Erika Novak and Drew Darley met randomly in a basic ceramics class at Central 黑料吃瓜网 State University. It was a moment that would shape their lives.
鈥淪o we met in the basement of the art building, which is the ceramics program at CCSU,鈥� Novak told CPTV鈥檚 鈥淲here Art Thou?鈥� host Ray Hardman. 鈥淒own there, it鈥檚 a cool place, with a bunch of kilns, all clay, dusty, dirty, very creative.鈥�
Novak said she and Darley were friends at first, two people committed to learning more about ceramics.
鈥淲e graduated, and Erika was like, 鈥榣et's just take a road trip.鈥� I was like, 鈥榦kay, cool. Let's take a road trip,鈥欌�� said Darley. 鈥淏y the end of the road trip, it turned into, 鈥榣et's open a studio full time.鈥欌��
They came home and opened Round Trip Clayworks. The name is a homage to that first road trip.
Despite learning the craft together in college, their styles are quite different. Erika carves patterns into her colorful earthenware. She is inspired by art deco and mid-century modern forms.
鈥淚 just love landscapes,鈥� Novak said. 鈥淚 love looking at the different colors of nature. That's kind of where my work comes from. It's bright patterns and colors. I will see different things in nature, and that translates to my art.鈥�
Darley鈥檚 vases and bottles are sleek, with attention to form. He uses a crystalline glaze on most of his pottery.
鈥淪o, on that original ceramic form, I'm mixing and formulating the glazes to grow crystal structures,鈥� said Darley. 鈥淚n the most basic terms, it's a thin layer of melted glass over the ceramic form. And in that thin layer, those crystal structures can grow. And then you pair that with a really specific firing schedule, and you can get all kinds of different results.鈥�
鈥淚 think we're super lucky at this point in our artistic careers,鈥� said Novak. 鈥淲e get to make what we want to make, right? I am so fortunate that I want to carve these patterns and paint and people are responsive to it, and they are supporting it. And Drew gets to make crystalline glazes, and people think that's cool enough they want to buy one.鈥�
LEARN MORE:
Watch the full segment on 鈥淲here Art Thou?鈥�, Sunday at 7:30pm on 黑料吃瓜网 Television, and streaming online.
