Artist Highlight: Zoë Pinnell

As a recent graduate of Sheridan College with a Bachelors of Craft and Design, how has your academic journey shaped your approach to ceramics? 

I truly don’t think I would be in this spot without the program. Beyond developing some of the most important relationships I have, Sheridan pushed me to constantly grow. I developed confidence in myself through the support of the faculty. Sheridan taught me how to be a hard worker, but how to enjoy the process and to never stop experimenting. I learned how to make good objects and how to get them to be great. It gave me insight on those who have a career in the craft and how they do it. It taught me that community is key, and to not take that for granted. I would consider myself much different of both a person and maker now than when I was in school, but I still go into my studio everyday and treat it like I'm getting prepared for the next critique.

Are there specific elements of the natural world that consistently captivate your imagination and find expression in your work?

I long for the forests and gardens! My family is from Thunder Bay and I would also spend most of my summers as a kid in the Sudbury area. Much of what I decorate is in direct relation to those places and the memories I've created there. I love the forest. I feel at peace in it, I love all the animals and plants you find. My family loves to garden, and that's been passed to me. I feel connected to it all, but also feel so disconnected. Decorating my imagery brings me back to these places and helps me find peace while being so far from away from what I value in my environment.

Your work involves creating illustrated sculptural and functional handbuilt objects. How do you balance the sculptural and functional aspects in your pieces, and what challenges or rewards does this present?

I often teeter between the two. Depending on my current interests, pieces will lean one direction or the other. In my last year at Sheridan, and a few years following, many pieces included elements such as sculpted feet and knobs, sprigs and other added 3D moments, and in a lot of cases the pieces were not necessarily focused on the function. They were fairly random attachments, or intentional, but not the most practical. I think that has drifted to the opposite direction recently. I now focus on making the pieces functional first. I then will still add sprigs and other 3D elements (such as flowers, vines, etc) but they usually are more flush to the pot to avoid being bumped. My illustrations come to life with these additions. I still will sculpt small animals, flowers, or something along the lines of the narrative and for handles and knobs. 

I want people to use my work. I appreciate that they cherish it by placing them on their display shelves, but I want to reduce the anxiety of using the piece. The best way was to scale back on very ‘out there’ attachments, and focus on attachments people could touch while drinking their coffee, or observe while washing the dishes. I now tend to save any riskier additions for my flower vessels and other statement forms. 

Are there specific techniques or methods you employ to achieve the vibrant and detailed decorations in your ceramics?

I primarily decorate with glazes on leatherhard clay. I use Stroke and Coats, commercial glazes, for most of my coloured decoration. By putting it on the leatherhard clay it gives me the ability to sgraffito around the paintings. After bisque, I inlay another glaze into the sgraffito lines and then fill any empty spaces with my own glazes.

See more of Zoë's work here, and at the Craft Ontario Shops!