Hannah Shipway has worked as a professional potter for the past five years. Hannah has her own studios in Oxford, England, and also in Dorset on the South Coast of England. Hannah makes wheel-thrown, functional tableware in small batches, all of which are sold exclusively from the iconic Albatross Cafe in Bristol.

Brandy Green & Michelle Castro | Episode 615

Today is a special release day. Instead of releasing two episodes on Tuesday and Thursday, The Potters Cast is releasing both of this week's episode on Tuesday. As a result of NCECA 2020 conference getting canceled this year, the normal process of NCECA having a dedicated time of having the candidates for the Director at Large and the Student Director at Large share about what they would bring to the position and then to answer questions from the audience wasn't available. These two episodes are the replacement platform to allow these fine candidates to share their stories. In this second episode we are going to dedicate this to the position of Student Director at Large. These two candidates, Brandy Green and Michelle Castro, will be the second to go. 

Today is a special release day. Instead of releasing two episodes on Tuesday and Thursday, The Potters Cast is releasing both of this week's episode on Tuesday. As a result of NCECA 2020 conference getting canceled this year, the normal process of NCECA having a dedicated time of having the candidates for the Director at Large and the Student Director at Large share about what they would bring to the position and then to answer questions from the audience wasn't available. These two episodes are the replacement platform to allow these fine candidates to share their stories. In this first episode we are going to dedicate this to the position of Director at Large. These two candidates, Simon Levin and Cat Traen, will be the first to go. 

A little about the process. I invited all four to schedule an time with me. The recordings were done on a "first come, first served" basis. And then they were put together in the same manner. I hope you enjoy these conversations. 

Shae Bishop earned his BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute. Shae's artwork explores the relationships between ceramics and textiles. Shae has been a resident artist at The Archie Bray Foundation, Red Star Studios, and elsewhere in the US, as well as in Indonesia, Turkey, and Hungary.

More than anything else Lucy Ernst is an environmental artist. Lucy started out sculpting with bones and ‘dead things’ and then moved into clay when she discovered the idea of wild clay. With her work Lucy wants to force people to open their eyes to the environment around them, to the wild things, and to change how they see their world, their everyday!

This year's NCECA that was slated to take place in Richmond, Virginia had to be cancelled as a result of the covid-19 pandemic. In this bonus episode of The Potters Cast the executive director, Josh Green and a few of the board member, Board Steward Rhonda Willers, Current President Holly Hanessian, and incoming President Elect Pete Pinell all got on a conference call with me to tell their story of how NCECA is doing. After the introductions we talked about three things- How they came to their decision and its impact, what is going on currently and in the future with NCECA, and how we as a community can help.

Ryan Ball is a Twin Cities, Minnesota based potter originally from Louisiana. Working mostly in midrange white clay, Ryan produces a wide range of functional wares. Ryan pulls from a decade of production studio experience, employing colorful glazes of his own design over soft, inviting forms decorated with slip textures.

Isaac Shue is living a life of clay! As a teacher, Isaac is teaching our next generation of ceramicists by day and then working the studio life by night! Amanda Fungue color and plant lover and is seeking fun, small-batch pottery and art! Together they have collaborated together to make some amazing work. In this conversation we talk about the ins and outs of collaboration. 

Ryan Rakhshan. Teacher, glaze designer, and kiln technician. Ryan occasionally makes a pot just to make sure his glazes and kilns are working.

Hector Kriete's life and art has been a path of breaking boundaries that are formed by rules and expectations. As a Latino immigrant from Colombia, Hector grew up with the mindset that financial stability was the primary goal in life. But on the inside, Hector always had a strong desire to create art and a need to be surrounded by nature. Hector spent his teenage years in Southern California trying to assimilate and suppress his true self. When Hector started accepting who he was and rediscovering himself through his roots, Hector's soul was nourished and his creativity was sparked. Hector started doing ceramics when he was a child in Colombia. When he moved to the States, Hector focused on his drawing skills, but soon felt constrained by the overwhelming amount of rules imposed by one of his high school teachers. Hector rediscovered ceramics through a teacher who allowed him to experiment and create without strict direction. This freed Hector to discover a world of unlimited possibilities. Another inspirational teacher in college taught Hector the value of making mistakes and not being afraid to take risks. Hector has learned that the best things can often come from not having expectations and allowing a co-creative process with the medium.