A beautiful porcelain cup that was hand-thrown by Elizabeth McAdams with added texture. This piece was fired in single chamber wood kiln for an over 48 hour plus firing. Perfect for sipping your favorite beverage from. Dishwasher safe. Measuring 3.5”w x 3.75”x 3.5”h.
Please Note: What appear to be white spots on the surface are reflections from photo lighting.
The Natural Ash Glaze is produced by relying on the wood-firing process as the glazing agent. Most pieces dedicated to this glaze are placed in the kiln with little or no glaze applied to the exterior. During the firing process, the wood is stirred occasionally in the firebox to give flight to the flakes of ash that are produced during the firing. When these small flakes become airborne, they cling to the exposed areas of the pots and accumulate over a period of time. As the kiln reaches about 2300 degrees Fahrenheit, the wood ash will liquefy and begin to run down the side of the pots, as if one had poured honey on the vase.
Elizabeth McAdams is a North Carolina native that grew up on her family’s farm in Efland, NC. She attended the University of North Carolina Wilmington and graduated with a degree in Studio Art and a minor in Art History in 2012. During that time, she focused on painting and drawing, but also took a few pottery classes. She worked as a wedding floral designer in Wilmington, NC for five years after graduating, and during that time, found clay again and began taking classes at a local community arts center and joined the local Clay Guild. She decided she wanted to pursue her passion for Clay further and did a year-long wood firing ceramics residency at Cub Creek Foundation under Director John Jessiman, in Appomattox,Va. during 2018. Her time there was a catalyst for a deepened appreciation of pottery and furthering her exploration in clay.
In 2019, she participated in the working artist program at Longwood University in Farmville, Va. During the summer of 2019, she was a studio assistant at a craft school, Sugar Maples, in Maplecrest, NY. From the fall of 2019 to the fall of 2021, she apprenticed for potter Silvie Granatelli in Floyd, VA, which enabled her to learn what life would be like working as a full-time potter and began her business Elizabeth McAdams Pottery, selling wares at various craft shows and online.
She continued her journey in Floyd, Va working as the pottery studio manager at the Floyd Center for the Arts from fall of 2021 to spring of 2022. During that time, she took a last minute opportunity to work as a studio assistant in the pottery studio for the summer of 2022 at Peters Valley School of Craft in Sandyston, NJ. It was there that she met Ben Owen and helped assist in the workshop that he did firing the Anagama kiln. Elizabeth began working for Ben Owen Pottery in October 2022 as a studio assistant and retail manager. Elizabeth enjoys creating patterns and designs on her wares and is deeply influenced by her love of elements and designs found in nature. This piece is hand-signed by Elizabeth McAdams with the signature McAdams.