Local Potter Blends Love for the Natural World & Ceramics
Story and photos by Will Marquette
Joe Winter grew up in a small college town in Wisconsin, where his world outside of school revolved around the outdoors— flying kites, exploring creek bottoms, and surveying the natural world.
“My very curious mind loved studying the natural fluid dynamics of the things I was observing,” he says.
In second grade, and as a Cub Scout at the time, Joe took a field trip to a pottery studio. The encounter opened his eyes to the possibility of creating art using ceramics, bridging the gap between his love for art and his appreciation for natural shapes and materials.
In the summer between 5th and 6th grade, Joe attended a College for Kids workshop and was allowed to use the pottery studio. He was ecstatic—playing with mud and fire was his dream, and he had the opportunity to make that dream a reality.
“I wound up spending a lot of time there all through high school, teaching myself how to throw pots in the evening when no one was around,” Joe says. “A little instruction would have been helpful, but I was stubborn.”
After high school, Joe attended Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona, where he earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts in ceramics. He then moved to Greenville, North Carolina, where he earned a master’s in ceramics.
Today, Joe is a full-time potter, residing in the quaint hills of Northern Nevada, along the California border. As a member of Plumas-Sierra REC, he has the opportunity to live deep in the natural world without sacrificing access to reliable energy. This is crucial for his day-to-day operations. Most of Joe’s work is conducted at home in his shop, where his equipment primarily runs on electricity.
“I learned on an old-style kick wheel, but a good electric wheel is so much nicer,” Joe says. “I use an electric kiln for bisque firing and a large electric clay mixer, not to mention tunes in the background.”
His days can be long, considering the many steps of precise crafting.
“I generally work in cycles of throwing and trimming pots for a couple of weeks, then spending a few days glazing for the next firing,” Joe says.
After the firing is unloaded, he starts the cycle over again.
“I like to complete all the wet work on each piece in one day,” he says. “For bowls, I spend a few hours throwing on the wheel, then catch up on other tasks while they are drying, and finally trim the bowl late in the day. For mugs, it would involve throwing a few boards of mugs and later adding handles to them.”
Every piece is 100% handmade, from preparing the clay to glazing and firing the pottery in one of many kilns.
“Twelve-hour days are pretty normal, but I’m doing what I love,” Joe says.
He enjoys using a variety of glazes and firing techniques to make each piece unique. Joe uses a Raku firing technique for the bright, colorful work he collaborates on with his wife, Shiho. Joe throws and shapes each vase, then Shiho illustrates and glazes them. He also uses 4 different stoneware kilns to get a wide variety of results. The different variables come together at the end to make one-of-a-kind pieces.
“As a small, family business, there are limits on how much I can make without employees, and being independent is something I cherish,” Joe says. “My main challenge is finding enough demand for what I am capable of making without getting too overextended.”
In 1998 and 1999, Joe built a wood-fired Anagama kiln at Great Basin Pottery with Paul Herman.
“Paul is no longer with us, but we have fired the kiln twice a year for 25 years,” he says. “Casey Clark has taken over, and we continue to uphold the tradition.”
Joe coordinates with Casey twice a year for their biannual pottery sales. Their holiday studio sale is held over 4 weekends, beginning after Thanksgiving. Customers can see the wide range of everything they make.
“Our studios are about 6 miles apart, so a lot of customers come to both,” Joe says. One of his passions is crafting clay growlers and steins for local breweries, such as the Brewing Lair in Blairsden, California.
“I have also been making prizes for a few bike races a year for the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship,” Joe says. “I absolutely love, appreciate and take advantage of the trail building that SBTS does.”
Joe keeps a collection of favorites, spanning many years and different firings.
“It’s important to look back on successes for inspiration,” he says. “I can’t keep all of the favorites, so I am a little sad when some of them find a new home.”
He believes it is increasingly important to have real, handmade objects around that are made with passion, love, and an understanding of the materials.
“The humble coffee mug may seem like a mundane thing for a potter to make,” Joe says. “But a beautiful handmade mug often becomes a really important part of the start of the day for many people.”