Tom Jaszczak lives and works in his Minnesota studio where he constantly is seeking a balanced proportion and a gentle angularity to accent the changes in direction of his ceramic work. His pots are minimal but show depth and richness through this materiality of scrapes, small pits, and ruggedness of the red blick-like clay he uses. A layer of poured slip, which adds fluidity, and a rich depth in surface picked up from the iron clay underneath, and the spontaneity of the atmospheric soda firing in which he fires his work. Finally, a bright, flat, decorative element, painted with underglaze, sits in the foreground, and often gives the pot a sense of orientation. Tom received a BA in Visual Art from Bemidji State University. In 2015 Tom began a 3-year residency at Penland School of Craft. He has received several awards and honors.