Artist Interviews

Minnie Gallman took her first photograph, with a brownie box camera, at the age of 4.  “It was a picture of my newborn sister,” she remembers.” I’ve been taking pictures ever since.” Folks who come to the 2020 Chatham Studio Tour will see the results of Minnie’s life-long passion in the nature-inspired photographs that she […]

Vince Pitelka — Vince Pitelka Pottery “I have always been fascinated with tools and machines and working with my hands,” says studio potter Vince Pitelka. “I had a little shop at our house as a kid,” he remembers.  Pitelka had a formative experience with clay at the age of four.  A friend of his parents […]

Folks who attend The Chatham Studio Tour the first two weeks in December have the opportunity to experience an enchanted garden. Watercolorist Linda Watkins has captured the blooms, bugs, frogs and fish that inhabit her lovely property on Prince Creek, near Pittsboro. “I am fascinated both by color and detail,” Linda explains.  “I like to […]

Lee Kazanas has been making pottery for over 40 years. “I was in college at SUNY in Plattsburgh and my roommate was taking a ceramics class,” he remembers. “I thought – You can actually take a ceramics class for credit in college.” Lee took that class and it was the beginning of his life-long passion […]

Selden Lamoureux grew up in Whippany, New Jersey not far from NYC and had a circuitous route to her Bynum, NC pottery studio. After receiving a degree in anthropology at Boston University, she continued her studies in archaeology in Mexico. “After that, I had my back-to-the-land period, living in the Virginia and Carolina mountains, raising bees and doing occasional […]

“I have always felt compelled to create,” stresses Andrew Wilson, who will participate in his first Chatham Studio Tour the first two weekends in December. “It gives me energy to create objects for aesthetic and functional use.”  This desire came early. When he was a student at Chatham’s Northwood High, Andrew accessorized with macramé and […]

Not long ago, Nurse Bronwyn Watson lived on her 10 acre farm just outside of Siler City. Years ago, she had attended the San Francisco Art Institute, made baskets, did some printing and temp jobs to make ends meet. Then, at 40, she decided to attend nursing school and pursued a health care career, most […]

Janet Resnik Studio #5 on the Studio Tour 132 Collins Mountain Rd., Chapel Hill, NC 27312 Interview by Zoe Allison, recorded by Nathalie Worthington Z – How long have you been in Chatham County? J – I’ve been here since 1967. Z – Did you join the guild right away? J – No, it did […]

Michael Thompson2460 Pete Thomas RoadPittsboro, NC 27312 Interview by Zoe AllisonUpdated November, 2020 Z – How did you get into your woodturning? M – I have a degree in forestry. My career focused on teaching people how to recognize what is in their forest and how to better manage it. I spent 31 years in […]

Jeff Clark Studio #6 on the Studio Tour 38 Wild Rose Lane, Pittsboro, NC 27312 Interview by Zoe Allison, recorded by Nathalie Worthington Z -What brought you here initially? J – I had retired from a job I had in New Jersey and so I got this other job working for a bio tech company. […]

Whether her work of art is inspired from a personal photo, a patron’s photo, or as a form of play thru geometric design, Gretchen Niver receives great pleasure creating and sharing her paintings made of glass. “I grew up doing various crafts with my mom, went into Graphic Design in college, and continued doing crafts […]

Studio #20 on the Studio Tour 326 Mockernut Road, Pittsboro, NC  27312 Interview by Zoe Allison, recorded by Nathalie Worthington Z – What is the name of your pottery business? Doug – Doug Dotson Pottery Z – When did you move to the area? Doug – I’ve been in NC since 1989.  My father was in the […]

Interview with William Moore Interview by Zoe Allison Z – Do you have a sense of a mission with making your art? W – Not a mission per se, just a determination to continue doing what I’m doing as long as I’m able. Z – Is there something you might not want to make again? […]

Interview with Colleen Black Semelka Studio #2 on the Studio Tour 336 East Perry Road, Pittsboro, NC 27312 Interview by Zoe Allison, recorded by Nathalie Worthington Z – When did you begin your creative work with clay? C – The first time I worked with clay on a wheel was in 1989 at Pottery 7 […]

Martha Danek has exhibited her unique natural art since the second year of the Chatham Studio Tour, now in its 25th year, in her Red Barn Studio in Bynum, North Carolina. It is the original barn down a grassy path behind her house that was built in the 1920s by her great-grandparents. Visitors literally experience […]

Annabelle Stein Studio #7 on the Studio Tour 997 Rock Rest Rd. Pittsboro, NC 27312 Interview by Zoe Allison. Scribed and edited by Nathalie Worthington Z – How long have you been working with fabric. A – All my life.  I started out making little clothes out of felt for my troll dolls in pre […]

As you might imagine, after one of its founding members, Vidabeth Bensen has “been there” and “done that.” And after 60 years of making art she is still doing “that.” An accomplished Screen Printer, Vidabeth says she has been pulling ink thru original hand-cut stencils ever since her Brooklyn College days when she was asked […]

Lara O’Keefe has a “clay personality” or so she was told early on in her career. To be more specific Lara is earthy, warm, and has a rich common sense about her.  When speaking to what excites her, she says it is extremely satisfying to look up and see racks full of pots at the […]

Eric Saunders Fine Art Photography “Artists seem to like my work more than do photographers,” quips Eric Saunders, who lives and creates in Fearrington Village. Saunders’ images appear to represent the literal meaning of photography – drawing with light. He will display his abstract nature landscapes in his home at the 25th Chatham Studio Tour […]

Marsha Kitkowski Fine Handcrafted Porcelain Marsha Kitkowski will be debuting her Briar Chapel Studio during the first two weeks in December at the 25thh Chatham Studio Tour. She creates delicate hand built and carved porcelain ware – vases, bowls and sculptural objects, each enhanced by her original carvings. She has been working with clay for […]