AVA Studio Chat: Jan Salstrom
Meet Jan Salstrom!
Jan is a ceramic artist. She started working in ceramics in 2011, beginning at a community arts center near her house while living and working in North Carolina. Later, she moved to Vermont and further developed her ceramic skills. Jan works in ceramic stoneware which is hand built from soft clay slabs- no wheel is involved, allowing for slow control of the clay. The flat slab surface is manipulated by hand to create the finished functional, decorative stoneware. Some of the pieces are then glazed in the traditional manner of ceramic stoneware. Currently, Jan is focusing on Japanese Nerikomi, a process where a unique pattern- which cannot be reproduced- is created with different naturally occurring clays or clays colored with a mason stain. Working with the process of Japanese Nerikomi can be challenging as the different clays will tend to dry at different rates, which can cause cracking when drying or going through the kiln firing process. Jan enjoys the free-flowing unpredictability of the Nerikomi process; not only is it exciting and challenging, but it also helps to keep her mindful, patient, and unattached to the outcome, but delighting in the unfolding process. Some of Jan’s pieces are available for sale in the Members Gallery at AVA.
