Olivia Tarricone

"BMIX with grog"

Primary forming method?

" Wheel "

Primary firing temperature?

"Cone 5/6. "

Favorite surface treatment?

"Underglaze Dips"

Large Necklace

Matte Vase

Matte Vase

Large Vase Black

Olivia & Lorenzo

How/Where do you market and sell your artwork?

"I am not actively selling at this moment. I am currently working on a website update to sell the leftovers from the Clay Crawl online. "

Fan Necklace

"Function. I am the most creative when solving a problem of how to make something work better… whether it’s a better foot on a bowl, or an improvement to the process of making, I am constantly trying to make better, more functional forms."             

Puddle Planters

Mini Vases Blue Green

"Yes – I am a registered architect, and although I have not worked in a proper design role in 5 years, my brain is forever wired to figure out how all the pieces of a whole should come together and how it can be done in the most efficient and attractive manner. About 10 years ago, after completing my architectural registration exams, I finally found free time to begin taking pottery classes after work. This was when I lived in Philadelphia, and I fell so hard for ceramics that after just a year of classes, I bought a wheel so that I could keep throwing during the breaks between classes. Upon moving to Houston in 2017, I set up a small home studio in a guest room, which eventually expanded into a garage, and in 2020 I bought a kiln. In mid 2022 I took the step of leaving my salaried job. I would now consider my career to be Pottery/Parent/Hospitality, as I try to make pots, wrangle two toddlers, and work on getting my AirBnb up and running in part of our newly renovated historic house! "

How have you have taken your experience as a well-established maker in the field and passed that knowledge along to your other artists?

" I have not really – yet – but I would like to do so! I consider myself to be an early-career ceramicist, and as I broaden my network of other artists (through ClayHouston!) I look forward to spreading the knowledge more and I also hope to figure out how to create future artists by introducing little kids to clay. "

What’s the best advice you’ve been given by a fellow maker, mentor, or teacher?

“A teacher once told me: [paraphrasing] “You are not a machine. If your work starts to look like a machine could have made it, then why are you here at all?” And then they made me throw with the wheel spinning the opposite direction! I now purposely stay away from letting my exacting architectural side intrude on my clay work. "