Given the quality of her work, it’s hard to believe that Liza is a relatively new potter. She began just three and a half years ago when she took her first class at Water Street Studios, and within eighteen months, she’d joined Clay Makers and never looked back.

Liza’s enthusiasm is contagious. She loves the mindfulness of ceramics and the way it requires total focus. She also appreciates its impact on her own perfectionism.

“I always find it miraculous that I’ve created anything, so even when it’s not perfect, or exactly what I expected it to be, I love it (for the most part),” she said.

A scientist in her day job as a postdoctoral researcher at NIU, Liza prefers predictability and structure, but she has learned to embrace the surprises that sometimes come out of the kiln. Ceramics offers an outlet to relieve the stress she might feel at work, as does dabbling in watercolors and creative writing.

Liza says that art and science have a lot in common and can nurture and expand each other.

“My science writing becomes more creative and approachable the more I activate my artist side. I also find more creative solutions for experimental designs,” she said. “And I bring my science brain into my art with all the research, experimentation, and careful following of procedural steps needed for a ceramic piece to come out successfully.

There’s also an incredible amount of chemistry that goes into making clay and glazes — though truthfully, I only understand the basics, as I am NOT good at chemistry.”

Liza describes her creative process as chaotic, but the results are anything but. For fantasy-inspired pieces, she says, “An idea pops into my head, I get really excited about it, I think on it for about a day or so, and then I go into the studio, and I just see what I can do to make it happen!” 

The inevitable interruptions — when pieces need time to dry before moving on to the next step — actually help, too. 

“I can sit with my ideas, edit down all the noise in what I want to create, and focus on what makes the most sense for a given piece along with what’s the most feasible given the restrictions there can be with clay as the media,” she said.

Liza’s pet portrait mugs start with a pet’s photo featuring a front-facing image. She then creates an outline on her computer using that image, prints it out, and presses the image outline onto one of her wheel-thrown mugs. 

Glazes bring the pet’s image to life as she outlines it in black, adds lines for expression, and uses underglazes to match the fur and eye color. These hand-painted images help suggest the animal’s personality.

The focus on animal pieces stemmed from Liza making a mug with a portrait of her own dog, Koopa, and realizing how much joy she felt using that mug for her daily coffee. She decided to try selling custom pieces like that, and her business took off. 

“People love their animals as much as I love mine and I take a great responsibility in honoring their pets in the portraits I paint,” she said.

With a PhD in Animal Behavior and Behavioral Ecology, she has spent a lot of time thinking about how animals interact with each other and their environment. Ceramics gives her a method for expressing those ideas.

Her body of pet images overlaps with her fantasy ceramics pieces, which feature mythical creatures that are often animals. Liza finds inspiration in books and enjoys the freedom to show these “animals” however she wants.

Wheel throwing is Liza’s favorite method, but she loves to incorporate features like hand-painted portraits or hand-built attachments. She loves working with glazes that look like or move like fire and sunsets and is drawn to those colors and the way they blend together.

Much of her non–pet portrait work features animals that are considered dangerous, paired with glazes that resemble fire. She resonates with the idea of protective armor creating a sense of safety while concealing something more delicate on the inside. She enjoys finding beauty in something that seems scary.

Liza’s dragon-eye mug was the first piece that made her feel like she had found her creative voice. Having created that piece intentionally and thought carefully about what she wanted it to look like, the result far surpassed her expectations. This piece also gave her the confidence to keep going and launch herself into her art.

Although Liza continues to struggle with imposter syndrome as a relatively new and largely self-trained artist, both the quality of her work and the support of the local artist community affirm her being labeled an artist.

Fantasy authors inspire her fantasy ceramic pieces, especially the Fourth Wing series by Rebecca Yarros and all the Sarah J. Maas books. Other clay makers and artists at Water Street also inspire her, and she loves the opportunity to see what they are creating and to bounce ideas off of one another.

“Just do it! Your work is valued no matter what level you’re at. Someone will find joy or inspiration or connectedness or SOMETHING in whatever it is you create. And nothing feels better than having an idea and seeing it come to life.”

Check out Liza’s Instagram page, @feral_creature_ceramics, and her website, feralcreatureceramics.weebly.com.

She has a contact form on the website for anyone looking for pet portrait mug commissions, as well as a page that briefly outlines the commission process and encourages people to DM her on Instagram. Her work also appears in shows at Water Street and at late spring and summer markets.

This piece was written by Ellen Jo Ljung, a longtime Geneva resident, author, award-winning educator, and glass artist. Visit her website to learn more.

Please feel free to reach out to [email protected] with questions or comments.

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