Rising Stars: Meet Erin Hoekzema

Today we’d like to introduce you to Erin Hoekzema.  

Hi Erin, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
In 2004 I was studying criminal justice at the University of Michigan. At the time, my (now longtime) boyfriend Jeff Karp was accepted to College for Creative Studies in Detroit contingent upon bringing up his GPA by taking 1 more class. He decided upon a ceramics class at the Henry Ford College. I thought a ceramics course sounded fun and interesting, so I took the class as well for moral support. At the end of the course, ceramics 1 which was mostly hand-building, my instructor Steve Glazer, got us on the pottery wheel for a taste of wheel throwing, which was studied in the next course. I was able to center the clay rather quickly and fell in love with the concept of the pottery wheel! I was not very good at the rest of the process yet, diving in, pulling up, shaping, trimming, glazing, etc., but I knew I needed to learn how to do this. The idea of taking raw earthen materials literally dug from the ground, and turning them into functional pieces of art was humbling and mesmerizing to me. My mom bought me a pottery wheel, and I began playing around with centering and trying to make forms on my wheel at home. 

I had been working as a server/bartender during this time when opportunity arrived in my life to follow another one of my dreams, which was to become a flight attendant. I jumped into it with flying colors. At the start of my third year flying the friendly skies, I was chatting with a couple on a flight. 

They asked me if I enjoy flying and if this was what I wanted to do Long-term. I gave it a bit of thought and responded I ” I do enjoy it, but honestly, I miss playing in clay”. 2 months later, I quit my job as a flight attendant and enrolled at Henry Ford College for Ceramics. 

I found myself enthralled with all the different techniques and processes. I would give shifts away whenever I could at my day job, and I missed many social events, so I could bank more time at open studio hours and absorb as much information as I possibly could in the ceramic lab. 

I went through all of the ceramic courses offered at HFC, even repeating a few just for more clay time, paying out of pocket. Then I entered the direct studies program. This was an advanced studies class where I could design my own course and lay out my goals. Working towards them with the instruction of Steve Glazer. I did the advanced studies course many times over and I am so thankful for the program there and the ability to use the facilities. 

The ceramics club at HFC had been inactive for a while, so I volunteered to take on the head of the club as the President and began recruiting members. We had our first sale as a club in the college cafeteria and it was a great success. After that, we collectively said, “We need to go bigger.” Steve Glazer (head of the ceramics program) myself and the club members began to work on a larger scale Art show we called the HFC pottery Boutique. We invited professional ceramic artists and Potters to sell in our show as well as the students in the college Sission gallery. This was not only a great selling success, but an amazing opportunity to meet Potters, see and sell their work, and learn some of the ins and outs if the business. 

I continued to take clay classes and work on my techniques. It wasn’t just about being able to throw a pot. I could throw a perfect pot and then glaze it, and it comes out a complete disaster. It’s so much more than just Art. There is so much science involved. Chemistry and math for mixing glazes and clay bodies. Calculating shrinkage rates of clay. Engineering of your products. Understanding the physics of clay to name a few. 

I did a few shows with my Ceramics Club here and there and some smaller Church vendor holiday shows. 

In 2014 I decided to launch my business Centripetal Designs, Pottery by Erin Hoekzema. I did my first real art fair on my own the Wyandotte Street Art Fair. My work was well received, and I learned so much. I did a few other local shows that year, including the Allen Park Street Fair, some church vendor pop-up shows, a show at the Suburban Collection Showcase in Novi, and I was invited to attend the Annual Potters Market in Southfield, The Annual Potters Market is a show in Michigan that sells the works of over 140 Potters all in 1 place. This was huge for me. I was able to connect with so many people who do this for a living, and that’s exactly the leap I was hoping to make. I continued to do local shows successfully through 2015. 

2016 started off with some setbacks. We lost a family member, and Jeff separated from his job. Paying tuition for using the studio was getting expensive. I decided to focus on working and saving up some money by bartending at the DTW metro airport. I kept my eye out on estate sales, Craigslist, Market places and slowly began purchasing items to use in my studio I knew I would one day have. I took some courses at the Michigan Arts Center to get my hands back in the studio environment and learned some new firing techniques raku and naked raku. 

It was the end the 2018, and I was ready. I needed to get back in a big studio where I could get making my wares and get back into the show scene. I went back to HFC in Jan of 2019 and was ready to do this. 

When you are scheduling shows, you usually are applying to then 10 months or so before the show even starts. So, you really need to plan out your year ahead of time. 

It was winter ’19, I was throwing as many pots as I could, had my local summer shows lined up for ’19, and needed to be planning winter. I have a great friend that moved to Florida, and we would always talk about me coming down there and doing shows and getting out of Michigan winter. Could I get accepted? Could I really do the Florida circuit? I applied to about 10 Juried Fine Art shows in Florida for the beginning of the year and awaited their responses…I got in! I got in! I had a great summer show season. At the end of ’19 I took my earning from The Annual Potters Market show, I bought a trailer, and I headed down to Florida. I did 7 art shows in the first 7 weekends of the year. What a way to kick of the year! I was exhausted, but oh, so excited! I was Finally going from a starving artist to a real professional potter. This is my job! I’m a potter! 

I got back home to Michigan at the end of February ’20 ready and excited to be a potter.! Then…the pandemic hit. All of my shows started canceling. One by one, they dropped like flies. My year of being a potter was over. 

2020 was nothing like anyone had planned. I ended up taking much of my quarenteen time packing up my house. We had needed to move but hadn’t started are search. What is it going to be like now trying to buy a house? We managed to find the perfect property in Adrian township Mi. We didn’t know much about the area, but it had the pole barn I have been waiting for to start my studio and checked off all our boxes. 

