We welcome another month of our Pots for Membership program! Each month, Studio Potter features a small selection of artists and their work, which is available for sale in our online store for thirty days only. In exchange for the sale of their piece, the artist (or a chosen beneficiary) will receive a one-year free membership to the journal. Last month we received an overwhelmingly positive response to the program, for which we thank you, our readers! 

Here are this month's participants: 

Amanda Barr 

Amanda Barr’s ceramic work is an exploration of color, graphic imagery and text on porcelain. She enjoys the intimacy of using functional objects as narrative vehicles for an inner monologue. These objects then become part of the user's narrative, entering into their daily life through the ritual of use and decoration. Amanda sees each piece as a reflection of both herself and its user, who has chosen to accept it into their life. Amanda explains,

“I am often inspired by my background in literature, thematically as well as a source for much of my text and my love of vintage illustrations. Through books one can travel through time, to faraway lands... anywhere the imagination can create. My work is an extension of my love of reading; it is about expression and escapism, imagination and history. I want to make work that will capture the imagination and create a dialogue with the viewer, force them to think and dream and make their own journeys.”

See more of Amanda's work at amandambarr.com and printandclay.etsy.com

Check out Amanda's piece on our store here! 

Marty Fielding 

Marty Fielding became captivated by clay as an anthropology major at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He continued his study of ceramics as a teaching assistant at Penland School of Crafts and received an MFA from the University of Florida. Fielding’s work has been included in invitational and juried exhibitions locally, nationally, and internationally such as Strictly Functional and The Zanesville Prize. His work has been published in several books as well as Ceramics Monthly, Pottery Making Illustrated, and Clay Times. His teaching experience includes adjunct and visiting positions at Ohio Northern University and Middlebury College, and several community studios including Frog Hollow in Middlebury, Vermont, where he was resident potter. He has taught workshops at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, The Potter’s Council Workshop in San Diego, and Truro Center for the Arts on Cape Cod. He is currently an adjunct professor at the State University of New York at New Paltz. About his work Marty says,

“I seek harmony in my surroundings, moments of respite from the rush and concerns of daily life. I find a sense of calm in the emotion expressed in a song, muted colors in nature and art, and drinking coffee from a handmade cup. The synthesis of my research in post-modern architecture, abstract painting, and experimental music culminates in my utilitarian pottery. Each of these influences contain the element of abstraction, an austerity and restraint in form, and an intentional trajectory for moving the body, eye, or psyche through space. Grounded architecturally inspired forms communicate stability, while cantilevered components act as a counterpoint to their mass. Visual chords of color establish a harmonized background. Architectural features punctuated with vivid color conduct the viewer’s eye around the piece and settle into a mellow mid-tempo beat."

See more of Marty's work at http://www.martyfielding.com 

See Marty's piece on our store here!

Normandy Alden 

Normandy Alden has a studio in upstate New York where she makes her elegant porcelain tableware and vessels. She lives on a family-run organic, grass-fed beef and pork operation known as Cairncrest Farm. Much of her work in inspired by the rural landscape where she lives. She is a recent MFA graduate from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. She states,

“On a 200 acre farm in central New York I am building a house, a business, a family, a life. My vision for all of these extends beyond my lifespan and capabilities. It is a vision of elegance, simplicity and utility. The collaborative endeavors on my farm to build a sustainable food system and the richness of simple domestic and seasonal rhythms are important influences. In upstate New York the landscape swoops and recedes with logic and grace. Evidence of agriculture is everywhere. The lines and textures in topography are not incidental. They describe farming practices, cultural values, and personal narrative. Through them I understand the undulations in topography as well as histories of tax code, land rights and machinery. My pots refer to an abstracted landscape. Like a windrow, lines on my pottery describe and enhance form, as well as reveal how we are circumscribed by our tools. “

See more of Normandy's work at http://normandyalden.com/

See Normandy's piece in our store here! 

Eleanor Anderson

Eleanor Anderson is currently in her first year as a CORE fellow at Penland School of Crafts. A relative newcomer to ceramics, she draws inspiration and techniques from her background in textiles and printmaking. Her studio practice originates from a deep love of drawing, color, and repetitive mark making. Her work celebrates the vulnerability of the hand-drawn line to create a sense of playfulness. She sends work into the world with the optimistic intentions of delight and joy for the user and the viewer. Eleanor explains,

“My studio practice is anchored in my love of drawing and collage as a process of assembling, exploring and playing. I work in an intuitive process of decision making that allows my forms to repeat and evolve from one work to the next, shifting in unexpected and delightful ways in each iteration. By allowing an idea to ricochet though different forms (2D to 3D, figurative to abstract, functional to non-functional) I expand my vocabulary of bold colors and graphic patterns, and discover new visual possibilities for form and surface design."

See more of Eleanor's work at http://eleanorandersondesign.com

See Eleanor's piece on our shop here! 

Tim Rowan 

Tim Rowan was born in 1967 in New York City and grew up in Connecticut along the shore of Long Island Sound.  His art education began during college, receiving a BFA from The State University of New York at New Paltz before journeying to Japan for two years to apprentice with ceramic artist Ryuichi Kakurezaki. Upon his return, he worked briefly in studios in Massachusetts and New York before receiving his MFA from The Pennsylvania State University.  He established his kiln and studio deep in the woods of the Hudson Valley in 2000, where he lives with his wife and son. He has worked as an artist-in-residence at several studios, including the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, Montana, Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts in Newcastle, ME, and the Fuping Ceramic Art Village, Shaanxi Provence, China. His works are are seen internationally in solo and group exhibitions and in museum collections, including the Currier Art Museum in Manchester, New Hampshire, and the Fuller Craft Museum, in Brockton, Massachusetts. Tim was awarded the prestigious Janet Mansfield Ceramic Award from the International Ceramic Magazine Editors Association in 2013, and most recently the Ruth and Harold Chenven Foundation Grant in 2015.

See more of Tim's work at http://timrowan.com

See Tim's piece on our store here! 

Jen Martin 

Jen Martin is currently the Vice President of The Clay Studio in Philadelphia. Throughout her artistic career, she has worked in arts organizations, participated in numerous residencies, and held instructor and university faculty positions. In each of these working environments, she has built positive relationships and sought to create a sense of community, which she then uses to inform her ceramic work. She received a BFA in ceramics from Georgia Southern University in 1997 and a MFA in Ceramics at Georgia State University in 2000.  Jen states,

“I consider myself a builder. I build ceramic forms, relationships, and community. I seek to explore human nature through my ceramic artwork reveling time and understanding through the creation and manipulation of clay forms. I build with wheel-thrown and altered pieces using traditional glazes and firings to highlight the sensual nature of the clay and its response to touch.”

See more of Jen's work at http://jennifermartinart.com

See Jen's piece on our store here!

Lori Theriault 

Lori Theriault makes handmade pottery for delicious food. She also makes delicious food for handmade pottery, and allows the two activities to 'feed' each other. The textures that come from faceting, fluting, and impressions interact with her glazes and create beautiful frames and accents for the foods they hold. Her glazes, and glaze combinations, create a depth of visual texture that makes food the center of attention. Lori states,

“Because of my own love for food and cooking, I am as inspired by the idea of what goes in my finished pots as I am with creating finely crafted forms, whether I'm working with individual clients designing their place settings, or creating forms for chefs to showcase their own creations. I truly believe that homemade tastes better on handmade.”

See more of Lori's work at crazygreenstudios.com & thevillagepotters.com & homemadetastesbetter.blogspot.com

See Lori's piece on our shop here!