We were lucky to catch up with Sondra Elder recently and have shared our conversation below.

Sondra, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I first took a clay session with a Groupon. I was so horrible at it, but I had such an amazing time. About a year later, I took a six-week beginner clay class and I haven’t looked back. Within three months, I purchased my own pottery wheel and signed up to be a member at a local clay studio so I could get kiln space. Since then, I began to practice daily; and I got better and better.

I was hitting a bit of a plateau when I decided to spend several months in the Colombian Amazon teaching English. I spent all of that time away from my creativity. When I returned home, I was able to do things on the wheel that I couldn’t do when I went.

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 have always been an artist of some kind…drawing, photography, painting, etc. I found my passion after I left my career as a Vice President at an 11 billion dollar company. It was the kind of job that no one expected me to leave. In fact, it was the position I had set out to achieve when I was young. But, once I got there, I felt as though it was killing my soul…. So I left. I knew that I needed to transition to something that would make my soul sing, so I started a small business in Chicago to bridge the gap between leaving corporate and my creative destiny.

After eight years running that business, I sold it and relocated to a more relaxed life. This is when I started creating with clay full-time. After a couple of years, I decided to apply to my first fine arts show. I was shocked when I was accepted. One year after that I won the first of several fine art show awards. This inspired me to work harder to create work that moves the heart.

I like to create both functional and decorative work. The decorative work showcases my glazework; while the functional work presents an affordable canvas for my creativity.

I am most proud of my ability to create my own glazes and create work that can move the soul. I am inspired by the world around me and artists who use other media.

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

While this does not relate to my creativity, it illustrates my resilience. I was the fourth child of a single nineteen year old. I had two choices… become a statistic or become something special. I chose the latter. While growing up in extreme poverty, I always knew I wanted more. I knew there WAS more. I set my sights on college and decided that studying economics and finance would take me where I needed to be from a financial perspective. I did what I believed I needed to do and I earned my Masters Degree. I worked incredibly hard for 20 years, so I could help my family and achieve my own goals.

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

The most rewarding aspect of being creative is that I may hold the pen in the writing of my own story. I get to decide the direction my work takes. I choose the type of clay I use. I make my own glazes. I fire in my own kiln. I design my own firing schedules. I decide what I want to make and when I want to make it.

Even more importantly, I get to interact with artists every day. I have the pleasure of teaching new artists who are beginning their journeys. I also get to experience their heartaches and breakthroughs. Both are amazing, because the heartaches teach them and the breakthroughs are the rewards from those teachings. It is nothing short of magical.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Sondraelderpottery

Image Credits
All credits to Sondra G Elder