Today we’d like to introduce you to Kate Rowe.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I’ve worked with clay most of my life. My art school, graphic design mom infused arts and crafts into my DNA so I’ve always been messing around with one medium or another. I’m grateful that my hometown had an incredible resource called the Perkins Center for the Arts that hosted a variety of educational classes and workshops (that they still host to this day). I spent weeks of my young life making pulp paper in the classroom, practicing painting outside, and holed up in the studio basement playing with clay. I was instantly entranced by the pottery wheel and spent as much time as I could on it – completing those extra curricular Perkins courses in middle and high school. And I continued during my years at Miami University. The U had a lovely ceramics program that helped supplement my time working toward my public relations degree with getting my hands dirty, challenging myself to create projects and assignments, and learning more about a working studio space. After graduating, I dove into my new job working with my new degree and let my art fall to the backseat.
Years in the PR and marketing field truly filled my cup. I worked with incredible nonprofits Port Discovery Children’s Museum and the National Aquarium, leading wonderful teams and having lots of fun with my work. Unfortunately, years into my work I suffered two bouts with ovarian cancer. The first round was painful, but easily removed. The second was harder. I had always wanted to be a mom and when faced with the ultimatum of losing my last ovary, I decided to go through IVF. Problem was, my tumor fed off estrogen… the main thing used to help with IVF. Long story short, it was a fast and tough two months – finding out I had cancer again, going through IVF with daily injections and tests, egg retrieval, recovery from that procedure, then onto tumor removal surgery. The surgery was successful but more challenging for me – physically and mentally. I couldn’t go back to work. Recovery was tough. I looked for something that could bring me back to myself. Then a friend asked me to join for a pottery class at a local studio.
I was instantly enchanted by The ClayGround and my first class was delightful. My second class was better. I was rusty but the wheel seemed to remember me once I started seeing it again. Pottery is an unbelievably therapeutic practice because there’s no faking it. You have to be present. You have to give it your all. Meditation lies not only in the wheel turning, but in you making something (a bowl, a mug, a cup) out of nothing (a lump of mud). It was what my mind needed and it was perfect level of effort for my physical recovery. I enrolled in a couple courses and it all came flooding back to me. The gracious and caring owners of the studio asked if I wanted to join the team and I haven’t looked back.
As I started teaching, helping other discover what I loved, I continued to work on my own creations. Soon people wanted to purchase things. Then more. Then more. Then stores. And more. Now here I am…some eight years later with back to back markets, a home studio boasting two kilns that are always running, my toddler rolling over my (extra) clay with his monster trucks while I work on holiday orders, and honestly a full, happy, artsy girl heart.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
What road is smooth? Truly…does anyone have it easy? I’ve had my bumps along the way for sure. For starters, creating pottery takes time – there are multiple steps that require certain drying temperatures and space to hold your work. When I re-started ceramics, I was living in our little rowhome in south Baltimore. We thankfully had a little basement that we could clear out and I made that my studio. There was clay everywhere and our cat and dogs tried to get their noses in all of it, but it was delightful to dive back in. When we sold that house, we said we’d spend “a few months” in an apartment… we should have known it would be more than that. That’s how I spent almost three years throwing pots (not to mention one year caring for a new baby) in a one bedroom apartment! All the while I was traveling with my greenware, the first and most delicate stage of pottery, to a kiln to be fired. There was so much breakage. So many lost pieces. But cest la vie!
Needless to say, I’ve put in the time and I’m incredibly grateful that we found our home a few years ago. I have space among our trees for my little studio. Space for drying, space for glazing, and two kilns I can walk (not drive) to.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I create joyful, handmade ceramics to bring beauty to your every day life. When I make a piece, whether it be a mug, a table lamp, an oyster tray, a bowl, or even a small ring dish, I not only want it to be unique and striking with colors and designs, but I want it to be useful! I want this mug to be the one you grab every day. I want you to use your tableware every day, not just for special occasions. I am most proud of that – each piece has functionality and fun.
I’m probably most known for my mugs, more recently my Baltimore designs. I got sick of seeing only seeing crabs when I was looking for things to boast about my town. We have SO MANY incredible things to share, so many iconic places and things and people. So I designed a set of Baltimore icons to feature on my mugs (and ring dishes and egg trays and more). They give a subtle, artsy nod to our favorites that you can enjoy with your daily coffee.
How do you think about luck?
I hate to say it because it sounds so cliche, but the bad hand I was dealt with getting cancer really did bring me to this place. The change in perspective that comes with facing your own existence, your worth, what you’re doing with your life… it really does rock you. When I was in the trenches, I was questioning everything. The practice of pottery really helped change and save my life. The meditation, the creativity, the community, all of it.
I’m also so privileged to have such a supportive husband and family. It’s not easy changing your life from being a big business girl boss to a small biz owner, making and shlepping your wares to markets around town. But I am full of joy making and full of joy sharing, and the support I have to do both is truly the best luck ever.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.katerowecreations.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katerowecreations/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KateRoweCreations/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katekaterowe/
