Potters Market at the Mint
September 21, 2024
Ben Owen Pottery, Seagrove NC
Multi-generational pottery featuring traditional and contemporary designs influenced from Asia, Europe, and early American clay works. Unique glaze colors and textures from wood and other firing processes have continued to evolve in the family tradition.
I remember, from my early years in clay, my grandfather’s frequent advice, “Keep it simple, Son. Keep it simple.”
How can something that sounds so easy on its face value prove to be an incessant and monumental daily challenge? I am constantly striving to advance my repertoire of shapes, colors, effects, and expressions while simultaneously honoring my grandfather’s voice, which was drawn from his forefathers’ experiences in clay. Hailing from a deep-rooted pottery tradition and becoming the family’s first university-educated clay artist, I am challenged to sort through the balance of tradition and vision, finding my own unique voice in the chorus of fine performances. I strive to create truly new works of art in clay that are clearly ‘Ben Owen III’ while paying homage to the time-honored Owen aesthetic.
Some of my works appear in traditional Owen shapes; rendered in a new, grand scale; and modeling colors and finishes of which my forefathers never dreamed. I am intrigued by the exploration of matrix and cohesion relating to glass and pigments. The discovery that follows often leads to the next big question along my journey, as I seek to take my discovery to the next level. I move slowly and methodically along my path, often stopping to evaluate my adherence to my grandfather’s guiding principle of simplicity.
My current work carries the echoes of deep history from the Asian cultures which have been consciously studied by Owen potters for three generations; and the stories of England and early America, as my forefathers were the makers of the settlers’ simple necessities including whiskey jugs, candlesticks, butter churns, and canisters. I attempt to breathe new life into these simple earthen vessels; infusing them with artistic vision that makes them comfortable at the world’s finest locations, yet friendly enough to be daily companions.