EZRA LAVINSKY

“You don’t achieve things without unbelievable help” - YoY o Ma

I will always remember the electricity I felt in my body the first time I was introduced to wheel throwing (pottery made on the wheel) when in college. In that moment, I knew it was a simple fact this art form would become the focal point of my life. I have been truly blessed throughout the years with learning opportunities that have contributed to my growth as a clay artist; most particularly having the opportunity to study with Tom Coleman, Steven Hill and Danny Meisinger. There are countless others who have also influenced my work and contributed to my growth. I am grateful God has blessed me with these opportunities.

“At one point I had the audacity to think I could play a perfect concert. I was in the middle of a concert, and I realized everything was going perfectly well…and I was bored out of my mind. That was the moment that I made a fateful decision that I was actually going to devote my life to human expression rather than human perfection” – Yo Yo Ma

When I heard these words they resonated profoundly within me. Not because I have ever done anything perfectly, but because so much of my energy in ceramics has been spent trying to achieve some sort of technical perfection. As I look back, while I may have been able to achieve a level of technical skill, my work had little life to it. Someone might notice it and say, oh that’s nice, but it never seemed to stir people in any way…or myself for that matter. Today I focus on trying to transmit something. What that something is I’m not always clear; as with everything else in life, it seems to be constantly changing and unfolding. I do know it is my hope that viewers want to touch my work. Unlike most artforms, pottery in its most basic form is utilitarian, and if the viewer has the urge to hold my work in their hands, then I have done my job well. Perhaps I also want viewers to just experience the same magical feeling I did when I was first introduced to this wonderful artform so many years ago.