Five years ago, Dr. Stacey Hettes, associate professor of biology, held a workshop on pottery for faculty, staff and students at the Chapman Cultural Center. A beginner at the time, one of the participants was instantly hooked – and after years of perfecting the art, is now showcasing her best creations on Wofford’s campus.
That participant was Dr. Natalie Grinnell, professor of English, who today spends much of her free time as a recreational potter. In her collection titled “Glazed and Bemused,” 25 of her finest clay pieces are on display in the Glass Case Galleries on the second floor of Roger Milliken Science Center until the end of October.
Five years after crafting her first pot, Grinnell estimates that she now has over 200 pieces in her collection.
“I try to give them away as often as I possibly can,” says Grinnell. “Everyone in my family has received multiple gifts.”
Grinnell says she has thought about selling her creations but feels overwhelmed by the tax forms. Rather than selling them, she frequently barters her pots.
“I’ve traded for homemade bread, wine, tea, chocolate, and homegrown vegetables,” says Grinnell.
The recreational potter says she favors fairly clean shapes, but claims no instinctual artistic talent.
“I actually studied ancient Greek ideals of proportion and form,” says Grinnell on how she honed her skills. “I studied how to divide things into thirds so that I could practice – sort of a scholar’s approach.”
Her collection showcases a variety of colors, clay types and shapes. On her color choices, Grinnell says: “I’m still exploring glazes. I haven’t settled on a specific palette that I like, but I do have a tendency toward blues and greens.”
In this collection, many of her designs are geometric.
“I chose things that I felt came out well and represent a variety of different surface techniques, so that some are a weird pastel with dots and some are more earthy colors,” says Grinnell. “I haven’t picked a style when it comes to that sort of thing. I go back and forth often and even switch clay bodies depending on what I’m in the mood for, because they feel different in your hands, and I like the variety.
Grinnell says the best part of using the pottery wheel is not needing to have any free-hand talent.
“It goes in a circle. Once you’ve mastered centering the clay, then you don’t have to do anything free-hand at all,” she says. “I’m terrible at hand-building pottery, which is something that a lot of artists like to do.”
For Grinnell, this exhibit is not just a collection of her favorite pieces, but also a physical representation of her idea of stress relief and tranquility.
“Having my own wheel means that whenever I’m even slightly stressed, I can go down to my basement and throw some pots. After an hour on the pottery wheel, all of my cares melt away. I’m completely relaxed physically and mentally.”
Starting today, several of her pieces are off limits for bartering (for the time being), and on display for the Wofford community.
