The lively patterned mugs, plates, pitchers, and vases that artist Caitlin Heimerl Allen brings to the table speak to her close relationship with nature and her love of color and pattern. Fat blossoms and leaves wrap in and around easy-to-hold mugs. Trilling birds sit tall on pitchers. Fish swim in a dinner plate lotus pond. It’s not hard to see why her vibrant tableware wins hearts and Best of Show awards at craft fairs and markets across the country.
The girl who grew up in California’s Topanga Canyon came to St. Louis when she was in middle school. “My family moved here so that my brother and I could attend Principia School,” she says. “My mom taught German and later English there for over 20 years.”
Allen graduated from the school and earned a BFA in illustration in 2010 from the Rhode Island School of Design. “I came back to Principia in 2013 to teach full-time as their visual arts teacher. I had a wonderful experience during my eight-year tenure, but in 2021, I decided to work full-time in my home studio as a ceramic artist, painter, and illustrator,” she says.
How did you make the transition from illustration to clay? When I was hired at Principia, I was asked to teach all the visual arts classes. I had the least experience with ceramics. For the first few years, I felt like I was racing to stay one step ahead of my students. In 2018, I attended a workshop at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts with artist Lydia Johnson. She pioneered the process of printing on slabs of clay with colored slips that I now use. My time there played a key role in my growth.
Why did you decide to leave teaching? The timing was right. I wasn’t ready until then. When I was at RISD, I had this serendipitous opportunity when an art director for a publishing house came to portfolio reviews. She looked at my work and said, ‘I normally don’t do this, but I have a manuscript in my office right now. We’re looking for an illustrator. Why don’t you send some sketches?’ I worked my heart out on those sketches and was hired in 2012 to illustrate Monet Paints a Day. At the time, I didn’t have the confidence or the competitive spirit to start my freelance career, so I followed my other interest, which was education.
What was the turning point for your move to ceramics? In 2020, two of my pieces were exhibited in a national show. I also had a mug accepted into a show. The two juried exhibitions were such a boost to my self-confidence.
You married in 2020 and built a studio. How has that worked for you? I met my husband, Joel, at Principia. He’s a geologist. We got married on Zoom in July of 2020 and bought a home in Maplewood, which allowed me to build out a studio. We’re working to turn our yard into a native plant habitat. Right now there’s not much to see, but I think the garden will make appearances in my sketchbooks, my paintings, and on my ceramics.
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June 27, 2022 at 09:18PM
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St. Louis artist Caitlin Heimerl Allen creates lively patterned pottery - St. Louis Magazine
"lively" - Google News
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