Steve Wright currently lives and grew up along the Lake Michigan coast in west Michigan. A son of an artist, he had plenty of exposure to painting, drawing, clay and kilns. So he learned to throw as a young child and his interest continued and his skills were nurtured throughout junior high and high school. Yet Steve didn’t pursue a career as an artist. Instead, he spent twenty years along slide Alfred-trained ceramic engineers, learning the intricacies of heat work and ceramic chemistry. But his love for the arts never died and about ten years ago he was back to throwing clay on the wheel. He was doing solely commissioned work of functional pieces in stoneware when he discovered crystalline pottery. Because crystalline pottery typically demands the whiteness and smoothness of porcelain to work, Steve had to try his hand at throwing porcelain. It was like learning all over again. You see, clay is to play dough as porcelain is to butter. All the literature on crystalline glazes seemed to speak of how difficult and tricky it was. Not just anyone can do it. But the beauty of these glazes just fueled his desire to try. Amazingly, he got crystals in his very first firing! This had to be pure luck because it took another eight months to achieve more of the elusive beauties. This is how the years in the electronic ceramics industry paid off. With meticulous notes, the scientific method, and a lot of patience, crystals began to reappear each firing. Now these crystals are persnickety little devils and to this day can be quite elusive. Every glaze color has its favorite temperature and hold times and its particular recipe and number of layers required to create these little gems. This means that every kiln opening is like Christmas and Graduation Day, all in one. The continuous challenge of creating an environment in which Nature performs such beauty drives his desire to continue. Hope you can enjoy them as well. Learn more about Steve and his studio here.
