Biography
It was finding clay in high school during the late 90's that started me on my career as a maker. I grew up in Aurora, IL attending the nearby North Central College for my undergraduate education. It was in my ceramics classes where I began to meet clay artists and learn their stories. I was lured into the life of clay by their stories and after graduating, I accepted a position as artist-in-residence at Terra Incognito in Oak Park, IL in 2006.
I spent three years at Terra managing the operations of the clay studio and began to teach wheel throwing classes. I met many visiting artists there who inspired and influenced me on the way I work in clay. From Terra I went on to graduate school at Marywood University in Scranton, PA. During my time in graduate school I became a member of the local community of wood fire potters and was once again lured deeper into the world of clay.
In 2011 I graduated from the MFA program with a concentration in clay and moved back to Aurora with intentions of opening my own home studio. After a year of home renovation, the studio was operational and I began participating in local Art fairs. I also began teaching at the College of DuPage where I teach ceramics and wood firing. As well as returning to Terra Incognito to teach an adult pottery class.
In the summer of 2019 I moved to Villa Park and that fall built a new wood kiln at the College of DuPage. During the pandemic I taught ceramics online where everything had to be hand built. This inspired me to create a new body of hand built work for a reduction cooled wood fire workshop. That new style of work has become an inspiration in the studio as I continue to explore new forms and challenges. At the start of 2024, I left Terra Incognito to accept an additional adjunct position at Waubonsee Community College teaching ceramics and firing more wood kilns.
Big changes are coming in the summer of 2025 as I move my studio to Naperville, IL. Stay tuned for updates as I build the new studio in the winter and spring of 2026.
Statement
To make my work I must approach it with a clear sense of the finished aesthetic but intuitively evolve the work through the process. I strive to create work that feels as if it has always existed. As it were merely pulled from anytime and presented. To place my work in a place between the unconscious craftsperson and the conscious artist.
Influenced by mid-century architecture, my work prioritizes function while highlighting the designs. Utility drives the forms which emphasize balance, structural logic, and a grounded relationship to the human hand. While the patterns act as vessels for memory and physical references, allowing everyday objects to store and release meaning through use. Transformed by fire, the work explores how everyday objects carry and transmit meaning across time.
Gallery Exhibition List
Classes
I teach ceramics classes at the College of DuPage and Benedictine University. I am also available to teach workshops about how I make and fire my pottery. Contact me for more information about classes or a workshop.
The train style wood fire kiln Benjamin built with Ted Neal and hi students at the College of DuPage.