Reed Fair, a native of Cedar Rapids, IA, cultivated his artistic talents at Coe College, specializing in ceramics and photography. Following his college years he has had a successful career as a custom framer. Reed felt a compelling desire for a more unbridled and expressive creative outlet. Driven by this passion, he dedicated himself to establishing a home ceramic studio.

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In 2017, Reed realized his dream, creating his inaugural collection that marked his foray into the world of sculptural ceramics. His sculptural work primarily involves raku-fired ceramics, showcasing a distinctive blend of modern aesthetics and rustic charm.

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One notable collection features wall-hung cubes, each imbued with a unique texture crafted from everyday objects such as drill bits, forks, and tent stakes. The result is a captivating interplay of form and texture, making each cube a singular work of art. Another striking collection draws inspiration from the aspen tree, offering a modern reinterpretation characterized by simplified lines and textures. The use of a white crackle glaze adds a luminous quality,  allowing the grove to shine.

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Both collections offer collectors the opportunity to curate their own unique display – whether choosing a single piece or assembling a full wall of Reed's distinctive and evocative ceramic works. Reed Fair's journey from custom framing to the realm of ceramics reflects not only a commitment to excellence but also a passionate pursuit of artistic freedom and creativity.

My journey in clay began in 1999 when I attended a throwing class at a local clay center in Fort Collins, CO. I immediately fell in love with the feel of wet clay between my fingers and knew I had found my true creative outlet.

 My continued education in ceramics has been self-directed; taking various classes and workshops at art centers, community colleges & a local potter’s guild.

There are many avenues that I travel within the world of clay, for it feeds my hunger for change in my life. I usually work within a series, incorporating what is inspiring me at the moment.

All of my work begins on the potter’s wheel with a strong emphasis on silhouette and form. My deepest passion lies in sculpting and carving into the clay, to create greater depth and drama in the surface with different directions in scale and texture. Nature is a strong influence for me and you will often find my work embellished with different elements of it such as beads, feathers and stone. 

I focus on two different firing techniques, oxidation and Raku. My love for Raku firing is based on anticipation and instant gratification. Because of the process and chemicals used, I am never sure of the result of the piece being fired.

Working with clay has been a very fulfilling journey for me. As I continue this journey, I always look forward to the new discoveries that await me.

In creating ceramic artwork I strive to reveal relationships through the stacking and grouping of vessels. How we as people interface and interact with one another as well as build upon and grow from our interactions are ideas that inform my work. It is my goal that the individual ceramic pieces generate a more compelling presence when joined with other pieces creating a greater overall feeling of cohesiveness and unification.

The potter's wheel is a tool that I use to create forms that are then altered through removing areas of clay to enhance movement and flowing lines. I fire the work in an oxidation atmosphere resulting in bright clean colors that emphasize the forms and articulate areas of surface treatment.

Macy is well-known for his decorative and functional ceramics as well as his untiring support for the visual arts community for more than three decades.  He has worked as a production potter for nearly 4- years.  His work may be found in private and corporation collections throughout the Southwest.  Macy studied at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale; Ecole National D’Art Decortif, Limoges, France; and Artist Industry Workshop, Kohler Industries.

The vibrant ceramics of Cristine Boyd make everyday moments of dining, entertaining and gift giving memorable and special, as her hand crafted ceramics are conversational pieces indeed.
 

As the founder of All Clay, Cristine has been designing, making and teaching ceramics since 1989. Her work represents her interest in pattern and rhythm while her stylized and abstracted expression of human and animal form portray playful and strong emotion.
 

Her work is formed from porcelain in hand-made bisque press molds and decorated with the ancient sgraffiato technique that is the image on the surface is hand carved through a thin layer of colored clay, in combination with slip trailing, printing and inlay. 

I have loved playing in mud and mixing stuff since I was a child. It is something that caught my attention and interest early on. Throwing on the wheel is my favorite thing to do. I never tire of watching a lump of brown dirt/clay transform before my very eyes and become a useful object such as a pottery mug, vase, or bowl.

It is this passion for creating usable objects from clay that led me to work as a full-time potter for Van Briggle Art Pottery. However, in 1999 they had to reduce production, which led me to decide to start my very own line of functional pottery. Clay By Nature Pottery is a company that represents my love for creating usable art through pottery. I create handmade, hand painted pottery which are inspired by beautiful creatures and scenery found in nature. 

I graduated from CSU Pueblo in 2011 and have a Bachelor of Fine Art degree which has helped me increase the quality and uniqueness of my designs. I am a member of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, a member of The Arts Student League of Denver, and the Commonwealth Artist Co-Op.

