About Lake Quinisigamond Pottery
The Pottery
Born in 2006, on the shores of Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Massachusetts,
the pottery is known for creating unique, offbeat ceramic story pendants. Each
limited edition piece is handmade exclusively by Natalie Gillihan Scafidi, from
her original carvings, and comes with a story card describing the history and
meaning of the image. The pottery relocated to Blackstone, MA in late 2009.
Its connection to history and the land is retained in its use of a blend of
local clays native to Sheffield, MA.
The Artist
Natalie Gillihan Scafidi is originally from Indiana, where she received a B.A.
in Ceramics from Ball State University. Natalie also spent time living in Chicago
and studying art at Northern Illinois University. It was as an undergraduate
at Ball State that she began keeping a visual file of favorite images, including
line drawings from ancient folk cultures. It took several years for these images
to find their way into the artist’s work. Natalie’s current work
focuses on portraying various birds and animals, and conveying ancient stories
of the human struggle. Drawing on timeless symbols, these images touch on the
basic elements of human experience.
The process
Natalie creates her pieces by first looking through her library of numerous
books and scrapbooks on ancient global mythology and anthropology. She sketches
out a design first on paper and then carefully carves it into plaster to create
a mold. The mold is cleaned and clay is pressed firmly into the mold. While
still in the mold, Natalie stamps the clay with her signature and the LQP chop
mark. The piece is removed from the mold, partially dried, and trimmed. Once
bone dry, the clay is sanded, dusted off and fired. The bisque fired piece is
washed to remove any remaining dust, glazed and fired again. It is then incorporated
into a finished work.
Please indulge in some meaningful, yet entertaining history by browsing LQP’s
current work, which includes a few new stories
along with the 2010 Redux Series. Or sift through the old retired
designs to find out why the neolithic Birth-Giving Goddess is in the shape
of a toad, how skulls with wings originated in Christian iconography, and much
more.
Home ~ About ~ Subscribe ~ Current Work ~ Retired Designs ~ Beaders' Gallery ~ Calendar ~ Shop ~ Contact
