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#299 Should You Join a Residency Program?
41 Plays2 years ago
Ever thought of joining a pottery residency? Is it worth your time, or will it make any significant difference to your journey as a potter? This is the crux of our enlightening discussion. As someone who hasn't personally experienced a residency, I, your host Nic Torres, am excited to share insights gathered from interviewing numerous potters who've had the privilege. It's important to note, though, that not all residencies are created equal.
A residency is an opportunity to immerse yourself in an environment buzzing with creativity, a melting pot of ideas that could significantly accelerate your pottery journey. My own evolution in pottery and the discovery of my unique voice is attributed to the varied interactions I've had with potters from different walks of life, all thanks to this podcast. Tune in, as we explore the power of learning from others, the value of pottery residencies, and how these elements can help shape and influence your unique voice quicker.
Highlights:
(00:31 - 02:03) The Importance of Residencies for Pottery (03:32 - 05:36) Residency's Impact on Artists and Community
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Transcript
Introduction to Pottery Residencies
00:00:00
Speaker
should you join a residency if you get the chance to do one. If you love pottery and want to take your skills to the next level, you're in the right place. Find your own pottery style right here on Shaping Your Pottery with Nick Torres. Let's get started. What is up, Shaping Nation? This is Nick Torres here. And for those that don't know me, it's my mission to help potters like yourself discover your own unique voice and do that by giving you some tricks and tips I have learned along the way along my own pottery journey.
00:00:30
Speaker
So residencies, what is a residency and should you join them? Is it gonna be beneficial to help you find your voice or should you spend your time elsewhere?
Benefits and Considerations of Residencies
00:00:41
Speaker
Let's answer those questions right now. So what is a residency? A residency is just a place where you can go and work on your own pottery for an extended period of time. Just literally nothing but work on your own pottery. And now, should you join a residency?
00:01:00
Speaker
I think if you have the opportunity to go do a residency, I think you should go do a residency. I myself haven't done a residency before, but I have interviewed tons of people that have done a residency themselves. And every time I interview somebody that's done a residency, for the most part, I learn a decent amount when they come on. I learn things from them that
00:01:26
Speaker
other people wouldn't be think of because they attend that residency had that experience of doing residency.
00:01:33
Speaker
And if you ever have the opportunity, I think you should go do a residency, but make sure to do your research as well, because not all residencies are built the same. So you got to do your research on whether if this residency will actually help you discover your own voice or push it forward or build your pottery up or whatever, you have to do your research before really going. But yes, if you ever have the opportunity to go, do a residency. Here is why.
Impact of Podcasting on Pottery Style
00:01:59
Speaker
So a big reason why I have been able to discover my own voice and why my pottery has changed so much is starting this podcast. Because I get to talk to potters every single week all the time and learn something new from them, what began to happen for my pottery
00:02:20
Speaker
was that it began to change slowly. A lot of times I used to focus on simply just throwing on the wheel because I thought that throwing on the wheel was superior to everything else. And I kind of looked down on all the other techniques because I thought throwing on the wheel was superior. Like even in high school,
00:02:39
Speaker
I, me and my friend, we wouldn't necessarily make fun of somebody, but we would always be kind of confused on why people would choose hand building over wheel throwing, because we thought wheel throwing was the best gateway. And for the longest time, I thought that way, and I focused all my time on wheel throwing. The only problem was
00:03:01
Speaker
I was going through the motions a lot of the time with my pottery. I felt like something was still missing. And it wasn't until I started this podcast that I started getting new ideas, new ideas, a way to incorporate other things from other techniques and pottery into my own wheel thrown pottery. And then for a while, I was only focusing on just doing like sculptures and stuff and not so much doing wheel throwing. And now I've got to the point where I am able to combine sculptures and
Creative Influence of Artistic Community
00:03:32
Speaker
wheel thrown pottery and I make little dioramas into my own wheel thrown pottery but that wouldn't have happened if I didn't surround myself with other potters day after day week after week and just try to learn something from them and that's what a residency will provide for you if you ever have the opportunity to go to a residency you're going to be able to surround yourself with
00:03:53
Speaker
other potters, not only other potters, depending on where you go, you could also surround yourself with just other makers and other artists as well, which is also very, very crucial to helping you find your own unique voice. By simply getting around other potters, this is going to help you speed up your own pottery voice, your own pottery trajectory that much quicker.
00:04:17
Speaker
because you're going to be around other potters and half the time you probably couldn't you don't even really have to talk to them just being in that environment as other makers as other potters as other artists what's beginning is going to happen is that you're going to see their work
00:04:32
Speaker
And then you're going to look at their work and you're going to start getting ideas like, Oh, that's a good idea. I could try doing something like that to my own work. And you haven't even talked to the person yet. You're simply in that environment. And because you're in that environment, everybody's going to build each other up without even knowing it because they're all in that space to create pottery, create art that looks good to improve their own art. And that's what a residency is going to do for you. So if you ever have the chance to go to residency, do it.
00:05:00
Speaker
go do a residency because this will actually help you discover your own voice 10 times faster. And just by simply being around other potters, other artists, one of my goals in the future is to create community and online community where I can go out and bring potters in and then they can all connect and learn from each other without having to go through the struggle of, you know, maybe having to pack up and leave your bag.
Building an Online Pottery Community
00:05:27
Speaker
or trying to find something that you want to connect with. I want to build that community where everybody can connect. It makes it very easy for people to connect. That is one of my goals for 2024, is to build a community and I promise you I want it to be the best that it could probably be. Because I know how much talking with other potters and talking with other artists has helped me so much and I want to bring that to you.
00:05:51
Speaker
So look out for these special indications in 2024 because I'm so excited. It will be really great. I can't wait for you guys to see it. I'm glad you guys took around for this episode. I hope you guys enjoyed it and I'll see you guys in the next one.
Engaging with the Audience
00:06:11
Speaker
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Shaping Your Pottery with Nick Torres. Do you have questions about pottery that you'd like Nick to answer? Send them to us on Instagram at Nick Torres underscore pottery. We'll see you next time.