Lori Hannan is a native of rural Pennsylvania.  She received her BFA in ceramics, and minor in weaving from the University of Texas at Austin.  A Couple years later, she moved to Germany, where she taught pottery to American soldiers and their families in Mainz.  She was promoted to arts and crafts director, which included overseeing various art programs for the soldiers.  Lori also had the opportunity to teach art at an International Youth Camp in Norway.  This really sparked an interest in teaching youth, and upon her return to the United States, she received her teaching credential from the San Francisco State University.  She taught art and ceramics to high school students for five years in the Bay Area.  After the birth of her children, she and her husband moved to Southern Colorado and Red Cloud Pottery was born, showing her work in several gift shops and galleries.  Lori continues to grow in the process of producing fine pottery that celebrates her connection and love for all that is born of the earth.  Her home and studio are nestled up to mountains, with a grand view of the plains.  All this nature continues to inspire her works with clay, which is evident in the contrast of raw clay and shiny glazes.

I have always been one of those people that has to make things. I remember when I was a kid making hot pan holders, macaroni pictures, and flowers with fabric and pipe cleaners. This creative energy has transferred to pottery. I love the immediacy of clay, the physical nature of the work, and the mind-body connection. I can go into the studio with a new idea and try it out right way. Whether it is a new technique, a glaze experiment, or a twist on something I’ve already done, I can get creative and see results soon. The versatility of clay lets me express my various interests. I always have several themes running at any given time in my art. They are usually related my interests like gardening, biking, or animals.  I prefer to work in small series or batches, exploring the theme, then returning to it later when inspiration has struck again. This keeps my work fresh and unique.

Vicky Hansen makes wood-fired pottery, sculptural, and functional work at her adobe studio in rural Colorado.  She is Professor of Ceramics at CSU-Pueblo.

She and her husband, Richard Hansen, a stone sculptor, moved to Colorado as college graduates, bought land and built their adobe home and studio where they are "digging deep for spring water that is living in place."

Elizabeth James, assistant professor, and ceramic studio area head brings a westerner’s perspective to Minnesota.  She received her BFA from Boise State University and MFA from Kansas State University studying under the direction of Yoshiro Ikeda.  She concluded her graduate degree with a teaching residency at Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, Scotland.  Liz’s interests include functional and non-functional ceramic forms that represent a confluence of observations of human behavior, life cycles, and forces of nature.  Her work has been in galleries and exhibitions globally and is included in both public and private collections.

My work attempts to convey the importance of touch and conveys the process of pottery making and the experiential properties of working in the studio. An- other passion of mine is marine life, so including textures and colors that refer to the coral reef is a natural fit for my work.
 

Conveying the tactile quality of working with clay while also referring to the pace of studio work is important to my practice. I attempt to describe the qualities of the clay at all stages of making so that anybody can feel a connection to the process when holding and using the pottery. One way I do this is to leave throwing rings on the insides of my pots while taking care to compress the exterior with a metal rib. I also carefully craft the foot rim while throwing, or keep the piece wet while trimming, which enables me to move the clay farther, showing the plasticity and adding some playful individuality to each piece. When the clay is leather hard, I use a variety of tools to plan out where I’ll put surface decorations. I further the personal narrative of my work by using one of my daughter’s sewing tools to draw lines on the surface.
 

 I was born in Lacrosse Wisconsin in 1972. Due to my father’s job, we lived all over the country. Finally, we landed in Colorado. I graduated from the University of Northern Colorado with a BA in ceramics and sculpture. After that, I moved to Kansas and received my MFA in ceramics from KSU in Manhattan Kansas. Upon graduation, I had the opportunity to work for another potter for a few years before starting my own business and was able to move back to Colorado. Since then, I have been active in the artist community in northern Colorado and teaching both high school and at UNC in Greeley.

Organic elegance, which nature appears to achieve so effortlessly, is the quality I find compelling and want my work to reflect.  The lines, forms, and textures are the elements that inspire me.  My work is primarily functional and inspired by nature and my surroundings.  I believe the pottery we use every day should reflect the beauty of our world, as well as functioning properly as purpose dictates.  A well-made piece of pottery creates an intimacy for the person who lives with and uses the piece.

I make pottery because it reminds us of our humanity, of who we are, and how we are connected. I believe my pots are like a form of writing, a communication in a far more complex three-dimensional way that speaks more directly to all of our senses at once. I love the lexicon, the language, of traditional pottery forms and how they talk about our daily tasks, and simple needs, and our sense of comfort and home. I have been a professional potter for nearly 40 years, most of that time in Colorado, and I am still in awe of the power that a handmade pot can bring to the gift of sharing hospitality.

I loved to draw before I could talk. The love expanded to include paint, clay, printmaking and almost any medium I could get my hands on. Eventually, clay sculpture became my primary medium with printmaking being my second love.

I grew up in Texas which is reflected in my art. The animals, plant life and color of the Southwest prevail in most of my work. I am also drawn to world mythology and religious figures and often use them in my work

I studied art at Southern Methodist University/Dallas, the University of Texas/Austin, Texas A&M/Corpus Christi and Sul Ross State University/Alpine. I received a BFA at SMU, and teaching certificate at UT Austin, and an MA in art education at Sul Ross.

