John Barnes

John’s pottery journey began here in his home state of North Carolina. He has made pottery in NC, NM, and AZ before taking an extended break from clay to focus on his family.

He recently found his way back to the medium here at Clayworks in 2023. The majority of his pottery work has been raku and large, functional stoneware pieces. He is drawn to firing in wood, salt, and raku environments where the potter, clay, glaze, and kiln interplay to create a unique finished work.

Experiencing wood firings in Tozon wood kilns in Flagstaff, AZ was one of John’s greatest joys in clay. Meeting and working with artists in the southwest while he lived on the Hopi Reservation directly impact his love of nature. He tries to incorporate these experiences into his ceramics work today.