Jody Bender: Crafting a pottery career in Cape Breton

With her fine arts degree in ceramics behind her now, Jody Bender is methodically building a business around her craft.

Jody Bender working at her potter's wheel in the studio at the Customs House in Port Hawkesbury.
Jody Bender working at her potter’s wheel in the studio at the Customs House in Port Hawkesbury.

Jody Bender knows that centring a lump of clay on the wheel is the first step to crafting a balanced, well-formed pot. Now, through the Cape Breton Centre for Craft and Design’s (CBCCD) incubator program at Customs House in Port Hawkesbury, she’s learning to centre her creative practice with the business skills needed to shape a sustainable future as a professional potter.

When we visited Jody Bender, she was in the thick of her pottery work in the Customs House ceramics studio. Tall windows filled the studio with a subtle light casting soft shadows on her current work lined up on the shelves. She had recently emptied a kiln load and with each batch her work gets measurably closer to her goal of a full line of products. “This batch was good to do because I did a whole bunch of different combinations. I can see what I like more.”

Practicality in Art and Business

With her ceramic studies at Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD) complete, she looked around for the next step and found The Incubator Program. She says, “You have that cushion of having the studio provided for you, so you can really get into things.” There’s plenty of space and all the equipment needed to get started including a large professional production kiln. The cost of these would normally be prohibitive for a potter just starting out. 

Jody says the incubator program is less like a curriculum and more of “a loose roadmap from month to month” and she likes the fact that it’s self directed but also includes business training as well as exposure to markets. And right in the next room is the retail craft store showcasing Cape Breton artisans which is a constant reminder that the goal is to create a business and, probably more important, she says she can see “there are people who do it (here in Cape Breton) and are successful at it, and that’s reassuring.”

A selection of Jody Bender's work showing the range —so far— of her product line. (Jody Bender photo)
A selection of Jody Bender’s work showing the range —so far— of her product line. (Jody Bender photo)

Functionality First 

Pottery was not her first choice, though. At NSCAD she initially intended to major in drawing and painting, but an open house at the ceramic department there got her hooked. She loved the practicality of making functional items and enjoyed the kinesthetic and sculptural aspects of creating with clay. When it came time to declare her major, she chose ceramics.

She says she likes making items that everybody uses because “the framework for function gives me a jumping-off point for figuring out the form. It’s an easy way for me to think.” Her creations so far include mugs, cups, small dipping bowls, spoon rests, soap dishes and covered jars. At her open house in July I bought one of her cups made from a reddish clay with a pleasing tapered shape and interlocking cloud-like patterns of tri-colored glazes. It feels good in my hands and is perfect for sipping coffee. According to Jody, such practical items are easy to sell.

"I've always liked jars," Jody says. "I like the form of the lid, and I guess the function of them—how they hold things long-term." She explains that a mug is something you use and then you’re not using it; but a jar is always performing its function of storing things.(Jody Bender photo)
“I’ve always liked jars,” Jody says. “I like the form of the lid, and I guess the function of them—how they hold things long-term.” She explains that a mug is something you use and then you’re not using it; but a jar is always performing its function of storing things.(Jody Bender photo)

Nature Inspired Exploration

At this stage of her career, it’s all about artistic experimentation and exploration. But one thing is already clear. Jody takes her inspiration from the natural world. She’s attracted to working with stoneware for its rustic natural colour and texture and plans to create her own glazes inspired by her collection of purple, green and beige rocks from Nova Scotia beaches. She took out a heavy tool box dedicated to her collection of beach stones to show us and it was surprising how much colour there is in rocks. She admits in her craft “colour is tricky” depending on what colours are adjacent and in what proportions and uses nature’s natural products, stones, as one of her guides.

Jody calls these texture cups because it's got that slab of texture on it. “This is something I've been playing with for a while now, like even since I was in school. And then I wanted to kind of see how I could integrate it into this current work. I like having things that you can touch that are very tactile, even on something that's functional.”
Jody calls these texture cups because it’s got that slab of texture on it. “This is something I’ve been playing with for a while now, like even since I was in school. And then I wanted to kind of see how I could integrate it into this current work. I like having things that you can touch that are very tactile, even on something that’s functional.”

Her hybrid pieces

She has also made some “hybrid” pieces. She combines thrown pots that are cut open and fuses hand-built, unglazed slabs imprinted with natural patterns. These are functional vessels but have an added sculptural dimension. She makes her own imprinting stamps by pressing clay into things like tree bark and then using that impression to make a clay stamp. The stamped parts simply have a wash applied over them to preserve the texture because she likes ”having things that you can run your hands over.” Fusing slabs into some of her pieces opens up endless possibilities of shape. And making stamps turns walks along the beach, through the woods or down the street into texture “harvesting” adventures. Both bring individuality to her work.

