Though I have no formal education in clay, or art for that matter, I have managed to make my living as a potter for thirty years. It has been my good fortune to share the company and talents of many an accomplished potter — Michael Frasca, Brenda Brown Tarbell, Michael Astalos, Bob Hasselle and Pam Korteon – on my journey to competency in clay. All of them have left their mark on me, as have the many mistakes and false starts I have made along the way.
Eventually I discovered the processes that have marked the parameters of my work – ash glazes and single firing. I feel in tune with the patterns and textures the ash creates, and the decision to single fire led me down paths which have greatly influenced the way that I visualize, form and finish the pots. The look of ash glazes has not paled over the twenty years I have worked with them. They have changed along the way and change still, and that search for and exploration of their nature is part of the joy and challenge I find in clay.
Richard Aerni
