Bruce Gholson
North Carolina

Star red clay 6
Functional
8.75"w x 6.5"l x 6.5"h

About the Teapot
My teapot and its decoration were designed to use the results of ongoing experiments with slip clay glazes related to the famous Albany slip clay that was once a standard potters material for glazing. Albany slip clay was mined in Albany, NY, until sometime in the 1970s, when the value of the real estate became more than the value of the product from the mining. I chose a red clay body made by Starworks because the transparent dark red-brown amber glaze reads as almost black on the red clay, which gives a rich contrast with the white trailed slip decoration used to create the fossil fish imagery.

About the Artist
Bruce Gholson is a full-time studio potter, maintaining an open pottery shop amid a community of over 60 potteries in central North Carolina, near the small town of Seagrove. Bruce and his wife, Samantha Henneke, operate Bulldog Pottery, making a diverse range of functional and decorative ceramics using a variety of clays and glazes.
Bruce received his M.F.A. in ceramics from the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University and his BFA in ceramics from the University of Georgia at Athens.
Originally from Stillwater, Oklahoma, Bruce started making pots in 1973 after his first exposure to clay at Oklahoma State University's ceramics facility.

Artist Statement
I am always amazed at how classically traditional my pottery seems to be once I complete a body of work. I try to be unfettered and eclectic in how I approach working with clay, especially when choosing clay bodies, forming techniques, and firing methods necessary to achieve the surfaces I desire. I find that changing between porcelain, stoneware, and red clay stimulates ideas. The material-based intuitions that result feed back into the creative process.
I have been fascinated with fossils, fish, reptiles, and insects since childhood. Recent interests have included fossilization in amber, Chinese scholar stones, and arrowheads from the region. Researching the chemistry of other arts, such as fabric dyes, analog photography, and pyrotechnics, provides inspiration in the form of a comparative, formula-based cabalistic mediation. These interests blend into an esoteric mix that is, hopefully, evident in the overall feeling and imagery of my work. I want a sense of comfort in use, combined with an eccentrically sublime sense of the handmade led by a transcendent force. Instead of the idiom of the direct and honest touch, I am after something with mystery, a surface that seems more of a phenomenon than the result of traditional craft. Success is, of course, a matter of perception and opinion, but for me, having the goal aids in facilitating the journey- making pots in my own voice.

*Teapots that are purchased will remain on display in the gallery for the duration of the exhibition, through September 14, 2026.
After the show closes, teapots will be carefully packed and shipped by September 28, or they may be picked up at the gallery.

National Teapot Show XIII

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Bruce Gholson - Teapot