Jonathan Steele
Steele Tea Studios
I’ve been making pottery since 2009 and focusing on the teapot and other wares for Gongfu tea service since 2016. I earned an MFA from OCAC in Portland, OR in 2016, was resident artist at Pleasant Hill Pottery 2016-2017 and have taught ceramics at University of Puget Sound and Lane Community College 2018-2019. The teapot keeps me coming back because it requires so much precision and intention to do well—I’m refining and redesigning every time I enter the studio. Subtle changes in the way the lids sit and the proportions of the spouts and handles make dramatic differences in the way the pot feels in use. In Gongfu tea service, the intent presence with the motions of steeping and serving tea brings a sharp focus to the objects of service—I’m compelled to make work that lives at that table. My early pots bumble through those moments clumsily and I’m still in the pursuit of creating the wares that serve in silent elegance.
