Pinched clay retains the impressions of fingerprints, wheel-thrown clay remembers the rotation of the potter’s wheel, glazes melt and are guided by gravity across surfaces, and a beautiful pot is one which fits in the hand of the user as naturally and organically as it formed in the hand of the maker. It is important that the creation processes I employ in my practice can be seen and felt by the user. When people pick up my pieces there is always an echo of the process present in the experience. These are objects for contemplating, for being present, for inhabiting a moment in time.
Bio
A.C. Bell is a North Carolina potter, originally from Chicago, IL. She studied biology in college, and spent time working in a veterinary clinic and pursuing a master’s degree in sustainable urban development before discovering pottery in an evening class at a local Chicago neighborhood art center. She fell in love and began taking classes and working as a studio monitor, moving into teaching kids classes and introductory classes for adults. In 2021, after going as far as she could taking classes at art centers and craft schools, she moved to North Carolina for the Professional Craft Program at Haywood Community College.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Studio Assistant - Christina Bendo Pottery, Waynesville, NC
2021 - Present
Workshop Assistant - David Eichelberger at Arrowmont School of Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN
2021
Studio Tech- Haywood Community College Professional Crafts Program, Clyde, NC
2021 - 2023
Teaching Artist (Ceramics) - Lillstreet Art Center, Chicago, IL
2019 - 2021
Teaching Assistant (Ceramics) - Lillstreet Art Center, Chicago, IL
2017 - 2019
Studio Monitor (Kidstreet/Ceramics) - Lillstreet Art Center, Chicago, IL
2016 - 2021
Teaching Artist (Kidstreet) - Lillstreet Art Center, Chicago, IL
2016 - 2021
Exhibitions and Shows
2024
Cup: The Intimate Object XX - Charlie Cummings Gallery
Clay National XVIII: The Handle - Carbondale Clay Center
In Hand, A Cup Show - The Art School at Old Church, Mikhail Zakin Gallery
SIP: A Ceramic Cup Show - Savannah Clay Community
10th Annual Dirty South Cup Show - River Oaks Square Art Center
2023
SIP: A Ceramic Cup Show - Savannah Clay Community
Raise A Toast III - Edwardsville Art Center
Highland Studio and Gallery Cup Show - Highland Studio and Gallery
Class of 2023: Haywood Graduate Exhibition - Folk Art Center for the Southern Highland Craft Guild
2022
Fifteenth Annual Cup Show: Form and Function - Amelia Center Gallery at Gulf Coast State College
Cup: The Intimate Object - Charlie Cummings Gallery
Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands - Haywood Professional Crafts Booth - Asheville, NC
2021
Intimate Objects - Aquarium Gallery at Haywood Community College
EDUCATION
Haywood Community College, Clyde, NC - Professional Crafts - Clay (Certificate)
2023
DePaul University, Chicago, IL - Graduate coursework in Sustainable Urban Development
2014-2016
Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY - BA in Biology
2009
