Pam Butler
Why clay?
In a class, I started on the potter’s wheel and felt the love almost immediately. There’s a basic connection made when working with clay, one that links us to nature. Creating with clay helps me to slow down, letting the busy around me fade away.
Why Farmville/Prince Edward County?
I came to Virginia for college and stayed, moving to Farmville 20 years ago. Farmville was situated well for our family to allow for shorter commutes to jobs.
If not clay here, What?
I enjoy knitting and needlepoint. I like making pieces for others. It’s rewarding to think about the person while making their future gift.
Tray Eppes
Why clay?
I stumbled into clay at college and really liked it. After graduating, I pursued clay as an effort not to join the real world.
I enjoyed shaping my time around the cycles of work necessary to make pottery. After a few years, my father said, “You might not need to get a job.”
Once you learn about it, clay is very accommodating. You can comfortably fit other hobbies and chores around making pottery.
Why Farmville/Prince Edward County?
I’ve been visiting Darlington Heights on the western edge of Prince Edward County as long as I can remember. My mother was born here on my grandparents’ dairy farm. I don’t know why I decided to move here in 1975 and build a pottery kiln. It seemed like the thing to do.
If not clay here, What?
It would be music. I’ve been playing music all my life. Performing music provides a rewarding balance to the solitude of making pottery.
Randy Edmonson
Why clay?
I like the way clay responds to the touch and the immediacy of building and decorating three-dimensional forms.
Why Farmville/Prince Edward County?
I moved to Farmville in 1979 after accepting a university teaching position. My home and studio are in located in Prince Edward County.
If not clay here, What?
As a professional artist, I’m proficient in several different areas, including painting and drawing.
Cricket Edmonson
Mackenzie Lenhart
Why clay?
For me, clay serves as a way to record place and time. Its inherent workable and physical properties are directly related to its geological history. Using found clays, I am able to take a part of that place and history and transform it into something that is representative of its origins. That close link between beginning and end is what drives me to explore this medium and nature itself.
Why Farmville/Prince Edward County?
If I weren’t in this region, I would hope to be somewhere with as varied a geography as Virginia has, since the abundance of natural raw materials and beautiful landscapes were guiding factors in what brought me to this area. Originally intending to be in Virginia for just a year, I’ve found that the ceramics community surrounding Farmville—along with other artistic opportunities—have allowed me to spread roots that I hope will continue to grow throughout the years.
JJ Eisfelder
Why clay?
Clay is so fun. It feels good in your hands. It absorbs tension from your body. And you can make useful things with it. It’s amazing stuff!
I like making objects that people will use in their daily lives. It’s important to me to have as many handmade items in my house as I can. Objects made by actual people, who have put their energy into making that item.
I’m also a printmaker, so for me, clay has always been one side of how I express myself. There are a lot of similarities in how I make my pottery and prints, and I enjoy seeing how each one influences the other.
Why Farmville/Prince Edward County?
This is an easy one. My husband, Jasen, and I met in college in Montana. After I graduated, we stayed in Montana for about a year, but the opportunity came up for us to manage his family’s property in Virginia. We moved here in 2000 and started a small, organic farm on the property, which we did for eight years before moving on to other jobs. During this time, I also continued to make art and, luckily, met a bunch of great local potters who helped me continue to learn and grow as a potter.
If not clay here, What?
Printmaking, painting, sewing, making baskets, farming/gardening, cooking, hiking…
Steve Barber
Why stained glass?
After college, I took a stained glass course at a local community college and fell in love with the media. I still marvel at the beauty of stained glass. I have been designing and fabricating items ever since that first class.
Why Farmville/Prince Edward County?
I retired and moved from Upstate New York to be closer to family.
If not clay here, What?
I also like working in wood. I’ve made many Adirondack chairs, including Adirondack “ski” chairs.