We were lucky to catch up with Stacy Larson recently and have shared our conversation below.
Stacy, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
As a child, I knew that I wanted to be either a chef or an artist. I chose the latter. In grade school, I began beading and making jewelry as a hobby and was driven by the desire to create beautiful and useful objects. In high school, I was fortunate enough to take ceramics classes where I learned to throw on the wheel. I was intrigued by the process of taking such a mundane material as clay and transforming it into a utilitarian piece of pottery. I enjoyed making ceramics, though I decided to pursue an education in Jewelry & Metalsmithing at Syracuse University.
As I learned metalsmithing techniques throughout my undergrad, I continued to take ceramics classes as electives. At the end of my sophomore year, I declared ceramics as a minor. However, it wasn’t until my junior year, that I came to a sudden realization. As I was standing in the jewelry classroom staring at the various gauges of sheet metal in front of me, I recognized that my passion for ceramics was much greater than it was for jewelry. For a split second I thought, “That’s okay, jewelry can be my real job and ceramics can be my hobby.” But I caught myself. If I am pursuing a career in the arts, I should absolutely love what I do. Making art shouldn’t feel like a job. It was then that I realized that I had to get a BFA in Ceramics, even if that meant abandoning my jewelry studies. Luckily, I had accumulated enough credits in both ceramics and jewelry to graduate with a dual BFA and a minor in retail management the following year.
Stacy, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I am a ceramic artist who creates flora-inspired porcelain tableware. Each piece is wheel-thrown, altered, and carved to resemble the elegant forms of flowers. I use pastel and jewel-toned glazes with a microcrystalline structure, which creates a rich and captivating surface much like that of a petal. Inspired by my background in jewelry, I incorporate stone-setting techniques in my pottery as well. I set man-made and precious gemstones into the raw clay, which is then fired up to 2300 degrees Fahrenheit. I often include these ‘hidden gems’ on the foot of a pot to reward the user’s investigation with a moment of discovery. To me, this act of discovery is reminiscent of noticing a dewdrop on the underside of a leaf. I want to encourage others to live in the present moment, to slow down, and appreciate the small, beautiful moments that too often go unnoticed. I hope that my pottery encourages mindfulness and appreciation as the user takes the time to eat or drink from a hand-made vessel.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
When I was 25 years old, I moved to Baton Rouge for a one-year post-baccalaureate ceramics program at Louisiana State University. Within a month of starting school, I had gotten a kink in my neck. I didn’t pay much attention to it because they would always go away after a day or two. But a week turned into a month and before I knew it, I was living with chronic neck pain. I did everything to try resolving it. I started going to a chiropractor, but when that didn’t help, I got x-rays and MRIs all of which came back negative. I tried acupuncture, physical therapy, TENS therapy, trigger point injections, craniosacral therapy, among other things. Nothing seemed to help. As I learned to live with the pain, I started changing how I worked in the studio. To promote better posture, I raised my wheel so I could throw pots while standing. I elevated my worktable so I wasn’t hunched over as I carved and decorated my work. Though, at times when the pain was most persistent, I wondered if I would further have to change the way I made work to make it easier on my body or to stop making ceramics altogether. But I know I could never give up ceramics. Being a dedicated ceramics artist is often a lifelong commitment. So, I learned how to best use my body, lift heavy objects, and correct my posture. I stretch and exercise to relieve tight muscles and I recognize when my body needs a break. I am now 30 years old and am starting my third and final year of graduate school. I still have occasional flareups, but I have learned to manage them as I continue moving forward in my career as a ceramics artist.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
As I learned and grew as an artist, the importance of art became engrained in me. In time, I also realized that many people don’t understand why art matters and that we must share that knowledge with non-creatives. Culture and art are so deeply intertwined with life, that many people fail to distinguish its significance and its relation to the happiness and success of humanity. We are surrounded by art at every moment of every day. Whether it’s the handmade mug we drink our morning coffee from, the music we listen to on our way to work, the poster for a theater performance designed by a local artist, the shirt on our backs, an entrée at a restaurant downtown, our favorite tv show, or the book we read before bed, these all exist because of artists, designers, architects, chefs, actors, writers, etc. Without art there would be no fashion, design would be tasteless or non-existent, and objects would do no more than function, if even that. There would be no individuality nor emotion, nothing to make us excited, nothing to bring us joy or sadness. Without art and outlets to express our emotions through creativity, our society struggles. This was evident during the first couple years of the covid-19 pandemic and living in isolation. We were starved of community and art, and we craved connection. In response, many art organizations found creative solutions to engage with their communities and pivoted to virtual platforms. We participated in online artist talks, exhibitions, workshops, festivals, music, and dance performances. In our homes we coped with our emotions through listening to music, cooking recipes, playing instruments, singing, dancing, and other craft activities. In an uncertain time, devoid of human connection, the arts and accessible opportunities helped make the pandemic bearable. Yet, post-pandemic we are starting to see universities and higher-education institutions cutting art programs. At the start of my final year of graduate school at West Virginia University, they announced that they would be cutting our renowned ceramics program in addition to many others in the arts and humanities. These decisions are being made by narrow-minded, wealthy businessmen who solely look at numbers and statistics, instead of opening their eyes to the invaluable impact that the arts are making within their immediate communities and beyond. We need to continue funding and supporting the arts because of its pertinent and immeasurable value to our culture. A life without art would be dismal, a world of black and white, a place not worth living in. Imagine a world without music, dance, decoration, architecture, photography, painting, pottery, sculpture, art museums, galleries, and so much more. So, if we care about our culture, well-being, and happiness, we need to care about the arts. Art is the difference between simply existing and actually living.
Contact Info:
- Website: stacylarsonceramics.com
- Instagram: @stacylarsonceramics
- Facebook: Stacy Larson Ceramics