We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Muriel Hansen. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Muriel below.

Muriel, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

My passion for ceramics started at an early age as well, when I was about 3, my mom took me to a community studio for a family ceramics class. We made coiled bowls, and pinched dishes, and I was obsessed. I’d always wanted to learn more about the medium, but wouldn’t get the opportunity until my junior year of high school. Ceramics quickly became my favorite class, and I made sure to take a ceramics class every semester. After high school, I attended Kansas City Art Institute to study ceramics, and studied further at the International Ceramics Studio in Hungary.

Something I love so much about ceramics is that it keeps me humble and always learning. I’m always in my studio experimenting with new materials, and techniques. Currently I’m developing a new satin matte glaze to add to my palette. I recently purchased and set up a small kiln in my home studio. This has helped me break through one of the biggest obstacles I was struggling with. Without easy and inexpensive access to firings, I was really limited in my ability to test out new ideas.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I make hand-built, functional ceramic wares. I use basic hand-building techniques of slab forming, coiling, and pinching clay. These are some of the very first skills you will learn in a ceramic class. I find that utilizing these forming methods I am able to create objects that feel familiar and approachable, and I find satisfaction in my ability to create something complex and elegant using these basic techniques. Because of the nature of these forming methods, the finished products feel more organic and hand-made, with each piece maintaining a strong sense of personality. After creating the vessels, I freehand carve the decorations on my pots and then hand paint the glaze. All of my glazes are mixed from scratch in my studio, this allows me to create custom colors and finishes that precisely match my vision for the work.
My pottery is inspired by my love of nature and the earthly joys found in natural environments. I use simple, pleasing motifs and vibrant colors, many of which are abstracted from this natural imagery, to convey a sense of comfort and wanderlust.
I believe we lead happier and more fulfilled lives when we seek to surround ourselves with objects, people, and experiences that we enjoy. I hope for these feelings to be present in my work. I think of them as a ritualistic celebration of self–a reminder to slow down and enjoy the present, the people around us, and the world we live in.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Like any endeavor there have been ups and downs. After graduating, I took a year off and did not make any artwork. I was really struggling to determine my place in the ceramics community. I began making work again in 2020, and found an art practice and new ways of making that truly inspired me. This reignited my passion. Working in my studio while also working a full time job can be hard to balance and exhausting. However, I love the work I do, and that helps make the inevitable bumps along the way more bearable.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Waking up each day able to do something I love and have a flexible schedule is, in my opinion, one of the best things about being a self-employed artist. I’m part of a local studio and I find it incredibly rewarding to be part of a local thriving artist community.

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