Studio Lead Spotlight - Sam Watkins

Meet Sam - East Clay Studio Lead

What drew you to this art form specifically?

My brain works better in three dimensions than it does in two dimensions. And so pretty immediately when I started doing pottery, I feel like I could actually express myself... whereas I had drawing teachers for years tell me like I wasn't doing it right. So it just kind of clicked from the beginning. I just understood it better.


So then when did you first get into Clay?

I was 14 and my mom's a potter, and, I was not quite old enough to be in an adult class, but they made an exception, so I got to go and take one of the adult classes, in my small Georgia hometown realm. 
 

What made you stick with it?

It was always a really fun hobby. Is just an escape from whatever else I was doing. So it's just my happy place. So I always had that in my back pocket.


What was your favorite thing you've ever made?

Probably this large stack pot that I soda-fired. And, it just came out so good. It was big and beautiful and colorful and it was great.
 

How did your parents feel about you becoming an artist?

They definitely always ask me if I consider doing anything else, but they're generally pretty supportive. Yeah, as long as I have enough money for the basics. They pretty much just support me. 
 

What's your favorite class to teach?

Totally depends on the vibe of the class. My favorite two things to do are, the raku firings and the soda firings. So usually something, like that.
 

Where do you recommend people start with this art form or the point of entry to clay?

From what I've seen, people who just kind of dive in -- people who have something in mind and just want to make something -- they push themselves to a higher standard, and build skills faster. It's an art form that requires a lot of hours of practice. It's hard to do it once a week and get better so eventually you'll want to practice multiple days per week. 
 

If you didn't teach Clay what other form would you want to practice or teach?

Probably metal. I'm a TA for metal. I'm trained up. I can do all the stuff and I just learned how to weld.