The creative mind of a Guyanese potter

“IF you have ever had the opportunity to visualise something, I mean you look at a piece of clay and make it come alive in your hands, it can [be] so much fun,“ so says artist Lisa Thompson who spoke about her love for pottery during an interview with the Pepperpot Magazine .

Thompson said that she became more involved with the arts after she was prompted by friends who had seen her works in pottery as a participant in a farmers’ market last year.
During her interview, Thompson said that her friends were flabbergasted and truly impressive with her quality of work, so they encouraged her to display her work in pottery at an exhibition held on December 9, 2022.

Thompson has a lot of experience in mosaic art and has now moved to dealing with clay.

Why Pottery?
According to Thompson, pottery is fun and it is a joy to make clay come alive. Just using clay to visualise something and go through every step of the process is quite fascinating and exciting for her and she enjoys every step of pottery.

Thompson’s pieces

“ For pottery, there are different stages. [You] create something, and it is okay, then you get to glaze it and when you see the finished piece, it is an exciting and rewarding time , once your pieces come out,“ Thompson told Pepperpot Magazine with much exuberance.

Thompson is about pottery now as her craft, having come from a background in the arts. She noted that she has every intention of going as far as she can possibly go with this, because of her deep passion for the art form, but more particularly pottery.

She noted that she will be integrally involved in moulding the minds of young people who are interested in this particular art form.
“There are several other people locally who do pottery. I am happy to teach what I know…I am still learning and I have a lot more to learn, but I am always happy to teach what I know,“ Thompson said.

She is advocating for persons to join the E.R. Burrowes School of Art, when it comes to fine-tuning their pottery skills or artistic skills in general.
But mostly what is required now in pottery is electrical skills, which would explain why there is a lack of colourful pottery around in the country and on exhibitions that are held across the country.

During her interview, Thompson said that her pottery is distinct and unique from what the public is accustomed to seeing, because of the work that she puts into her pieces.

Challenges faced
“The first one is perhaps getting the clay. You know, I have managed to collect clay from out of town and then when you get the clay, you have to process it. It is [a] very tedious process to clean the clay and get it ready for usage.

So it is the supply of clay, it is challenging. Then there is the availability of community clay, so to speak, and the availability of material,“ the artist-entrepreneur expressed.

She noted that there needs to be the availability of supply materials and classes to teach others who want to learn the craft, but in the meantime, she is quite happy practising her skills and teaching others who are willing to learn.