I taught art at the secondary level in Texas for 24 years and loved it. When it came time to retire, I satisfied a long-time desire to move to New Mexico. Though I love Texas, the mountains, deep blue skies, and crisp air of New Mexico had been calling me for years. I enjoyed living in the beautiful East Mountains outside of Albuquerque for several years and I am now settled in Taos. I am happy to have time to devote myself fully to creating art since I retired, but still enjoy teaching clay sculpture workshops from time to time. When I teach, I get to watch people discover their own innate creative abilities and the joy that stems from it, which is deeply gratifying.

Taos has always attracted me. The physical beauty of the landscape, the art and culture that abound here, and the community spirit make Taos a unique and wonderful place to live.
 
My work is an expression of the love I feel for what I see; it is as simple as that. I want folks to see how it feels to love what I love and to honor the beauty and love I see in my subject matter.

Jerry Rhodes is a ceramic artist living in Colorado Springs, Colorado. His work has appeared in numerous juried shows and exhibitions. He currently exhibits in galleries throughout the United States and has many pieces in public and private collections internationally. Jerry has an Electrical Engineering degree from Penn State University, is a former Air Force officer, and has held numerous satellite and space systems engineering positions throughout his career. He’s also served as a liaison to the North American Aerospace Defense (NORAD) Command, and most recently as a Research and Development Laboratory Director for the Missile Defense Agency. Jerry has finally(!) retired from his day job and is thankfully able to commit more time to pottery and travel.

“The firing process I use for my pottery is often described as Raku, but the motivation behind my use of this technique might be considered its philosophical opposite. Rather than seeking a harmonious balance or simplicity through my work, I try to achieve dynamic and imaginative results by challenging the boundaries of gravity, material science, chemistry, and sometimes, common sense. Often, I will use traditional style glazes and classic post firing reduction techniques, but other times I'll use plant food, steel wool, and horsehair during the firing, and add African porcupine quills to complete a composition. The results are usually very dramatic.”

“I also like to combine seemingly disparate elements drawn from a global, temporal, and cultural palate to form a composition. Some pieces may blend science with antiquity; Einstein’s equations for Special Relativity carved around the rim of a classic Greek form, for instance, while others may represent a cultural fusion; African and Polynesian tribal components combined into a loosely symbolic presentation. In the end, I’m not trying to resolve the different elements that go into a piece, but rather, trying to bring the composition to a point where it reaches a temporary détente within itself.”

Sumi von Dassow attended the University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 1982-1984 and San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA 1985-1987. She graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in Art with an emphasis in Ceramics.

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Sumi was Director of the pottery program at the Washington Heights Art Center of the Lakewood Heritage, Culture and Arts Program of the City of Lakewood in Lakewood, Colorado for 22 years. She taught pottery at all levels, including hand-building, wheel-throwing, glaze mixing and formulating, and pit-firing workshops. She mixed glazes and loaded and fired kilns. She built the mini wood kiln there and developed many of the glazes teachers and students use.

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In 2021, Sumi moved to Beulah, Colorado and opened Beulah Valley Pottery at 8868 Grand Ave., Beulah 81023.

Sumi has been a frequent contributor to Pottery Making Illustrated Magazine since its inception in 1997. She has participated in the Denver Potters Association and Castle Clay shows each year since 1998. Sumi conducted annual pit firings for the City of Breckenridge from 2001 through 2015 and helped design and test the pit in the Breckenridge Arts District.

I am inspired to make pottery that can be enjoyed in our daily lives and bring beauty and joy into our homes.  I believe in handmade, and the care and intention that goes into creating each piece.  The traditions of my Scandinavian heritage and the artistry of the abundant outdoors offer endless sources of inspiration for the simple beauty and whimsy that I enjoy creating.

I first met clay when a friend invited me to take a rec center class. It was love at first touch. I love clay because of its immediacy and unlimited possibilities, and I love the act of pulling form from an amorphous lump.  My inspiration comes from the vibrant forms and hues of Colorado's mountains and all the dry land country of the west.

My artistic curiosity has been with me for as long as I can remember. Being raised in a military family gave me the opportunity to be exposed to many cultures. Living in Norway as a child during the height of the Scandinavian Modern period was the biggest artistic influence on me. I have always been attracted to the simple, yet very effective, designs, the bold colors, the warm woods, the vibrant glass and metal work. Most of all, I am drawn to the ceramics created during that Mid-Century Modern period.

When I began working in clay I found myself creating pots with the Mid-Century Modern and 60’s influence. My ceramics are made by wheel-throwing as well as hand building, which is my favorite method of making pottery. My thrown pots are usually altered in some way by cutting, reshaping, adding on, paddling or stamping to make them truly my own design.

As much as I enjoy creating art in other mediums, I am most at home with ceramics. It allows me to incorporate design, color, texture, 2-D design, 3-D design and many techniques into one medium. When people see my work I want them to feel the enjoyment that I get in the creation of the work. Suzi Reaves Artist statement suzireaves@yahoo.com