Finally, a place for all of the things I have been collecting over the years. I got someone to come out and run my electrical, so I can finally run my own kiln! This is a game changer. 

In 2021 some shows came back, and I had an amazing summer doing Mi art fairs. I did the most shows I have ever done in a year. I was in gallery shows, museums shows, farmers’ markets, fine art shows, street fairs, you name it. It was hard work, but it was amazing. I also landed some wholesale orders and retail opportunities. I have made custom Mugs for multiple business and full dinnerware sets for customers. I also sell collections of wares at The Vintage Market Mercantile. They have a location in Trenton MI which is light and airy and a location in Monroe MI which is dark and stormy. I have different lines of wares in each location. 

The start ’22 again came with some challenges. I had an injury with my scapula, ribcage, and shoulder, and I was unable to throw on wheel. For a few weeks, I could barely get out of bed. After 4 months of physical therapy, it was time for some serious catchup! Summer shows had been long scheduled and paid for. Despite me feeling incredibly behind and defeated, I got as much work made as I physically could. I was mentally drained. I was getting back to work at my part-time day job trying to catch up on bills and also trying to catch up on months of lost time of making pots. I spent most of my nights grinding out pots after work. I didn’t believe I had made enough, but I did my best. In my disbelief, I still managed to keep my shelves full throughout my show season. I made work between shows. Made work when I got home after a 14-hour day of selling in the heat, every spare minute. My sales at every show this year surpassed previous year’s sales. At one point, Jeff looked at me when I showed him my numbers. it was day 3 of a 4-day show, and he said, “How is there anything left on your shelves with those sales?”. I had pulled out all the stops and made it work. “I’ll sleep in August” is what I kept telling myself. And I am so glad I worked as hard as I did. 

I begin teaching at the Adrian Center for the Arts in the Fall of ’22 and I am so excited to be able to share some of the knowledge I have learned over the years with the youth of today. Ceramics literally changed my life. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It hasn’t been the smoothest road. But through all the struggles and triumphs it has been worth it. When I first found my love for ceramics, I was a young college student, living on my own and struggling to pay bills. I paid for tuition out of pocket to take the courses and learn, and it was a constant balance, should I go to work today or go to the clay studio and absorb information so I can learn how to do what I want to do with my life. When my boyfriend’s mother passed in 2016, it hit us hard. My boyfriend separated from his job at the same time, and I had to pull back from my studio time and focus on making a living for us both. Covid, of course, also threw a huge wrench into the mix. As 2020 was supposed to be my break-out year as a full-time potter. When all of my shows canceled, I no longer had an income. It’s also been quite a challenge learning to wear so many hats. Learning to throw pots doesn’t happen overnight. I am constantly learning more and refining my techniques. There are new shapes and items to make. Multiple different glaze firing techniques from atmospheric to reduction, pit firing, raku, salt, or soda firing. It took me longer than I would have liked to hone into a style. I love the versatility with ceramics, and my style will forever be evolving. 

Learning to be not just a maker and artist but also an inventor, designer, web page creator, accountant, chemist, marketing director, social media advisor, glaze technician, kiln maintenance tech, packaging strategist, salesperson, director, owner, cleaner, photographer, branding specialist, supply manager, research and development team, tax specialist, builder, educator, writer, show scout, inventory keeper, shipper, delivery driver, and customer service rep are some of the hats I wear. There has definitely been a huge learning curve to balance all of these things. I think my biggest struggle has been myself. I always knew I enjoyed ceramics, but never really believed in myself that I could do this for a living. We are our own worst critics for sure, and I tend to be extremely hard on myself. Looking back now how far I have come; I really wish I would have been easier on myself and trusted in myself sooner. 

Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a Potter. Today, I continue to learn and experiment with my materials in an effort to constantly refine my artwork. 

Most of my work in made with my hands using a pottery wheel and some hand building. I make utilitarian wares. I have a few different lines of wares; however, my most in demand have been my speckled farmhouse line. I’ve taken a speckled brown clay body and glazed it white for a chic farmhouse fresh look. 

My main sellers are mugs. I may so many different different mug styles; there is something for everyone. I also make these fun double cups, which are perfect when you have some things to separate. Things like chili and crackers, pistachios and shells, cherries and pits, hummus and veggies, milk and cookies, etc. My Ramen/Phó bowls which come with chopsticks are also extremely popular, and I’ve been having trouble keeping them in stock. Which is a great problem to have. 

I’ve done many custom dinnerware sets with the farmhouse style. I have also made custom logo mugs for multiple businesses. I am super proud of the fact that I am able to take raw elements from the earth and turn them into functional pieces of art for others to enjoy. It is incredibly humbling and rewarding to see others enjoying my work. I am always especially humbled when another business reaches out to me to make my work with their logo. 

Even though I can make multiple of similar items, every piece is hand-made by me making each piece slightly unique, with my heart and soul poured into it as well. 

Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
I was lucky enough to have a great program run by the director Steve Glazer at HfC. I met many ceramic artists through the college that I still call my friends and colleagues today. Social media has also helped greatly as well. Joining multiple Facebook groups about firing, glazing, or just clay, in general, has really helped me broaden my horizons and relearn some techniques. Going out and showing my work has also given me many opportunities to network and learn about different areas and clay programs. NCECA, which is a huge National Clay conference, has been a great way to meet other Potters, as well as when I joined the Annual Potters Market sale. Meeting over 150 Potters all in 1 space at the same time was an amazing experience, and I look forward to it every year. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.centripetaldesigns.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/centripetaldesigns
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/centripetaldesigns

 
Image Credits
The Vintage Market