DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL WORKSPACE IN THREE WORDS…
Natural light, clean, uncluttered.

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE BEEN GIVEN?
Forward ever, backward never! From my pops.

WHERE DID YOU FIND THE COURAGE TO FOLLOW YOUR OWN PATH?

Being around other creatives who do the same, namely my mum and pop. They started their own business when I was very young and always worked for themselves in creative pursuits alongside their day jobs. My father is an incredibly talented stair builder and craftsman, and my mom is a very talented tailor and seamstress. When I was in university, my father left his job working for another stair company and started his own with my mom. They bootstrapped it and built a very successful business together. It really showed me that you can work for yourself, doing something creative– making something with your hands.

Choosing to do a craft and make art isn’t easy, it’s really stressful and requires so much hard work and dedication. Lots of late nights, forgoing social outings, just really putting your head down and pushing through… Not to mention the physical toll it can take on your body! I remember speaking to my parents when I was deciding what to do, when I was transitioning from working in music, and my father said: “You have to put in the work if you want to do this; you have to work harder than you’ve worked before.” It’s true; I work more now than I ever have.

WHAT IS THE MOST PRODUCTIVE PRACTICAL TIP YOU COULD IMPART TO A FELLOW CREATIVE?
To truly focus on the task at hand and what you’re trying to achieve. And work hard! Focus comes with being in a space that encourages you to work, with the tools you need, with no distractions… And also with doing some preplanning. If I’m able to see the steps ahead, it makes projects so much easier.

WHAT WOULD YOU TELL YOUR 18-YEAR-OLD SELF?
You can reinvent yourself many times over; there isn’t one true path, so there is no need to fear trying new things. You’re never going to stop learning, and you don’t have to have only one career. I have designed jewelry, been a gallerist, worked in the corporate world and several startups, done sales, managed a musician, built a music studio… It’s all been an education to get me where I am now– and for whatever is next.

WHAT DO YOU DO TO CENTRE YOURSELF AND FIND FOCUS?
Meditation! When I am about to jump into a project, I light some incense and meditate, even if it’s just for ten minutes. The stillness and clearing my head sets me up to fully immerse myself in the task at hand.

I also have to exercise often, just to keep up with how taxing ceramics can be on one’s body. I sit at a wheel for a lot of the day, so balancing that with yoga and Pilates, lifting weights and also a lot of cycling, helps. I cycle to the studio every day, even in the winter!

I WAS AND AM VERY DYSLEXIC, AND HAD ADHD AS A CHILD. DID YOU HAVE ANY LEARNING DIFFICULTIES GROWING UP, OR DO YOU HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE WITH NEURODIVERGENCE? HOW DID YOU PUSH THROUGH?

I definitely am a bit ADD, and it’s always a challenge to do things I don’t enjoy as much as physically working with clay. Doing admin, or writing emails, even invoicing, isn’t fun, and it often gets pushed to the wayside. I have to make copious lists to stay organized; if it’s not in a list, it probably won’t get done! I meditate to help my focus and have found that occasionally micro-dosing psilocybin helps.

WHAT ARE YOU MOST PROUD OF IN THE SPACE?
I think my small archive of work. I keep samples of work I’ve made throughout the years, and pieces I couldn’t part with…

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR NEIGHBOURHOOD?
My studio is technically in East Williamsburg, or Industrial Bushwick, and it can definitely feel bleak in the winter months… But there are a lot of creative studios and a few galleries nearby; you’ll find a marble and stone cutter shop next to a record store and music venues across the street from an indoor skating ramp, alongside a variety of small manufacturing businesses.

I’ve been working in this area for around seven years, and it’s changed a lot. But it still feels a bit like the wilderness– like you’re out in the hinterland and anything can happen here. I’ve been to parties on an old boat that was docked in a clandestine corner of nearby Newtown Creek, after having ramen at the legendary Ichiran, or dancing all night at one of the nearby music venues, next to a construction waste drop-off site!

Even though a good coffee is a ten-minute walk away, and there aren’t a ton of good places for lunch, it’s an area that’s very palpable with creativity and very much in flux.

WHAT IS YOUR DREAM PROJECT?
An interior tile project would be so fun! I’ve been experimenting with tiles to give my hands a rest from throwing, and it also forces me to focus on surface decoration versus form.

FAVOURITE SONG/BAND WHILE WORKING?
I worked in music for nine years before fully focusing on ceramics, so this is a hard one. But right now, it’s probably anything by Swedish producer Bella Boo, British producer Tsha, or else reggae and old Bollywood soundtracks!

THE ONE PRACTICE THAT HAS CHANGED YOUR LIFE THE MOST? MEDITATION, RUNNING, WRITING, ETC.
I have always kept a journal and did a lot of creative writing in university and after. I’ve done the artist’s morning pages as well in stints, and I make copious use of my notes app. It really helps me process work and life.