More Background:
In college I took an intro to wheel throwing class just to fill a credit requirement for my Bachelors in Photography Degree. I had the most incredible pottery professor, mentor, and all around wonderful person, Mary Louise Carter. She has since retired. Watching her make pottery with such a smooth finesse and skill was mesmerizing. She also lived a life of simplicity and humility that was inspiring as well. However, I did not get hooked after that first clay experience. I found wheel throwing difficult to get the hang of, especially since I had been into sports, skateboarding, playing the drums, etc. I did not have the patience at first to respect that making pottery is a lifelong challenge. I was overly confident in my coordination and strength but the clay did not care.
I took a break from pottery and came back after a semester to take a hand-building class. I think that class is where I truly got hooked. The making was slower but more rewarding because of the lack of skill based limitations that I felt in the wheel throwing class. From then on, I never stopped taking pottery classes. I eventually got over the steep learning curve of wheel throwing and really started to have fun exploring the possibilities. I got a ton of positive reinforcement from friends and family who genuinely enjoyed the pots that I gave them. I even sold a fair amount of pottery in college, too. Getting a monetary return from my passion for clay is another reason I have stuck with it. Being able to make pottery, sell and give it away in order to progress and afford to continue making is what keeps me coming back to clay. Pottery can be considered art, you can use your creativity, but it can also be a functional part of everyday life!
Another incredible aspect of the pottery world that the community is super supportive. Potters look out for each other. They share space and resources and most potters are generally wholesome, good people. Gaining an understanding of clay has that affect on people. In our digital age, where everything happens in a virtual space, making pottery is a powerfully grounding, tangible experience. What I mean to say is that there is not one simple reason I got into and stuck with making pottery. It is a journey that builds momentum and appreciation for the millennia that potters have been doing the clay thing. There is an endless well of materials, techniques, and history in ceramics.
Long story short, my pottery professor at Louisiana Tech University exposed me to pottery and I stuck with it because it is a tangible, physical way to be creative and make a living doing something that is both challenging and rewarding. Pottery is an art form that has endless avenues for expression and a comes with wonderful, supportive community.
