Using the potter’s wheel is something that many people are unfamiliar with, often only seen somewhere in Carrboro or in “Ghost,” but it’s a little harder than it seems. East’s ceramics classes were buzzing this spring when ceramic artist Delores Farmer stopped by for a week to help instruct students in all ceramics levels about using the potter’s wheel. Farmer has been creating and selling her work in Durham for about eight years.
“I mainly focus on pieces that have a lot of texture and a lot of contrast on their surface[s],” Farmer said. “I have two teaching studios now and I offer six-week classes at each session so people can come in and have access to a community space.”
Ceramics teacher Melissa Vrooman-Olson first had the idea to begin bringing Farmer to East for a workshop after meeting Farmer in Durham.
“I first met Delores one Saturday morning about five years ago at the Durham Farmers’ Market where she was selling her pottery. We hit it off,” Vrooman-Olson said in an email. “Delores had attended Jordan High School in Durham, graduated from N.C. Central University and made a successful career following her passion as a full-time potter. I thought my students would find her energy and enthusiasm inspiring, so I asked if she’d be interested in sharing her work with my classes. We began making plans.”
Ceramics students had an overwhelmingly positive response to the week-long workshop with Farmer, as they have in the two times previous that she has worked with East students. Farmer’s new perspective and skills were commended throughout the event.
Ceramics student Reilly Adams remembered the positive atmosphere that Farmer’s presence created for students working on the potter’s wheel.
“She was really experienced and it was just super fun, because she was also funny. She was goofy and…I feel like when I throw on the wheel, because we can’t do it all the time, it’s like, ‘Oh my god, we need to be careful,’…and she’d just be like, ‘Do whatever you want!’” Adams said. “It adds excitement [to pottery] and teaches you to make things that you’re proud of.”
Another ceramics and art student, senior Kristie Curran, plans to pursue art as a career and study communication arts next year at Virginia Commonwealth University.
“Because I’m looking at doing art as a career, it was so interesting seeing someone who actually does, and talking to her about how you price your work and… how you develop style, which is really cool,” Curran said. “I had a lot of trouble with throwing on the wheel before, but… she really was able to explain it in a way that I could understand and the hands on approach really fixed my technique.”
Farmer recognizes the opportunity that the ceramics workshops bring to high school students.
“It’s really nice to get exposure earlier on because if you’re interested in [pottery], you can start working at it a little earlier on. I was kind of a late bloomer…. For those who are in the pottery field, a lot of them have started much, much earlier on in their lives,” Farmer said.
The main reason why Farmer is able to come to East for the week-long workshop is because of a grant from the Public School Foundation that compensates for her time. As an artist, to take time off from her main work and provide guidance and teaching elsewhere, the pay is necessary.
“ Supported by grants from the Public School Foundation and the ECHHS PTSA, my students have been able to learn from a professional potter, an artist in our community,” said Vrooman. “Over the years we’ve hosted Delores three times at East, and each time it’s been a highlight for many students. She demonstrates her expertise on the potter’s wheel, speaks to the practical and business side of life as an artist, and then helps each student throw a pot or two on the wheel.”
Students understand that having a new perspective in the art room can help them develop new skills, and Farmer’s presence recently has been very effective for them.
“I think also because she is a professional artist and it is her career, she has a kind of perspective, working in the field, not necessarily in a college classroom, but in apprenticeship or in a workshop. I wanted to sign up for her courses this summer, but they all filled in like an hour, but yeah, she’s amazing. I love her. She should come back,” Curran said.
Farmer sees the positive impact on students that she can have, provided by the Public School Foundation’s grants.
“[The grant has] provided a really lovely opportunity to come and share what I’ve learned over the years with students,” Farmer said. “Pottery is awesome. Pottery is life. Everyone try pottery at least once.”
Photo by Avery Tortora/The ECHO
