Jessie: I grew up in the Mississippi Delta in a very small town called Anguilla. It is a forgotten place, where nothing ever changes and there is not much to do there except ride around on dirt roads and lure stray animals into your life. I guess it was a special place to grow up because I had to constantly use my imagination to keep myself entertained.
Anderson: I grew up in a college-ish town about a half hour south of Nashville called Murfreesboro, TN. When I was young it felt pretty small but turned into one of the fastest growing towns in the south. I did however have some inspiring teachers in my public high school, and several local potters from whom I took classes and worked for. It was not so special.
When did you first start creating handmade goods?Jessie: I wanted to drop out of college and my mom convinced me to take a ceramics class. That is when it all started.
Anderson: When I was in high school. After making my own cereal bowl and using it, I was hooked.
What drew you to ceramics? What do you enjoy most about it?Anderson: The ability to make functional work drew me to ceramics, and the magic of throwing on the potter’s wheel, transforming the material so quickly. I have always enjoyed the tactility and the fact that you don’t necessarily need any tools to manipulate it, just hands.
Jessie: The tactile quality of clay is what drew me in. I enjoy working with my hands and making objects that have a function.
Anderson: It starts with a drawing or sketch, maybe just a doodle of a profile, then that is repeated and refined and eventually brought into three dimensions by carving or building with plaster. Ideally that is done several times, and changes are made to refine the form. Often times bringing a 2-dimensional idea into 3 dimensions doesn’t produce the result you’re expecting, and you have to start over.
Bean is Jessie’s middle name, Bailey is Anderson’s and now Jessie’s last name, and we thought it had a nice ring to it.
Any other interesting facts or stories you’d like to share?We started working together in college as partners in the hot glass studio. This has set a great foundation for collaborating and working together 12 years later in our own studio.