10 Great Personality Traits for Potters
1) Artistic ( duh!)
2) Athletic : Practicing Ceramics is a real workout. My family made fun of me when I said that ceramics was my sport (including biking to the studio), but honestly, it takes a lot of strength. It’s a full body workout, your arms get more work but your entire body is engaged. Try wedging five pounds of clay!
3) Calm and Confident: the clay knows if you’re stressed out. It can smell your fear. Take a deep breath and relax. Each gesture should be deliberate and slow so the clay knows who is the boss.
4) Don’t mind getting dirty (again, duh!)
5) Like to play with fire: Potters literally play with fire when they wood fire or raku fire. They also do it metaphorically, always challenging gravity and the clay’s limitations to create ever thinner walls and convoluted shapes.
6) Open to new ideas but aware of history: Ceramics is an ancient art and there is a backlog of many great artists behind you and across all continents. So it is intimidating to walk in their footsteps. At the same time, ceramics is an amazing medium because there is always something new you can try, so you have to keep your mind open and experiment to find your own way of making things.
7) Patient: It takes time to learn ceramics, and clay needs time to dry and time to get fired (twice) before you finally get your finished piece. It’s a slow skill with slow rewards.
8) Perfectionist: Most potters I know are perfectionists. They keep trying to get the perfect piece, and being a smidge too short. Some people are just fine with usable pieces, but if you want a good result, it helps to be a perfectionist.
9) Resilient: If you love failing and trying again, then ceramics is for you. To be honest, I hesitated with the word “masochist”. Resilient sounded better.
10) Well rounded and a little off-kilter: Good pots are perfectly round and symmetrical. At the same time, to make your piece unique, a little asymmetry can be just what you need. You’ll have to find the perfect balance for you.
EDIT: after I published this post, a reader (thanks Michelle!) suggested another important trait for potters: a good sense of humor! I couldn’t agree more. Clay is ridiculous sometimes, or just wants you curling up in a ball and sobbing, which is when it’s important to laugh about it all!