The World is Our Ball of Clay
Anita & Neil Lawrence met in art school back in the late 80’s and have been carving out a living together ever since. When Anita and Neil first graduated from art school they did various jobs on Vancouver Island in British Colombia to make ends meet. Eventually they bought a production studio, opened a restaurant, and lately a gallery studio.
Sarah Gromek is a high school jewelry & metalworking teacher. Sarah started ceramics eight years ago and now has her own small business. Sarah's studio is in her dining room and she sells her work online and through galleries.
Heather Elyse Head, a Northeast Georgia potter, blends traditional folk pottery with vibrant glazes and whimsical female faces. Mentored by esteemed regional potters, Heather's playful creations bring a modern twist to the craft. Her favorite part? Seeing her work makes people smile.
Eric Rempe first touched clay when he was in high school in Lancaster, PA. Eric has a BFA in ceramics from Penn State University and an MFA in ceramics from San Diego State University. Eric now lives in Princeton, NJ and he teaches ceramics at Princeton Day School.
NCECA is around the corner. NCECA is the largest art conference around and the event takes a massive amount of effort to make it happen. In today's episode we spend time with three amazing artists who helped to make this year's conference happen. Our guests, PJ Anderson, Antra Sinha, and Dara Hartman, have spent the last two years organizing, planning, and now executing in order to make this year's conference take place.
Shoji Satake, born in Kyoto, Japan and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, earned a BA in Studio Art and Government from The College of William and Mary (1996) and an MFA from Indiana University (2004). He is an associate professor of ceramics at Rhode Island School of Design. Shoji is also president of the NCECA Board of Directors. His work has been exhibited internationally. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, and fly fishing.
Emilie Bouvet-Boisclair is a Canadian born artist living in Illinois. Emilie's approach to pottery is formed by a past of learning to throw with a production potter, and being immersed in the community studios of Chicago. Emilie has been a painter in her youth through her mid 20's, holding a BA in Fine Art from the State University of New York, Geneseo. Emilie's passion in the arts lies in the process of discovery.
Born in Berlin, Karoline Menge moved to Italy with her partner in 2021. Studied literature and writing, started making pottery in 2015 when she was still at Uni, did small jobs to be able to continue making pottery. Karoline opened her own studio in 2018 and started working full time as a potter. Now Karoline works in her studio in a small village called Bogliasco at the Ligurian coast in Italy.
Clare Unger uses hand stitching as a means of mark making on clay slabs to create ceramic vessels for domestic use. In this way Clare pays homage to her female ancestors for whom sewing and stitching was an important means of creative self-expression in their role as home makers.
Francine Hampson and John Ried are the owners of Mudpuppy Studios, a production pottery studio producing functional ware. The studio wares are mainly thrown on the potter’s wheel with alterations and additions done by hand building. The clay is high fire stoneware fired in a 15cu. ft. gas kiln introducing salt/soda at 2350F. The effects are spectacular but unpredictable. The wares are sold locally on Salt Spring Island through the Waterfront Gallery or Artcraft/ Wintercraft shows.
Rita Vali creates joyful pottery that blends modern design with a mid-century vibe, inspired by her love of the intricate details she finds in nature. Rita makes her pottery with others in mind, as she believes people are connected through the use and display of thoughtfully hand-crafted objects. Rita's career as an artist is made full by teaching various classes where she shares my craft.