As a young man in college a friend to encouraged me to try my hand at turning clay on the wheel. "I have a feeling you are a potter and don't know it" she remarked to me. This simple and inspired challenge changed my life. From the moment I sat down at the wheel and fashioned the first bowl, until this day, my life has been shaped and changed by this ancient earthy medium. In a symbiotic and mutually enhancing relationship I have molded and formed tons of clay with my hands, as it has guided and formed the development of who I am today.

Much of the struggle, as with any artist, has been the never-ending dilemma of how to sustain ones self and family, while living a life of creativity. I began this journey making strong and simple functional work, honest, high fired stoneware with an eye to the past and long standing ceramic traditions. But after 5 years of intense productivity I ran into a ditch creatively and realized I had to find a deeper level of connection to my art and efforts. What followed has been a 15-year undertaking to consider the vessel from strictly a decorative perspective, exploring form strictly for the sake of form, regarding the work as a sculptural entity as opposed to a functional object.

Much of this challenge has been purely physical. I enjoy working on a very large scale, pushing myself to master bigger vessels. I have found that in spending several hours on a four foot tall urn, or a 3 foot wide platter there is a greater sense of focus, communion with the clay and the solitude of the studio, and a greater degree of commitment to each piece and its outcome. The challenge continues as these new creations face the fire and the never ending demands of process and struggles with the Kiln Gods. Each day brings a new complication when working with this primitive medium, and I have come to realize there must be a part of my personality that requires such demands and challenges. In the end, the obstacles and pitfalls of process are necessary. They provide a constant source of humility.

My work for many years has been inspired by Asian ceramic traditions. I have continually focused on surface and its relationship to these large forms. For the past few years I have been on a journey to better define that relationship. Most recently I have begun a re-examination of "pit firing", an ancient technique involving open flames and smoldering wood and straw, resulting in a smoky charred surface on each pot. I feel that this primitive completion of the vessels’ creation brings about a final balance in my work: contemporary forms with a primitive power and presence. While the origins of the wheel-turned vessel speak of utility, in the end I choose to eliminate the notion of utility in favor of vessels that perhaps hold spirit rather than matter.

In some part, I believe that all we do creatively reflects our spiritual connection to everything around us. My work in clay, the solitude of the studio, the challenge of working on large forms, and the struggle to define the surface-form relationship are all ultimately an attempt to more fully develop that spiritual connection.

Lee Hazelgrove     
2007