Blue Ridge Country - November/December 2019 - 49

FACING PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM UPPER LEFT:
* Little Phebe, asleep on the left, joins Andrea Denniston and Seth Guzovsky in their Poor Farm
Pottery home site gallery.
* Guzovsky has chosen to focus his talents in stoneware.
* Denniston's passion lies in porcelain.
* Together they create useful items that reflect their unique visions.
* Many of the items are attractively displayed in the gallery.
* Working in the studio is a family affair.

Starter Kit/Insider Tips from Seth Guzovsky & Andrea Denniston
➻ Education will come with many hands-on opportunities. Make the most of these experiential learning activities.
➻ Pursue as many assistantships as possible.
➻ "If you're going to make pottery your business, meet with a financial professional. Local small business administrations can often recommend free resources." (Denniston)
➻ Develop a marketing plan that includes organic ways to build clientele (such as
home studio tours), as well as inorganic methods (such as images and posts on your
website).
➻ Become members of a guild and/or association. "Nonprofit networking is important.
Each can offer different resources, different levels of potters, and access to different
clientele." (Guzovsky)
➻ "Always pay your dues, and get paid when possible! Apprenticeships can be for
money, or space exchanges. Working with experts, you have everything to gain."
(Guzovsky)
➻ "Do your research whether you're moving your products in galleries, online, shows, or
a combination. Online images and articles can be very informative." (Denniston)
➻ Decide what you want to create before you turn on the wheel.
➻ "Keep your line of sight on the lip when throwing or you'll lose control of the pot."
(Guzofsky)
➻ Some potters use online funding mechanisms to raise capital for studio expansions, a
new kiln, a new line of products, and so forth. This can be especially successful after
you develop your brand.
Poor Farm Pottery - poorfarmpottery.com
16 Hands Studio Tours - 16hands.com
Blue Ridge Potters Guild - blueridgepotters.com
'Round the Mountain: Southwest Virginia's Artisan Network - roundthemountain.org
Silviegranatelli.com

Granatelli, "and I basically followed Andrea here," laughs Guzovsky. "I purchased
a house. We had a long-distance relationship, and then got married in 2016." In
addition to this abbreviated version of
events, both artists have a deep connection with their craft.
"I clearly remember making my first
pot in kindergarten when the grown-up
fifth graders came to our room for projects," says Denniston. "I always wanted to
make more, but it wasn't really an option
in Kansas and West Virginia where I grew
up. So I didn't touch clay again until my
junior year of college. I took my first real
class, and haven't stopped since!"

Guzovsky shares: "The wrestling coach
was also the sculpture teacher in my high
school outside of Boston, Massachusetts.
I wanted a spring thing to do in the afternoons, and it was available. I actually sold
my first pot when I was a sophomore. And
I still have that check!"
The couple spent many of their first
months back together on the road, setting
up at fairs and shows around the region.
"Your heart is in the center of that booth
tent," Guzovsky says. "We were grinding
hard; learning our market across the midAtlantic circuit; winning some awards;
and picking up the start of a customer
base. At times though, we might bring

back 95% of what we took. So we'd get
home, regroup, calculate the numbers,
and go back and do it better."
Back at their home and studio in the
mountains, Guzovsky has built two custom 35-cubic-foot kilns for his stoneware, as Denniston utilizes two electric
kilns for her porcelain. In the multi-room
workshop, there is a sense of ancient purpose as each move through the processes
of cutting and weighing clay, throwing
shapes, filling boards for drying racks, attaching handles and incising, firing once
to bisque, and twice to glaze. "In school,"
recalls Denniston, "it was like Christmas
to open a kiln. Now it's like-what if
something went wrong?! The stakes are
definitely higher."
Their parallel adventures of distance
and time are now bound together, creating a pottery power couple quickly gaining acclaim for their skills and visions.
"More than the shape or color, I'd like
to think that our pots hold a purpose in
people's lives," says Guzovsky, which is in
turn reflected in the name of their business. "Historically, poor farms offered
honest work to people who were in need.
I bonded to the name because of the similarities in program merits to an apprenticeship. Both offer an alternative place to
work, learn, and be productive."
In conclusion, Guzovsky states that
the key to long-term success at Poor Farm
Pottery "is the combination of academics,
apprenticeships, and professional practices, along with the creativity." He states,
"Andrea has that touch; a natural ability."
Then he adds with a smile, "And I work
really hard!"
Looking ahead: "We like to continue to
make small incremental improvements to
our work," says Denniston. Therefore, the
future includes developing a new line for
the wholesale market "that's not Seth, and
not me. Rather it's a collaboration of both.
Then we'd like to attend select shows,
work directly with galleries and catalog
companies, sell online, and have more
customers come to our gallery here. This
will allow us to stay home more," says
Denniston, as she holds the newest addition to the family, daughter Phebe.
Guzovsky adds, "We are constantly
getting asked about taking an apprentice.
And we've definitely talked about that
happening in the next couple of years."

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2019

http://www.poorfarmpottery.com http://www.16hands.com http://www.blueridgepotters.com http://www.roundthemountain.org http://www.Silviegranatelli.com

Blue Ridge Country - November/December 2019

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