The constancy of fine ceramics
- Teresa specialises in simple dinnerware and limited edition works
- She first encountered the craft as a teenager and has enjoyed throwing ever since
- Her training as an architect influences her approach to minimalist ceramics
Teresa Chang first tried her hand at ceramics at summer camp when she was 16 years old. Her interest in the field continued through her architecture studies at university, when she took occasional classes for fun. Then, while living in a building full of artists’ lofts in Brooklyn, Teresa had an epiphany. “I realised that I could make a career of ceramics when a wonderful neighbour shared with me how he was selling his work to high-end stores,” she says. Soon after, Teresa got her start as a full-time ceramicist with a focus on dinnerware. “I am drawn to thinking about form and function, which has a lot to do with my training in architecture,” she explains. Simplicity is her signature, reflecting her belief that taking away the superfluous results in something naturally beautiful. It also has its role in functional tableware. “To highlight food, simple dinnerware works better than busy or elaborate work,” Teresa says.
INTERVIEW
Everything in my studio is hand thrown on the potter’s wheel. I love the meditative quality of the process. Decades of experience helps me produce work that is dimensionally consistent and often quite thin. Sometimes, people mistake pieces for mould made or slip cast work.
I was born in the USA to Korean parents. Though I do not think of my aesthetic as particularly Asian, my family background is definitely influential. My mother instilled in me a love of simplicity and my architectural training developed those natural tendencies.
Decades ago, during a workshop with Taiwanese ceramic master Ah Leon, he asked me why my standards were too low and my goals too modest. He planted the idea in my head that I could do so much better. It was like a switch had been flipped, and I became capable of achieving much more.
To explore new ideas, I make limited edition pieces which are separate from but related to my dinnerware several times a year. The rest of the time, I continue to expand and refine my dinnerware lines, some of which I have been making for decades. I think that constant editing is my strength as a craftsperson.