"I call these tiny bowls. I like making them because they're really easy, and they're small. But other people have tended to like them so far, too, so I'm making quite a few of them." She says they can be used for dips or sauces, and some people like them for their rings or bits of jewelry. She sells them individually or in sets of three. (Jody Bender photo)
“I call these tiny bowls. I like making them because they’re really easy, and they’re small. But other people have tended to like them so far, too, so I’m making quite a few of them.” She says they can be used for dips or sauces, and some people like them for their rings or bits of jewelry. She sells them individually or in sets of three. (Jody Bender photo)

Influences

Some of her inspiration comes from traditional Chinese Sancai pottery, which uses “three-colour” glazes in brown–amber, green and creamy white, much like the colours in her rock collection. Being partial to these three-colour combinations she is working on 7 or 8 different glaze colours to mix and match in her products “so people aren’t stuck with just one combo.”

She is also attracted to the form of classical faceted Japanese pottery where the exterior surface of a pot is divided into planes, giving a simple and elegant architectural look. This influence is visible in her slab and thrown pot fusion pieces. 

As for contemporary Nova Scotian potters, she admires Nancy Oakley’s earthy traditional native smoke-fired pottery. “I bought one of her little smudge bowls,” Jody says. “ It’s bright yellow inside and the smoke is on the outside. I really like that.” 

Jody says that she thinks about surface treatments like glazes, patterns and the shape of things, or form, in tandem. So, now, after studying other pots and potters, past and present, she has ”a clear image in my head that I’m moving toward.”

Jody called this one of her favourite bowls, "I like the colours on that one and like the shape and everything. I think it came out quite nice. But it's just a pretty standard bowl. I have one at home that I've been using for my cereal a lot."
Jody called this one of her favourite bowls, “I like the colours on that one and like the shape and everything. I think it came out quite nice. But it’s just a pretty standard bowl. I have one at home that I’ve been using for my cereal a lot.”

Work in Progress Now

When we interviewed Jody in August she was not only working at making her pottery, she was also teaching herself to photograph her work with the camera and lightbox provided by the Incubator. It’s a skill she needed to market her work. Her next major goal is to get her work juried by carefully selected committee of craftspeople and sector professionals through the CBCCD, a big step toward creating a quality, appealing, marketable product line. Although a somewhat daunting process, she is looking forward to the professional challenge. “What I’m working toward is having that style that is easily identifiable and unique enough that it is adaptable to many different forms or many different types of dishes or pots.”

We think we have some idea of what “Jody Bender pottery” will look like: sturdy, basic shapes that are functional and beautiful with earthy textures that are intriguing. And it will have glazes of subtle shades of blue, green and brown echoing the colours of Nova Scotia stones and Chinese vases. 

But this is ‘early Jody Bender’. If we waited a year to visit her again, we expect to see another toolbox or two of collected stones she’s found on beach walks and perhaps a wall display of texture stamps she’s discovered on her journeys around Cape Breton. And we expect we’d see a much expanded line of her products. She is cautious about how quickly she’ll get to that level where she can offer, say, a whole dinner set —“plates can give you trouble”— but it’s her air of confidence and her methodical way of tackling problems that suggests it won’t be long at all.

Jody developing her product photography skills using equipment provided by the Cape Breton Centre for Craft and Design.
Jody developing her product photography skills using equipment provided by the Cape Breton Centre for Craft and Design.
Here is Jody's rock collection so far. Given that she loves exploring nature the collection will soon be much expanded.
Here is Jody’s rock collection so far. Given that she loves exploring nature the collection will soon be much expanded.
"I like texturing." Jody will find objects with textures and make an impression of it to make a stamp she can imprint with it.
“I like texturing.” Jody will find objects with textures and make an impression of it to make a stamp she can imprint with it.
Jody has recently introduced 'Anything Pots.' She says, "I wanted something that I could play with the form." These pots will be small, but each one will be unique. While the form will vary, the glazes will remain simple. "So I don’t have to spend a lot of time on the glaze," she adds.
Jody has recently introduced ‘Anything Pots.’ She says, “I wanted something that I could play with the form.” These pots will be small, but each one will be unique. While the form will vary, the glazes will remain simple. “So I don’t have to spend a lot of time on the glaze,” she adds.

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Jody Bender: Crafting a pottery career in Cape Breton

Author details

Elaine Mandrona, in addition to being a writer, is a painter and sculptor. She moved to Cape Breton permanently in 2021.