At a young age, Janet became fascinated with the medium of clay and its possibilities. She began working with clay as a teenager. studying sculpture, and creating realistic representations. Later, while in college, she had the opportunity to work on the potter’s wheel, which opened another avenue of exploration in the world of clay. She began to develop the necessary skills and techniques during this time. In the course of her studies, she became intrigued with the story of the gathers of tribes, who would coat the inside of their baskets with clay to prevent leakage. The story continues that a basket was accidentally burned, revealing a hard dish of fired clay from the accident.
This story kindled Janet’s desire to incorporate “organic” elements into her pots, such as reed. From there it was a natural “evolution” in her work to begin developing a more organic feel to her pottery. She felt that while the clay was on the wheel, and under her hands, it had a living and dancing quality. However, once the clay was fired it became staid and static. This led to her experiment with different ideas on how to retain the quality of living and dancing once the pot had been fired. Janet began adding collars of ” slung slabs” to her pots, thus infusing them with a permanent sense of movement. By utilizing this method of slung slabs and adding reed material and porcelain leaves, she continues to seek that link back to the first potter and the natural world.
Janet Leazenby was a resident of South Bend, Indiana and has a Bachelor of Arts from Indiana University. She has retired from being an art teacher in the South Bend Community School Corporation 29 years, and also as a clay instructor at the South Bend Museum of Art for 35 years. Now living in Hendersonville, North Carolina as a full time Artist since 2013.
