Have you ever tried something and enjoyed it more than you excelled at it?
For most of us, we might shrug it off, thinking we have no future in something we’re not good at.
But for local artist Grant Ederer, he did just the opposite.
His first foray into the world of ceramics came around the age of 15, an offered school elective that he was, in his own words, total crap at.
But he loved it.
So over the years, he continued exploring ceramics, honing those skills until they became refined enough to call himself an artist.
Testing, creating, teaching, and all the while improving, that high school elective is now his livelihood.
It’s safe to say he is no longer “crap” but quite good.
I’ve seen his work in local retail shops over the past few years, watched his website and Instagram with a lot of interest, and have been incredibly impressed by his talent, even more once I learned the story behind it.
Not many of us have that kind of drive.
I recently reached out to Grant and he allowed my team and I the privilege of exploring his studio with him, a private interview of how he does what he does.
It was biting cold and one of those incredibly grey winter Friday’s when we pulled up to a massive industrial building on Highbrook Street in Akron.
The heat was out, and even though he was scrambling to save his collection of plants that are normally sprinkled throughout the studio, we made it work.
The studio was cozy thanks to some space heaters, and housed numerous shelves and bins of supplies, a massive kiln, a few forgotten la Croix cans, that huddle of houseplants, and a stunning display of Grant’s ceramic pieces.
He walked us through his process, going over plasticity, oxidation, molds, density, how to flocculate the slurry…
(Also, what words like “flocculate” and “slurry” actually mean.)
It was really interesting to see him go through it, the time it takes for each piece to be created, and how many steps there are to get to the final product.
I’ve taken a few ceramics classes myself, (so I understand all about the viscosity of the slip, lol.) and am really fascinated by the medium.
It’s not just about the time each piece takes, but all the hours of practice that came prior, getting to that point of creating consistently beautiful pieces.
This level of talent in ceramics requires passion, creativity, and a surprising amount of chemistry. Understanding what happens in the kiln when chemicals and varying temperatures collide – this craft requires an impressive amount of knowledge.
His planters, cups and bowls have an organic aesthetic.
Shapes swirl as colors ripple and gently bleed into one another.
His pieces evoke thoughts of natural elements – water, a burning sunrise, or curling whisps of smoke.
I found a few to take home with me and he graciously wrapped them up—it’s a full service studio.
His Instagram regularly updates on his available work and upcoming shopping opportunities. He does take custom commissions and has some exciting collaborations coming up with Whiskertin Lighting I can’t wait to see.
And I love that he’s plugged into Akron in interesting ways – currently he’s creating a commission for a local political campaign that we got a first peek at.
