Today we’d like to introduce you to Naomi Peterson.
Naomi, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I grew up in a teensy town in Illinois (no, definitely not Chicago) and naturally, like any antsy little Midwestern budding artist, I wanted to get out as fast as I could. After getting my Associates at a community college, I decided to move out west to big sky country, aka Wyoming. Laramie was at once the largest and smallest town I’d ever lived in at that point. Large, because the people were imaginative and big-hearted, the landscape was awe-inspiring straight-out-of-a-painting, and small because literally it took 15 minutes to walk really anywhere.
This second home is where I went from painting to ceramics at the University of Wyoming thanks to my amazing undergraduate professor, Margaret Haydon. I fell in love with clay in my first-hand building class I took as an outside my focus class. As I was a painting major during this time and had taken mostly all I needed to within the program, starting over within a new medium set me back a few years from graduating, but I was hooked. From hand-building, I graduated to throwing, which was not so much love at first badly shaped, blob? But it was a challenge that, after countless hours in the studio, I was able to make slightly less misshapen forms that you could more or less imagine a function for.
Fast forward a few years and currently, I’m in my second semester teaching Beginning Handbuilding at the University of North Texas. Another second year ceramics grad, Jihye Han, and I will have a show at the UNT Union from April 27 to the 8th of May. The closing reception will be from 5-7 on the Thursday the 7th of May.
Has it been a smooth road?
I believe that to be in the ceramics field, you must be a problem solver. The road is never smooth when you are always juggling multiple variables at the same time, such as possible blow-ups, cracking due to firing or knocking things over (happens sooo often), and general uncontrollability because the medium has a mind of its own. After all of the struggles and heartache over broken pieces and forms that didn’t work out for whatever reason, you get used to failing over and over. The clay community makes the medium so special because it’s made up of thousands of people who fail regularly, creating and innovating extraordinary objects while being open and connected with those within as well as outside the medium to share bits of their knowledge. Ceramics is such an extensive subject to study as it contains everything from aesthetics to engineering and chemistry and everything in between. One of the many struggles has been to narrow down my focus to just a few aspects. There is so much to learn and so many elements to learn from that it’s always exciting to try, fail and try again.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with University of North Texas – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Since my introduction to ceramics, I’ve defined myself as a vessel-maker, existing between the realms of function and sculpture. From making a simple cup to large sculptural forms, I’ve found it’s incredibly rewarding to see others interact with what I’ve made. So, partially as a result of said cups ending up on mantles or stowed away for safe-keeping instead of being used (cough cough Mom), I have been exploring the notion of including the viewer as much as possible in the experience of the piece.
My “social sculptures” as I call them, reference alcohol-culture. Intoxicants are and have been intertwined with people throughout history for various secular, religious and medicinal purposes. As such, we have many different ideas about consumption and regulation as well as differing opinions on what is deemed ‘good’ or ‘bad’. I use alcohol and intoxicant use as a means to examine the line between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ to argue that there are no real ‘right’ answers in life, only grey areas.
From process to aesthetic choices, I create “middle grounds” to expand on this subject of in-between. I use an assortment of hand-building techniques including coil, slab and a combination of the two to build forms that are in some capacity, functional as well as sculptural. Treatment of the structure and surface reflect states of duality; they are both decorative and rough, feminine and masculine, soft and hard, possessing ornamentation elements as well as textural evidence that the hand directly shaped the piece.
I’m proud of making pretty large forms out of clay (scale ranges around 4 feet) that after firing have minimal if any blemishes and I can lift them all myself fairly easily. More importantly, I am incredibly proud and thankful to be part of the clay community; when I need help loading one of these big (fragile) guys into the kiln, there are many people to lend a hand. Everyone lends support through sharing tips and tricks, aiding in moving, building and even buying or promoting each other’s work.
In addition to physical sculptures, I create rituals to define and contemplate the interactions we have with others and objects. This is what sets me apart from most of the (largely ceramic) artists I look to for inspiration. Through this designed experience that invites group interaction, I aim to ultimately help the viewer to become more aware of their behavior even just incrementally. By being more in-tune with ourselves and our actions, I believe we can feel more connected to those around us, realizing we are all more alike than different.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
Oh gosh, there are so many things to choose from! I love the diversity of food, art, and culture of the whole DFW area. I’ve met so many wonderful people in just over a year living here! One thing I just can’t get over though is the traffic. I know I’m spoiled from living in small towns where 30 miles means 30 minutes, but what makes it worth it are all of the awesome places to explore!
Contact Info:
- Website: naomipeterson.com
- Email: naomi.ceramic@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/n.ceramic
Suggest a story: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
