After launching my website in the new year, I did some serious reflecting and realized that one of the strongest pulls I feel in my creative process is to find meaning in my work. I feel incredibly full and rewarded when I am able to document the art and process of makers and leaders who have immense passion for what they do, and in turn I find my own kind of purpose in telling their stories. This year I’m challenging myself to photograph twelve artists and boss babes who are following their hearts and making waves and to tell their stories here each month, starting with Morgan Mullins who is making waves of her own in the pottery world.
I met Morgan at a DC pop-up market in December where we were both vendors and was immediately drawn to her beautiful handmade bowls, planters, and pitchers that evoke the serenity of a calm cerulean sea and are well-suited for her company name, Waves of Stone. About a month after the pop-up I visited Morgan at her apartment in the Shaw neighborhood and felt the same peacefulness in her beautiful and cozy home that she keeps with her partner Jared and their adorable pup Iggy. Their walls are decorated with prints from their favorite national parks and, as you scan the room, you can pick out the spare gems that have been carefully scattered to various places, like lightly polished pebbles on the shore.
I was completely entranced as I watched Morgan start with a mound of clay and, after patiently and methodically molding and working the clay with her hands, transform it into a beautiful vase: a work of art and symmetry. We chatted as she worked and she explained some of the complexities involved - the timing, moisture, and pressure needed to create a balanced piece - but she made it all look so easy and enjoyable. Morgan has periodically worked and taken classes at Glen Echo Park, but she is mostly self-taught, learning and growing each time she creates something new. I truly admire the concentration and skill she has to make her beautiful pieces, and you can tell that she truly loves her craft. The handmade pottery industry is a small and competitive one, but Morgan is breaking through barriers with a smile on her face and determined to bring her work to local markets and across the US. In addition to her website, you can find her pottery up next at the Made in DC shop at The Wharf!
