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Pottery, Ceramic Tiles, and Bliss: an interview with
Colorado artesian, Susan Martin
Susan Martin in her studio in southern
Colorado Susan
Martin, an astoundingly talented artist in southern
Colorado, is living a fairytale-like existence.
Recently she shared her story with us as well as tips on
how we can do the same! Read what Martin has to
say: SWF: When you
began college and were studying for your MFA, did you
know that this was the direction that you wanted to go?
If not when did it begin to become apparent or to
develop, how, why?
SM: I became aware that clay was to be my
artistic passion during the time I was studying for my
MA in Illustration. As hard as I tried to find my way
toward developing my own style and creating a body of
work for a masters show, I could not make it come
together until I took an elective class in beginning
pottery and fell in love with clay. It was a long road
learning all the basics that I needed to understand in
order to be able to express myself in clay, but I worked
hard studying ceramics while still pursuing the
Illustration degree. I was very fortunate to have
professors who were open-minded enough to allow me to
cross disciplines and to create my body work for my
Illustration degree using the medium of clay. I chose to
make my illustrated body of work using clay tiles in
mural form. The murals were made of tiles that I
hand-formed, bisque fired, hand-painted and glaze-fired.
After completing my degree in Illustration, I went on to
complete my MFA degree in ceramics at California State
University at Fullerton.
SWF: Now that we know how you were drawn to
ceramics, what drew you to Colorado? You have mentioned
the quality of life there, was it something you were
consciously seeking or did it find you?
SM: It was a
conscious decision to move here. Colorado had always
seemed like a very remote place to me for some reason.
Maybe the Rocky Mountains were in my mind as the most
formidable of mountains here in this country. I thought
of it as a cold and rugged place, still wild and
unspoiled. All of that appealed to me in a very big way.
The thought of moving to such a place seemed like a big
life adventure. My husband, Robert and I were living in
Southern California at the time; we were both at the
point where we needed a change. Of course I needed the
change far more than he did... he could probably be
happy most anyplace. We searched for places for about
five years and never could agree on any particular spot.
When we came here to Chromo though... it was different.
We both fell instantly and totally in love with this
area and found a piece of land that we wanted to make
our permanent home on. We are at about 7,800' in
altitude here. The weather is pretty temperate and
there's good skiing, hiking, fishing and a lot of
wildlife viewing all around. We are four miles north of
the New Mexico border and about 30 miles south of the
town of Pagosa Springs in Colorado. Right now the fall
color is at its peak. The inspiration for artwork is so
abundant here that "what to make" is never the problem;
strangely enough, that modern problem of "never enough
hours in the day" has followed us here.
SWF: Can you share a typical day with our
readers?
SM: Well, I get up anywhere from 6:00 a.m. to
8:00 a.m. depending upon whether or not it's been a late
night. When I'm firing the kiln a lot... hours can get
pretty crazy. I spend my first waking moments at my
kitchen window sipping hot tea and watching a beautiful
sunrise over the Banded Peaks to the East. Slipping into
a pair of comfortable jeans, I make my way out to the
barn where I greet my two Icelandic Horses and my
neighbors black mare. They pasture during the night and
come up to get their grain and water come morning. With
barn chores under my belt, it's time to feed cats (there
are eight of them - all shapes sizes and colors). And
then there are the two dogs, Monty, a playful and sweet
German Shepherd, and Fuzzy - a Siberian Husky who is
very talkative and wild.
After chores, I spend a
little time in my office wrestling the paperwork down.
Once that's done, it's lunch and then off to the studio
for the day. I'm very fortunate to have a wonderful
studio that is on the property. We built the studio with
an apartment above before we built our main house as it
was the "test" for deciding whether or not such country
living would agree with us. After fours years in the
apartment, my husband was ready for something a little
less cozy and we decided to build the house we now are
living in.
The whole process of
finding land, building the studio/apartment, the barn
and our home has been quite an undertaking. It has taken
a lot of my time. In fact, for the years that we were
building, I was really not able to make much art at all.
It's great to be at this point now and be able to focus
into my art-making at last.
When I'm in the studio on
any given day, my tasks will generally be varied. If I'm
finishing up a mural that I'm painting, I might have a
pretty strong focus on that, but usually, there are many
small tasks that go into creating clay work. Timing and
weather conditions play a big role in the drying of
tiles and pottery. You have to pay a lot of attention to
the work as it drys so that there will be minimal
warping. I also throw pottery on the wheel from time to
time. I make items for a small store, the "Chromo
Merchantile" that is located down on our main road, Hwy
84 that runs from NM up into CO. The store has been
there for many, many years and is gasoline and coffee
stop along the road for tourists, hunters and lonely
passers-through.
SM: Any tips for
anyone wanting to do the same, e.g. follow their bliss?
I think it takes having a dream to do this. You have to
have a plan to make it work. To make it financially
feasible, you have to be able to generate income out
here. My husband was able to telecommute so to speak. He
has a hook-up to his office computer system via DSL now.
When we first got out here, we had only dial-up and that
didn't work at all. We switched to satellite and that
was better, but we were constantly taking the broom
outside, climbing a ladder and knocking the snow off the
satellite dish. With a lot of effort, we eventually got
the phone company to extend DSL service out our way. Now
it's much, much better! I guess I've always known that I
wanted to live out in the country; that is how I grew up
(in Ohio). Robert was most always a city dweller, so I
was somewhat concerned about his ability to be happy
living out here. As it turns out though, he's amazingly
adaptable and now loves our home here. He travels a lot
for business and he makes the long journey to
Albuquerque, NM to take flights to and from his
destinations. But he rarely complains about the driving
because the sights are so beautiful and the roadways so
untraveled.
We did learn a lot in the
process of making this journey to Chromo. I think that
one of the things that we might have done better would
be to live on the land (either camping, or in a trailer)
before building. There are so many reasons that it makes
sense to be present and understand what goes on in a new
environment for at least a year or two before you build.
Every area has its unique characteristics and sometimes
they are totally foreign to our experience.
Being knowledgeable
before you invest is most wise. One of the biggest
issues in the country, especially in the west... is
water. Most people coming from cities don't even realize
that water is under a system of strict regulation in the
west. Availability of good water (and the proper rights
to use it) should be of primary concern in purchasing
either raw land or land with existing buildings.
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