Ed Byers

It must be something about the cooler weather and the autumn leaves. Everyone seems to be talking about ceramics. From wheel thrown porcelain bowls to hand-built sculpture. Sgraffito carving, slip casting, raku, wood firing…. it all has a warmth to it that keeps us cozy as the days get cooler. The mug I drink my tea from and the bowl I use for my soup – both carefully made by the hands of a ceramics artist.

And to keep that conversation going, I’ve added interviews with two ceramics artists to the website. Get a little behind the scenes look at Ed Byers, whose hand-built sculptures each have their own story, and Heather Van Horn and Eric Hendrick; who create art, write poetry, and spend time with children.

And to help you bring the joy of ceramics into your home, take 10% off every ceramic work of art at Artful Home by using the code CERAMICS9 at check out.

Running Dog Table by Jamie Robertson

“I don’t like brown furniture,” says Jamie Robertson, who runs little risk of being grouped with the monochromatic crowd. With more than 30 years of experience making furniture in the Boston area, Robertson rests his reputation on cleanly designed pieces that make use of richly colored woods and highly imaginative carvings.

“From the start, I’ve used furniture as a vehicle for decoration,” says the artist, who began working in wood in the early 1970s. Robertson redefined his woodworking techniques both on his own and as a part of the Cambridgeport Cooperative Woodshop (1973-1990), which he helped to found. The members of the co-op often shared projects, tools, wages, and ideas.

Today one of Robertson’s specialties is marquetry, the art of cutting and fitting together fine strips of wood, known as veneers, to create a single surface. He calls it the ultimate jigsaw puzzle.”I used veneers because I love their variety, the different effects I can create, the color combinations,” says Robertson.

Water Bench by Jamie Robertson

Given this attention to color, it’s no surprise that Robertson is a fan of modern painting. He also draws from early-twentieth-century designers associated with Art Nouveau and Art Deco movements.

“The Art Nouveau and Art Deco movements were really a rebellion against industrialization—the mass-produced, factory-made furniture that was becoming popular at the end of the nineteenth century.”

“Protesting against mechanization is not the reason I make furniture, of course. I drive a machine-made car every day. I use power tools. I’m not living in the woods; I’m not a Luddite. But I am making a complicated statement—if it can be called a statement—in my art; about how important it is to be connected to the objects in your environment and to interpret them. Objects don’t come out of nowhere. Every time I create a new object, I’m responding to, and in some ways organizing, a history of ideas and forms.”

Scarlet Moons by Rhoda Baer

One of the great delights in my role at Artful Home is getting to know so many artists, and learning more about their backgrounds, their path, and their work. Frequently, I learn that in addition to the medium with which I am familiar, that artist also works in a very different medium or technique as well. With some artists, there is a direct connection and link between their bodies of work, and with others, not so much.

Rhoda Baer is a woman who I think of as a glass artist. Her kiln-formed glass pieces display a bold use of color with a minimalist’s eye for form. Equally comfortable working with the most subtle shades or the most vibrant, Rhoda’s brings a fresh and elegant perspective to art glass.

Pitter-Patter by Rhoda Baer

In addition to glass, however, Rhoda is an accomplished photographer, with a long and successful career. Recently I was exposed to her "Platter People" and was absolutely delighted. This series manages to capture the pleasure of holding/admiring/loving a piece of art in a way which is so hard to capture. Perhaps it is her use of non-models; perhaps it is her acute awareness of the art; perhaps it is her knowing, critical eye; perhaps it is all these elements combined. Throughout my own career in art and marketing, a series like Rhoda’s is something I have tried to capture several times, and have rarely been satisfied with the results. Obviously, I was working with the wrong artistic talent; I wasn’t working with Rhoda!

Mosaic Vase by Rene Culler

For glass artist Rene Culler, “moving toward green” means establishing an efficient studio environment where little is wasted. As a result, her practices and equipment conserve energy and resources while keeping costs under control—so important for an independent artist working in a small studio.

Culler has chosen to set up shop in a building that supports working green. “The heating system was recently restructured,” she says. “The heat that is generated by glassblowing equipment warns the entire studio in winter.” With an eye to reducing waste, Culler has designed her own equipment using materials recycled from industry. “I am proud to say that much of my studio equipment, including my large fusing kiln, was composed from recycled steel that was retrieved from the dumpster and had a previous life in an old glass testing lab of a major lighting corporation. All I had to do was ask, fetch, and them weld!” The key to working efficiently is having the correct size of kiln for the job. “It is terribly wasteful to fire small objects in large kiln. While the initial investment may be high, the savings in energy can pay for materials or the kiln itself over time,” Culler explains.

Turquoise Spring Green Smoke Bowl by Rene Culler

Environmental concerns, as well as quality consideration, drive Culler’s selection of materials. “I choose to use Bullseye Glass as my mail supply because, in addition to its fine quality, its manufacturing process is environmentally sensitive. Some of their glass is recycled into other products, and the factory has employed the use of liquid oxygen that requires less natural gas for the furnaces to burn hotter while keeping emissions cleaner. A new cooling system reduces water consumption.” By sourcing raw materials that display a broad yet consistent color palette, Culler can reuse glass with ease, “All scraps are saved, and the smallest colors are sometimes melted in the furnace to create colored slabs of glass to be used for future glass castings and sculptures.” Having a small furnace for glassblowing also helps, because it prevents the problem of letting large amounts of hot glass linger too long in the furnace crucible, where it will eventually become unworkable and go to waste. “Many little actions in my business are attempts to go green,” says Culler. “I think that if artists as a group also tried various methods to reduce waste, the savings could be significant for them and for the environment.”