Solitary Pottery Wheel or Social Tech?
- Rachel McNally
- Oct 5, 2024
- 3 min read
After a successful, very gentle launch of selling my pottery at the Puppet Place market back in August. I found myself thinking about my WHY for pottery.
I had so many lovely conversations with fellow market stall holders, old friends from Puppet Place (where I used to be CEO) and with buyers. It was social, it was fun and it felt great to sell things. It was also entirely nerve-wracking but it was my first market!
Invariably when I told people that this was my first market, many asked me if I was on social media, do I sell online? I am sat here writing a blog on my website so clearly I am online, however I find myself reluctant to go full pelt with setting up as an online pottery business. Why?
I decided to leave the world of producing and the performing arts at a time when I was recovering from serious illness and following the Covid lockdowns, I found my need and desire to do that kind of work had largely gone. I wanted a different kind of experience, one that was more direct and relied less on sitting behind a computer.
ENTER THE POTTERY WHEEL!
Pottery and Ceramics had been in my life for a number of years and it felt like the right time to see what was possible. I have spent a good couple of years transforming my potting shed into a pottery shed and seeing what works, what I enjoy and thinking about how this might be a business.
THINGS I ABSOLUTELY LOVE
Throwing on the Wheel.
Discovering new techniques for decoration.
Finding ways to save time with clear up.
Opening The Kiln and seeing that everything has worked.
It's honestly a better feeling than a surprise party or opening presents on Christmas morning.
THINGS I LOVE LESS
Reclaiming clay
It is satisfying to recycle the scraps back into something usable, but it's a dull process.
Attaching handles
Do mugs really need handles? I ask myself this every time I am smoodging a handle onto a mug. I MAY learn to love this part of the process but it hasn't happened yet.
Creating a Social Media Strategy / Online Platform
I am full of admiration for the potters and ceramic artists who film and photograph their work beautifully and share on social media. I love watching Florian Gadsby's videos and I thoroughly recommend them to anyone who is interested in learning more about pottery. However, I have spent so much time as a producer working on comms and I just don't want to do this.
So What Kind of Potter Am I?
Clearly it is not a viable business to just make pots and then constantly give your friends mugs and bowls for every birthday. No one likes passive aggressive ceramic gifting! While I enjoy the solitary time at the wheel slipping the clay under my hands and discovering forms, I also enjoy the social aspect of markets and talking to actual people. So for now I will stick with markets. For me it makes more sense with a craft and artform that is experienced through weight, texture as well as visually. So for now, if you would like to stay in touch I am going to set up a mailing list. I will not bombard you with emails, just the occasional one that will let you know where I will be popping up next or if I have discovered something new and exciting in the clay in the shed.
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