It’s not everyday that you get to see raw forms of earth shaped into elegant stoneware, but tucked in a basement studio in NW Portland, Sarah Wolf of Wolf Ceramics sits behind her wheel turning out an array of mugs, bowls, plates, and other beautifully shaped home goods.
Sarah comes from a background in the sciences with a degree Geological Chemistry, which puts her knowledge of the craft in both practical and theoretical spheres. As she stood over her prep-table weighing out and forming clay into balls that would eventually become some 72 mugs, Sarah gave me a brief glimpse into her world of ceramics by casually listing out the differences between types of clay, what makes porcelain so elegant, and what her favorite ratio of grog is (don’t ask me, I couldn’t tell you).
The Wolf Ceramics shop is growing from a one-woman operation, producing large volumes of product using an average of some 170 pounds of clay per week (some 1000lbs in 6 weeks). During my visit, Sarah was working on some 72 mugs for her mug club.
Wolf Ceramics is slowly growing in size, adding a few hands in the shop and getting some local Portland shops such as Rejuvenation for the studio’s line as well as the collaborations with local furniture studio FOLK.
Be sure to check out Sarah's work online or on her instagram.