Sarah McCarthy
Virginia

Stoneware Clay
Functional
8.5"w x 5"l x 5.5"h

Artist Statement
I enjoy repetition in the studio as much as I enjoy exploring new forms and surface designs. I work on the wheel as well as hand‑build my forms, allowing each piece to develop its own rhythm. My work investigates the balance between natural patina and color—the patina revealing the raw honesty of clay, and the color bringing energy and joy.
My surface designs are inspired by children’s art and their wonderfully unfiltered perspective. The bright palette draws from summer flowers and the art and culture of Latin America. All of my pots are fired in an electric kiln to cone 6.

About the Artist

I create with my hands every day—exploring, experimenting, moving the clay, making a living. For me, being a potter is a lifestyle: I make pots, take a tea break, make more pots, go for a bike ride, then return to the studio. From my porch, I watch the woods and the changing seasons. Making and using pots teaches me to see, to pause, to share, and to connect.

In the studio, I enjoy repetition as much as the exploration of new forms and surface designs. I work on the wheel as well as hand‑build my forms. My work explores the balance between natural patina and color—the patina revealing the rawness of clay, and the color bringing energy and joy. My surface designs are inspired by children’s art and their unfiltered perspective. The bright palette draws from summer flowers and from the art and culture of Latin America. All of my pots are fired in an electric kiln to cone 6.
I am a self‑taught potter who gained a foundation in ceramics from the great potters teaching at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in the early 2000s. I began my journey with a studio space at the Floyd Center for the Arts, where I made and sold work and benefitted from shared resources and kilns as a new artist. I now create in my home studio and gallery, and I am a member of 16 Hands, a group of fine craftspeople who host two annual studio tours in the mountains of Floyd.
Alongside being a potter, I am a Zen student, a tea aficionado, a cyclist, and someone who loves goofing around in the sun with my family.

*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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Sarah McCarthy - Creating Community