say, yes, I’m going to continue doing this, despite the highs and lows.

You’re a teacher and you’re a maker, What’s your favorite form to make that you don’t teach your students?

My favorite things to make that I don’t teach are the body work that I’m developing at this particular moment. And I say that because I pretty much end up teaching every single thing that I do. So right now I have not started teaching it yet, but right now I’m working on a body of work that does not have a title yet, but I will get there eventually. Very botanical leaning. I’m doing some vases that they’re multi-part vessels. And then I do cutouts to let some light shine from the interior of the piece out. And the general inspiration for those is light coming through branches. So there’s some three-dimensional aspects on the outside and then some cutouts. And so I’m exploring those right now, still in the exploration stage. And those are definitely my most favorite things that I’m working on right now.

Book

Remarkable Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

Contact

jacques-pottery-shop.square.site

Instagram: @jacques_pottery_shop