Bob Briscoe

I make my living as a functional potter. After 40 plus years, the sustaining passion for being a potter comes from the desire to create pots that are beautiful to look at and hold, to give distinct pleasure in use, and to carry on a subtle conversation with the user through the work. 

I point my work towards a quiet simplicity. I look to subtlety and nuance as the foundation for my aesthetic. The essence that I am seeking in this work is a stripped, almost brutal, rawness. 

Ash glazes over colored and crackle clay slips have become the essential focus in integrating form and surface in my work. This also has allowed for a greater variability of surface texture and color. By design, these variations often are not visible at first glance but later, through use, reveal additional layers to the eye.

Robert Briscoe is one of the 2011 East Central Arts Council McKnight Fellows. You can view his artwork here, and on his Facebook page.