Today we’d like to introduce you to Maggie Connolly
Hi Maggie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Maggie Connolly is a classically-trained artist in high craft and author from Dubuque, Iowa. After earning her undergraduate degree from Grinnell College in 2007, she made her way to China eventually becoming the first American graduate to earn a MFA in Ceramics from Tsinghua University in Beijing. She then hopped, skipped and jumped over to Japan. In 2017, she became the second American to earn a Ph. D from Tokyo University of the Arts for studio ceramics. In Spring of 2019 she finished a two year post-doctorate program there. From 2019 to 2020, she spent a year as an Artist-in-Residence at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, Tennessee and loved every moment of it. She has published multiple articles in Ceramics Monthly related to her travels throughout Asia researching ceramics. In her free time, she enjoys playing bridge. Currently, she is a full-time professional artist at Mighty Mud Studios in Knoxville, Tennessee
There is more information available here:
https://caoyustudio.com/blogs/news/my-story
https://ceramicartsnetwork.org/detail/author/maggie-connolly-333119
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
When the road is smooth you know there is something wrong, although I will say I’ve learned to minimize the more egregious bumps the older I get, and what once seemed insurmountable is now the easier stuff to deal with.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am classically trained in high craft. This means that every starting point comes from the perspective of understanding materials, processes and techniques. More personally, every journey is considered a conversation between me and the work, where I don’t have an end in mind. My guiding philosophy: that every goal is oriented towards creating connection. I am a serial experimenter, a mad scientist in my studio, intersecting multiple genres within ceramics. I process wild clay, make my own glazes, handbuild, wheel-throw, monotype transfer, underglaze, overglaze, luster, ceramic decal, upcycle thrifted ceramics, wood fire, electric fire, mason stains, etc. I feel that my journey as an artist is a constant arrival of understanding about who I and my work are – how we work together and how we fit into the larger cultural conversation. I truly believe in the concept that hand-made functional objects enhance the meaning and beauty of everyday life, and strive to create work that gathers people together; vessels to hold memories.
My work combines Eastern training with Western aesthetic sensibilities and materials, trying to create a wholly unique synthesis between the two. Deeply inspired by all styles of Asian ceramics – Jun, Yixing, Kyoyaki, yakishime, etc. When I first started interacting with American ceramics, it was via Instagram, while I was in school abroad. I noticed that bright, bold colors play a big part of American ceramics, and when I returned, it was one of the elements that I wanted to interact more with, as it was a symbol to me of my Americanness. I am still trying to figure out other identifiers of Americanness in ceramics, but in a lot of ways my schooling remains ingrained in me: my forms tend to be smaller and thinner than the “correct” American size; I don’t chase perfection, letting the chaos of the kiln and materials be what they may and finding the beauty in the randomness.I view my practice as meditative and meticulous, yet I still cherish the unplanned “mishaps” that are common occurrences in ceramics, especially in wood firing.
I earned my MFA in Ceramic Design from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China, in 2013, the first American to earn such a distinction, and my Ph. D in Studio Ceramics at Tokyo University of the Fine Arts in Tokyo, Japan, in 2017. I returned to America in 2019 and spent a year at Arrowmont, in Gatlinburg, Tennessee as an Artist-in-Residence. Currently, I am a full-time professional potter in Knoxville, Tennessee. I teach classes at Mighty Mud Studios and am setting up a ceramics program at The Bottom, a local community organization to support Black Creatives. Working with The Bottom allows me to more fully engage with the cultural aspects of ceramics – like when I was a student in China and Japan.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I’ve never thought about it, but I’ve been very privileged in my life.
Pricing:
- Small Vessels $120-400
- Large Vessels $600-1000
- Lamp Shades $400-750
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.caoyustudio.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/caoyu_studio/
