Guillermo Cuellar - Host Potter
Guillermo Cuellar, born in Venezuela, has been making utilitarian, wheel thrown stoneware pots since 1980. His abiding inspirations have been food and community. For 15 years he worked and held sales events at his home in the countryside southeast of Caracas. He was a founding member of Grupo Turgua, an association of like-minded Venezuelan artisans working to support quality, local handwork. In 2005 he established a pottery in Minnesota and is currently a host on the annual St. Croix Valley Pottery Tour. Captivated by the sensual flow and rhythm of hands and clay on the spinning potter’s wheel, Guillermo believes that pots made for the home, to contain and arrange flowers, or prepare and share food, can also be breathtakingly beautiful. The best of these pieces are timeless reflections of the best human values.
18855 263rd St, Shafer, MN 55074
Showroom open all year
www.guillermopottery.com
Visit Guillermo's webshop
Instagram: @guillermopottery
Alana Cuellar - Host Potter
Alana Cuellar is a Venezuelan-American potter living in Wisconsin. Her functional pots are intended for use in daily life. She believes handmade objects contain quiet magic that cultivates pleasure, joy and connection. Alana is inspired by ancient pots, cooking, textiles, the natural world, and the community of potters around her. Alana is represented by Schaller Gallery (Baroda, MI) and the Grand Hand Gallery (St. Paul, MN), but primarily shows her work through open studio events, farmers markets and other pop-ups in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. Her education in clay has primarily unfolded working with her dad, potter Guillermo Cuellar, since 2016. She has occasionally assisted and attended workshops at various craft schools as well. Alana became a full-time potter in 2020 and currently works as a co-host of the St. Croix Valley Pottery Tour.
18855 263rd St, Shafer, MN 55074
Showroom open all year
alanacuellar.com
Instagram: @alanacuellar
Beth Bolgla, Brooklyn, NY
I find myself more and more a citizen of the world rather than of any one particular place. Navigating the distinct privilege of living and working in both Brooklyn, NY, and LaBorne, France keeps me on my toes, which are getting pretty worn out. With all the coming and going, the constant in my life is my ceramic practice, and I am continually striving for extended periods of time when I can wake up...have a cup of coffee...and go to the studio.
I am wildly fascinated by kitchen pots...I can't explain why. After many years I continue to find great satisfaction in throwing and hand building functional pots, atmospheric and electric fired, and offering them to the public.
www.bethbolgla.com
Instagram: @bethbolglastudio
Dick Cooter, Two Harbors, MN
I fire a 125 cubic foot wood burning kiln, which I consider a partner in the work. Although I choose labor intensive methods, I consider myself a production potter. I make functional pots and consider the user the final contributor to the work. In the summer of 2009 I tore my old kiln down after about 18 years and 80 fires. I built a new two chamber wood burning kiln of my design. This kiln can be seen on a link from my website.
Since childhood I've liked to make things. Over the years I've made houses, furniture, guitars, kilns, cars, motorcycles and many, many pots. I have worked variously as an auto mechanic carpenter, furniture maker and guitar maker as well as a potter.
I attended the University of Iowa and the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, majored in art and studied ceramics with Warren Mackenzie and John Reeve.
The pots I make are sturdy, bold, and reflect the processes of making them. Simple decoration enhances the rich surface created by long wood fires. The traces of the artist's hand is both an antidote and protest to increasing uniformity. Impressions made in the soft clay reveal my tie to the work and to the landscape where it is made.
...On my workshop wall are posted two quotes:
"First thought,
Best thought"
Venerable Chogyam Trungpa
"Mind is shapely,
Art is shapely"
Jack Kerouac
Nick Earl, Marine on St. Croix, MN
I make pots and am continually fascinated by the softness and reception of the clay from which they are made. When everything works, these qualities translate into the finished pieces, objects that will hopefully enrich the regular ceremonies of life.
I have a strong interest in art history and I try to exhibit the strength and beauty I see in old pots in my own work. Cooking is also of great interest to me and my work being mostly functional has a lot to do with the storage, preparation, and presentation of food.
www.nickearlpottery.com
Visit Nick's webshop
Instagram: @nickearlpottery
Ursula Hargens, Minneapolis, MN
My recent tableware explores the fundamental building blocks of decoration–dots and lines. I enjoy the challenge of grouping and playing within this limited palette. I throw using red earthenware clay and brush surfaces with a creamy white slip. Forms are relaxed and functional. I hope my pots will be welcomed into homes and slide into daily use, forming a collaboration between maker and user.
www.ursulahargens.com
Visit Ursula’s webshop
Instagram: @ursulahargensceramics
Shikha Joshi, Round Rock, TX
My creative process results from the interplay between form and function. I like to create pots with strong shapes with the guiding principle of good functionality. I am drawn to the Japanese aesthetic of wabi-sabi. Loosely translated, it means beauty in imperfection. I strive to create pieces that echo the earthy landscape reflecting the austere beauty of the natural world.
Experimenting with the chemistry of ceramic material in an electric kiln is the bedrock of my practice. My process consists of layering multiple glazes, incorporating a variety of soils and crushed rock, collected in my travels, directly on the surface of my pots. The results evoke the same natural elements that inform and inspire my work. Reimagining possibilities from electric firing continues to guide my journey and evolution as a potter.
www.potterybyshikha.com
Instagram: @potterybyshikha
Bill Jones, Salem, NC
I grew up in an old stone house and from an early age found beauty in simple articulations of material. A loosely laid stone wall, a sketch done with a finger in damp sand, the haphazard stability of a quickly erected structure. As a potter, I work with simple materials and methods in a constant attempt to channel this same beauty. I think of my pots as drawings–each piece a passing attempt to realize a form in my head. My memory of these forms is a living thing and as it changes and distorts, so does my work. The pots are articulated by the flowing lines, jagged marks and gentle indentations left by my hands. The work is never done and beauty is found in the process.
www.billjonespottery.com
Visit Bill’s webshop
Instagram: @billjonespottery
S.C. Rolf, River Falls, WI
I find that all of my ideas are born out of need. The genesis for most every series of pots comes from living, working, cooking, and serving in my own home. I am thankful that the functional pot has offered me a world where I can respond to my surroundings in such a tangible way.
scrolfpotter.com
Visit Steve's webshop
Instagram: @steven_rolf
Minsoo Yuh, Athens, GA
Minsoo Yuh was born and raised in Seoul, Korea. She earned her BFA and MFA in ceramics from Hongik University. After completing her education, Minsoo relocated to the United States and has since been working with clay.
Currently based in Athens, GA, Minsoo thrives as a full-time studio potter while teaching workshops and classes. She presents her work through gallery exhibitions and pottery tours nationwide while actively participating in art residencies both in the U.S. and abroad.
Minsoo's practice is a reflection of her journey of self-examination and personal growth, exploring humanity, nature, and life through the inspiration derived from the intrinsic qualities of clay and nature's elements.
www.minsooyuhceramics.com
Visit Minsoo's webshop
Instagram: @minsooyuhceramics