In 2000 my husband and I had the good fortune to go to England to visit my sister and her family. My sister lived in Stoke-On-Trent, smack dab in the heart of the famous potteries district of England. There, we visited the famous Wedgewood factory and marveled at the production facility and beautiful wares. The highlight of the tour though, was when we had an opportunity to sit at a wheel and make a take home pot. It was sheer joy! I created my first clay treasure; a Wedgewood blue pot that I have to this day. Somehow by the end of our tour we were able to transport our little creations safely home with firing instructions in hand. Little did I know, it would be many years before I could fire our little pots, and even longer before they would receive their final glaze firing.
Did I mention that I am a bit of an art gallery junkie? Heaven knows that I love a good art museum journey! Funny, as I write this, I realize that most of my bucket list adventures centre around art and famous museums. In saying this, I must pay homage to my late sister Janet Rotenberg, an internationally recognized artist. Some of my most cherished memories of my sister are those that involve the two of us tramping around art museums and galleries. The Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) is still my favourite, probably because it’s something we shared together. Over the years, we would spend hours exploring individual galleries at the DIA. Who can resist the Diego Rivera ‘Detroit Industry’ mural in Rivera Court? To this day, I never leave the DIA or the Art Gallery Of Ontario without seeing my favourite pieces. After all, we have a relationship together!
My exploration of ceramics through history is admittedly in its infancy. I feel like a babe in the woods, so to speak. The history and evolution of ceramic art and functional ceramic work is fascinating and so very humbling! One quick internet search of the history of pottery tells us that as one of the oldest human inventions, pottery dates back to 25,000 BC! Earthenware, stoneware, and porcelain, fired and decorated throughout history and created all over the world! It makes my head spin. As I work in my own studio trying to master the heat work of my kiln and the performance of glazes, I often think about ancient potters who had no electricity and only the earth and elements beneath them for raw materials. As I said, humbling.
In fact, my own first experience getting my hands into clay was humbling to say the least. Seven years ago, I decided to take an introductory wheel thrown pottery course at a community college.

The course ran twice a week so for six weeks, I spent six hours a week hunched over a wheel. Centering clay didn’t come easy for me. Wobble, wobble, wobble, push, cuss, push, cuss some more, then repeat. Then, there was the business of pulling walls.. Are you kidding me? My teachers made it look so easy! I mean, how hard could it be? I often wondered if I would ever really improve. I just hung in there and hoped that in time, one day, it would all happen. Well, like anything worth pursuing, time isn’t the only ingredient. But as time went on, I found myself counting the days until I could get into the studio. Every opportunity was a clean slate.
It would be countless hours and many courses later before I could confidently centre and pull a decent wall on my little pots. Sure, I created many happy accidents (thanks Bob Ross), but consistency was illusive. For me, consistency meant real progress and my work was in no way consistent.
Okay, so I was learning that interest and desire don’t equate to talent…hmmmm. This would require real patience and persistence. In the beginning, pottery served as the perfect distraction to an otherwise stressful, hectic professional life. Little did I know that I was about to embark on what would become a true passion. It’s funny how all of the steps in life, both positive and negative reveal your path, isn’t it?
While enrolled in classes, I was very fortunate to have talented, accomplished ceramic artists as instructors. I am so grateful for their patience and willingness to share their knowledge and skill. Now, every time I approach clay, I think about lessons shared, critiques offered, demonstrations of techniques, and lots of laughs. Exposure to different styles and practices has been a true gift. Potters are the best! They are truly a supportive bunch that are always ready to help, guide, and offer the best tips and tricks for repurposing odds and ends into amazing studio tools. Potters get an A+ for recycling!
So, I continue to navigate the vast world of ceramics. There is just so much to learn! In the beginning, every pot is cherished, every finished piece a work of art. In the beginning, the excitement of receiving treasures from the kiln is palpable and there is no understanding or appreciation of the heat work and changes that clay undergoes during firing, or the literally dozens of variables, some controllable, some not, that clay undergoes in the process. Now, the excitement of a kiln opening is, quite frankly, a little terrifying because I have no one to blame for poor results but myself….and the kiln gods of course.

Now, I don’t suffer as much from precious pot syndrome as I once did. Now, it’s easier to keep my best creations and smash the ones that don’t make the cut. People ask me what I do with pots that I don’t like. You should see their face when I tell them that I put them in a box and take a hammer to them (thanks Chris). It’s all part of the process of growing and evolving as a clay artist. There is great comfort in destroying pieces that don’t reflect your best effort, at least for me. I admit that I am likely my best and worst critic, but that’s ok. Now I understand that it takes seven years to learn to make a good pot and a lifetime to understand clay.

Music to throw by….
I love music…more than clay. Yup, I do. I have said in the past, that my hobby is creating playlists. Music inspires, occupies, soothes, uplifts, mellows, saddens, moves…. need I say more? Music and I go way back. In high school, I was lucky enough to have my own wheels, and more importantly, a space to listen to tunes! I had a friend who used to ask me why I constantly cruised up and down the dial (I’m that old….). Well, there had to be a better song just around the corner and I didn’t want to miss it. It made sense to me. With that being said, music is always on in my studio. It’s the first thing I do after the lights go on. I often want to share my playlists with the world but music is such a personal experience. Suffice to say that I never let tunes impact my energy in the wrong way. Some days it’s Drake, some days it's Bob Dylan, and some days it’s three cords and the truth. Like I said, it’s personal.