As a potter, I focus my work on principals of craftsmanship and beauty.

 I am interested in the function of forms and the decorative surface that they lend themselves to.  I approach new ideas as a series of work and an exploration of proportion, color, texture and intended use.  My inspiration is drawn from the foods I enjoy cooking and serving, Chinese porcelain of the Sung Dynasty and the people and nature that surround me.

 Each piece is made with porcelain clay thrown on the potter’s wheel, altered and trimmed, then carved, decorated and glazed on the surface.  I use glazes that are intended to compliment areas of texture.  The work is fired to 2,345°F in a reduction atmosphere lending rich and varied color as well as rendering the wares strong and durable. 

Emily Reason has been working with clay for fourteen years.  Pottery-making became her full-time career in 2004.  Prior to that, Emily received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from West Virginia University with a concentration in Ceramics and an Art History minor.  Penland School of Crafts drew her to Western North Carolina.  Through Artist Residencies at Odyssey Center for Ceramic Arts in Asheville, and EnergyXchange in Burnsville, Emily gained valuable experiences in her craft, teaching and business skills. 

Emily’s work has been exhibited at the Smithsonian Craft Show; Philadelphia Museum Craft Show; the annual conference of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA); the Society for Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Mudfire, in Decatur, Georgia; the Blue Spiral 1 Gallery in Asheville, North Carolina; and the Louisville Visual Arts Association, in Louisville, Kentucky.  Her work was featured in an article titled “A Reasoned Approach,” in the November, 2007 issue of Ceramics Monthly, and can been seen at www.emilyreason.com.

Emily teaches pottery workshops and private lessons. Lark books will publish her instructional book Ceramics for Beginners: Wheel Throwing, in the winter of 2010.

Emily has deep respect and love for family, community, friends, nature, travel and food.  She believes these elements of her life motivate, inspire and nurture her love of pottery.