Last night I attended my first pottery class at Pewabic and it was a wonderfully entertaining experience that I highly recommend. Pewabic is Detroit born and Detroit made and their studio is located on East Jefferson near the villages. Founded in 1903 during the Arts and Crafts movement by Mary Chase Perry, Pewabic pottery is found in many of the stately Detroit mansions build in the early 1900’s. Their tiles and glassware remain highly celebrated and sought after by homeowners and collectors in this region and across the United States.

The pottery throwing classes at Pewabic takes place upstairs in an open studio space filled with history. The ceilings boast an open timber frame, the walls are brick, and the windows have history. And in many ways, the studio space is inspiration for how I may want my studio space to look one day. As I looked around the room I saw all sort of works on shelves-  and in various stages of the pottery making process. As I sat down at the wheel and listened to instruction and watched other people throwing their pottery, I started to think, “this is going to be easy….” And I was right. It can be easy… for those that have built their skills (most often through practice and experience). Having come into the class with zero pottery throwing experience, I quickly learned that pottery making isn’t easy. I don’t yet have the skills it takes to craft beautiful (and functional!) pottery, but in time I hope to build them. I can see that even after a couple of hours at the wheel, I was improving. For me, last night was a reminder that for us to become skilled at something – we must be committed to work hard – to learn and grow from our challenges.