Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sean VanderVliet. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Sean, thanks for joining us today. Let’s go back in time a bit – can you share a story of a time when you learned an important lesson during your education?

I think back to this all the time in relationship to Fenway. In High School in rural New Hampshire, we ran out of ceramic classes after Sophomore year. I was still so eager to be in the studio that I worked with the ceramics teacher, Ms. Clary, and my parents to come up with an independent study. I pitched to them to let me keep learning about something that I cared about and was good at.

Had I not done that, I think it would have been easy to let that passion fall by the wayside and only occasionally revisit it down the road. It was truly Ms. Clary encouraging me and telling me, “if you care enough, make it happen”. She would remind me, “What you get in is what you put out”, that was true in ceramics and true in my business now. Her support allowed me to stay in the studio and keep getting better. I think about Ms. Clary all the time – she could have just said no, but she went out of her way when she saw that I cared enough to put in the effort to keep going. It was a turning point in my life and probably why I do what I do now. I think about her all the time for that reason. It was a quiet willingness to keep pursuing what I cared about. She did the same thing senior year. I was still in love with ceramics and she worked with me to come up with a new independent study, this time glaze chemistry, so I could stay in the studio again. Even helping me take slides so I could get into an art program in college.

The lesson for me has always been, if you are passionate enough about something, you will find a way. That’s always remained true for me. There have been so many reasons to quit or stop doing it, but I think people for the most part, want to meet you where you are at and support you. If you can show your passion, they will give it back to you. That has been a valuable lesson throughout.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

After nearly 15 year of thowring pottery in school and as a hobby, in 2017 I founded Fenway Clayworks and made the jump to becoming a full time ceramic artist. The goal of Fenway has always been the same, to make beautiful, functional ceramics worthy of a place in one’s home. Ceramics that people can enjoy over time and pass on for generations to come.

Using Post War American design as our influence, we strive to make the nicest hand made lighting that one can find. We search exhaustively for the highest end components, throw each lamp body on the wheel, and finish each piece by hand turning each solid wood neck and base to perfectly fit its ceramic counterpart. The vessels that we carry span beyond table lamps, pendants, and sconces, but also include tableware and decorative objects for the home.

The combination of materials, specifically the relationship between wood and ceramic, is something that really sets Fenway apart. That, and our playful use of color and underglazes – a classic characteristic of the Fenway aesthetic.

I have really found joy in watching the brand grow and all of the individuals and companies I have interacted with along the way. I also have enjoyed watching my own artistic progression over the years as well. It’s fun to look back at what has been made and where we are at now. Developing those unique and special products that I feel excited about continues to bring me joy.

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

In so many ways, I am feeling the need to be resilient each and every day. We are growing as a brand and with it comes new sets of challenges. Some completely unexpected. Finding the balance of growing the business and managing production is a constant work in progress.

Sometimes I try to remind myself a lesson that a friend shared with me, “you can only solve one problem at a time. Do a good job solving that one problem, then move on to the next”. Sometimes, I have to remind myself of that more than once each day, but slowly chipping away at our goals with intentionality takes a lot of resiliency.

Has your business ever had a near-death moment? Would you mind sharing the story?

We’ve been fortunate enough to never miss a payroll, but there is still an enormous amount of pressure to get it all right and to have each firing go well. There isn’t a lot of room for error. Which feels pretty common in small businesses. Running a product business is so hard. It adds pressure to everyone, but the pressure is also a privilege. You can either wither from the pressure or strategize to get it done.

Contact Info:

• Website: fenwayclayworks.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/fenwayclayworks
• Facebook: facebook.com/fenwaycw/