LIVING A rtist Profile
FROM HAND TO MIND BY CHLOE GIRVAN @mom_interrupted PHOTO BY MARK HOLLERON
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nne Nicol can trace her artistic path back to the gift of a calligraphy book from her father when she was just eight years old. Years of personal and career success followed using many artistic mediums, but it was the devastating loss of her sister in 2014 that guided her to the door of LOAM Clay Studio. “When my sister died, I simply could not find an urn that was good enough. I decided to make one for her myself and signed up for a workshop. I was hooked by the first class and pottery quickly became my therapy and a way to work though my grief. Ultimately, it became my passion.” Almost three years later, Anne has made so many beautiful pieces that her fellow potters are gently encouraging her to have a show. When setting out to create, she rarely has a plan. “Things grow as they go. Visually I like the look of pieces that are hand thrown and hand built. Every item is unique and I enjoy transforming the ordinary into something unexpected.” Inspiration for her love of detail comes from Pinterest, calligraphy and cherished items like the trim on her wedding dress. Nature is sourced for the patterns and textures of simple objects like fruit and barn board. Meaningful sweet-faced little birds perch proudly on many finished works. From a vast wall of available glazes, the colours of spring are often preferred, including soft blues and a new favourite, petal pink. Recently, a set of little teacups, leftover from devising the perfect whimsical lid for a tea pot, provided the opportunity for her to go crazy with colour. “I had a ton of fun with a little gold lustre added for glitz.” This spring, Anne celebrates three years as a potter and she still looks forward to coming to the studio every day to make beautiful things for her own collection and for others. “I love private commissions and working in the service of someone else,” says Anne, noting the joy she also gets from making a piece of pottery for each client of her husband’s company, Crossford Construction, to welcome them back into their newly renovated home. When asked what drives her passion, she says happily, “I love creating, and as an artist this is the first type of art I have found that allows me to be mindful and completely in the moment. Ideas flow from my mind out through my hands. The studio is a very creative space for me to learn and grow as an artist. While at work I am always busy in my head thinking, trying and taking risks. There are lots of failures but also lots of successes.” @anneknicol 42 ottawaathome.ca SPRING 2018