Victoria Christen is a studio artist and instructor of ceramics at the
University of Portland. Victoria uses mark making to infuse meaning into the objects she makes. All her work in this show—from the deconstructions of found objects to the functional and sculptural ceramic pieces—emphasize the potential of human gesture and touch to express memories, emotions, and moments. Using ink and brush, fabric and thread, glaze and clay, she captures the joy of a young boy’s bird egg collection, the melancholy of leaf stains on a sidewalk, the effervescence of blossoms floating on a pond, and the pattern and intrigue in a crimped metal garden fence.

Hannah Lenhart is a recent graduate of Fairmont State University where she both a BA in Ceramics and Sculpture and a BS in Business Administration May of 2017. Since graduation Hannah has been working and living in the beautiful hills of West Virginia in her home studio where she has been busy preparing her studio space, stocking inventory, and transitioning from being a student to starting a small business. Hannah's ceramics career began when she took her first ceramics class her second semester of college, and since then ceramics has been the center of her life. Experimentation plays a huge role in Hannah's studio practice. She enjoys learning and finding new ways to decorate and manipulate clay. Hannah currently works with a cone 6 white stoneware and uses colored slips and carving techniques to decorate her work.

Joel Cherrico is back on The Potters Cast for another conversation. This time Joel spends some time talking about the power of chasing goals, finding an audience, and an award that he is helping to sponsor. Together with The American Craft Council, Joel is hosting the Emerging Pottery Business Awards. The goal is the find artists whose work and business embodies talent, passion, and business skills.

This is a little different. The feature guest is Chef David Mork who is going to be talking about the Kiln to Kitchen show. It was a discussion with David that kicked off the idea of furthering the Farm to Table movement by getting the tableware to be made from local potters.

Ryan Reich teaches ceramics and serves as the Visual Arts Chair at Valencia High School in Placentia, California. Two of his star ceramic students, Moriah Ritchie and Masey Park, stayed after school with Ryan and talked clay over Skype with Paul. This was an fascinating conversation about the passion for ceramics as seen from both sides of the desk- The teacher and the students.

Katie Marks lives and works in Seattle, Washington. Clay is a life long passion for Katie and she feels so fortunate to be able to do what she loves for work. Katie has been creating things since before she can remember starting with play-doh, moving to polymer, and now finally with ceramics. Katie took three ceramics classes at her local community college in 2008 but it wasn't until after Katie acquired her first potters wheel in 2010 that she attended the University of Youtube. Katie says, "You can learn anything on the internet." 

Adam Chau received a Masters in Design from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. His work combines digital technologies with traditional studio ceramics; recent writings on this topic include Ceramics Monthly, Ceramics Technical, and Studio Potter. He has lectured and demonstrated across the United States, including the NCECA Fablab. He has worked internationally, notably at Atelier Ted Noten in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. As a curator, he has produced exhibitions for Clay Art Center, The Clay Studio, and the New York Ceramics and Glass Fair. ​​​​

Tim Kowalcyck makes another appearance on The Potters Cast. Tim's last guest appearance was way back in October of 2016 in episode 254. Back then Tim was working multiple jobs and making his "cardboard" cups as a side hustle. Now Tim is full time as a maker of his ceramic creations. In this episode Tim talks about what it took for him to make the transition.

Erin and Jason Hall, owners of Alberta Pottery (Greenville, SC), are full-time artists creating studio pottery and sculptural ceramics. Jason earned his BFA from Clemson University; Erin a BA from Stetson University and MFA from Clemson. They work in stoneware, fire gas reduction, and exhibit nationally at juried shows.

British potter, Kate Malone is studio potter, ceramic artist, and judge. Kate is known for large sculptural vessels and for being a judge on the popular BBC2's The Great Pottery Throw Down. Her work richly glazed with bright colors. After leaving the Royal College of Art, Kate began working in the South Bank Craft Centre. On display in a number of public locations, Kate's work is also highly sought after for private collections.