Northfield, MN ARTIST STATEMENT“My work is created with the hope that it will be aesthetically pleasing to people who will choose it for their use instead of the mass-produced stuff out there; that something that is designed to be balanced for use, scaled to the hand, and created by another person will be more profoundly satisfying to use and more pleasing to look at. Images are frequently inspired by the surface or the pot suggests a design or perhaps I am inspired by something I have seen recently that will suit the form. The surface decoration is a reflection of my love of the natural world and the belief in the restorative power of being outside. It is my desire to share the pleasure I take in noticing my environment: patterns of leaves, how a bird perches on a reed, the silhouettes of trees just after sundown. My work can call people’s attention to these things with the hope that they will value them as I do and that these qualities can nourish them just as much as does the food that is served or made in my pots.” About the Work:My pottery is currently made of high fire (2300º F) grolleg porcelain. It is food safe, non-toxic and quite durable. Unless it has Gold Luster* on it, it may be placed in the dishwasher, microwave or oven. Since it has been fired to such a high temperature, even 500º in your oven will not affect it.However, please do not take it from one extreme temperature to another (like from the fridge directly into hot water.) Properly cared for, your pottery should last at least as long as low-fire pottery has from Ancient Egypt or Greece….say, 3,000 to 5000 years!Do not use metal scrubbers on the surface as eventually it will scar the glass-like surface. Do not drop or toss onto hard surfaces like the floor. Do not leave it behind at your family’s potluck picnic.If you do break it, you can glue it back together and use it some more or make into a beautiful mosaic.My sgraffito ware is made of grolleg porcelain painted over with a pigmented porcelain slip. I draw freehand on the surface and then carve away whatever is not part of my image with small wire loop tools.I draw inspiration from varied sources. Nature and its ability to rejuvenate the spirit is an endless source of inspiration to me. Many ancient pottery industries inspire me; ancient Egypt and Greece, Pre-Columbian Panama and Equador, The Anasazi and Mimbres potters. I have been influenced first by my first teacher in 1969, Norboro Kubu and then in 1976, Bob Broderson and then certainly in college by my teachers, Warren Mackenzie and Curtis Hoard. Later at Lill Street in Chicago I worked with, met and admired many more American potters and their work. This had continued in Minnesota with my colleagues at the Northern Clay Center and my clay community here in Northfield, the Cannon River Clay Cooperative of which I am a member.*Do not put pots with metallic luster on them in the microwave! BIOGRAPHYRaised primarily in the Midwest, Glynnis Lessing was introduced to ceramics at the age of ten and has maintained a deep interest in the medium ever since. She continued throwing throughout high school and gained early experience working for a potter at sixteen. After studying at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, she earned a BFA from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.Following graduation, she moved to Chicago, where she worked in advertising and as a professional photographer. However, after becoming disenchanted with that industry, they shifted their focus to making and selling jewelry. This transition led her to Lillstreet Art Center in Chicago, where they worked and taught for 25 years. Primarily focused on functional high-fire ceramics, Lessings' work increasingly incorporated slipped surface decoration after joining Lillstreet. Much of her practice involves sgraffito on thrown porcelain, though she also explores other techniques and forms.A strong advocate for integrating art into education, she believes in using creative expression to build self-esteem across all age groups. Her outreach efforts have included work with A.R.T., Spertus Museum, and Lillstreet Learning Center, as well as volunteering to teach art at InterAmerican Magnet School in Chicago since 1997. In 2012, she relocated from Chicago to a small town in Minnesota with her family. Now a full-time potter, she devotes most of her energy to creating and selling work at art fairs and shows while continuing to embrace teaching as an essential part of her practice. Currently, Lessing teaches at the Northern Clay Center and the Northfield Arts Guild.