Debbie Corley finds inspiration and challenges in artist communities
Debbie Corley sees herself as a ceramics hobbyist, but her professional connections tell a different tale. She was juried into the Art Market Gallery last year and was one of their featured artists. A member of Terra Madre, a group of local women who work in clay, she will participate in their annual show and sale November 8 and 9. She sold her ceramics at Dogwood Arts in the spring and has work at the Clay Lady Gallery in Nashville.
True, she did start out learning her craft s a hobby. After moving here in the 90s and when her youngest daughter turned 5, she signed up for pottery classes taught by Valerie Eiler. Then for more of them. And more. Finally, her husband suggested she set up a studio in their garage. “It seemed like a good idea at the time,” she says, “but I felt very isolated. It was very part time; I’d work it in around family time. Now we’re empty nesters, and I’m all in.”
Being all in has included exploring galleries and pottery guilds and making friends with other artists. “It feels very new to me, stepping into the arts and makers communities. It’s very enriching to have people I can talk to about pottery.”
It’s been challenging too. “I’m learning that galleries and guilds want you to have a cohesive body of work, a voice, I had never tried to develop that before. I was all over the place experimenting. Now there’s an expectation to figure out what I’m doing, what is my look? My brand? I’m trying to rein in my eclectic tastes and figure out my style.”
Nature plays a role in that style. “I’m very inspired by nature: clouds, the ocean, daisies. And I love color, a lot of contrast. My passion is surface design—the decoration part of the process. But I’m learning to grow my carving skills, too.”
When she started making her functional pieces—mugs, bowls, plates, bud vases—she’d set up a table in her front yard and invite friends and neighbors to shop. “Now I feel like I have a peer audience, and the bar has been raised.” Evidence would suggest that she’s clearing it. Find out for yourself at her website, dc-pottery.com.