In ceramic artist Ann Marie DeCollibus’ home studio in Ferndale, no space is wasted.
On one window-facing desk, a sign for an upcoming Whatcom Artists of Clay and Kiln (WACK) Studio Tour shares space with a stack of books and notepads, a vessel jam-packed with paintbrushes of varying sizes, a Sriracha bottle half-full of water, boxes with paper-whites and amaryllis bulbs waiting to be unpacked, and a jar of home-canned pickles.
During a recent visit to DeCo Ceramics, a sill on a nearby window looking out at the property’s maroon barn and garden was also replete with four gargantuan apples and tomatoes in various stages of ripening. The red orbs may not have been the ones DeCollibus used as models for one of the many painted and glazed platters placed on a table near the studio’s fridge-sized kiln, but she said much of her current creative subject matter is indeed culled from her garden — including figs, Asian pears and, yes, tomatoes.
Ann Marie DeCollibus works in her Ferndale studio. She has created ceramic pieces for 30 years in the former canning kitchen. (Hailey Hoffman/Cascadia Daily News)
It’s fitting DeCollibus finds inspiration from what she gleans from her plots and fruit trees. The large studio she’s been working in for 30 years — since she and her family relocated from Bellingham’s York neighborhood to the 5-acre farm on the outskirts of Ferndale — was formerly used as a canning kitchen. When she and her husband moved in, they renovated the house, then turned their attention to the studio.
“The original owner of the farm came by a couple summers ago and saw what we did to the house and studio,”
DeCollibus said. “This building had a dirt floor and a sliding door when we moved in. There wasn’t any water. We poured the floor, ground the walls down, etc. That was 30 years ago. We had a lot of energy. Now I’m 66 and I’m like, ‘I have to clean this?’”
Tidying up the space for visitors may not be her favorite chore, but DeCollibus said she loves showing and selling her functional and sculptural wares from her home base, located at 2727 Mountain View Road. Not only is it convenient, but seeing all the tools of her trade gives people a better idea of how much work goes into each platter, mug, tall vase, butter dish or small plate she carefully crafts.
Events such as the second annual WACK Studio Tour, she said, are also a way for those interested in finding out more about the artistic process to get a closer look at how some of the many members of the nonprofit dedicated to ceramic art and education operate.
DeCollibus said she’ll be doing various demos throughout the two-day event, which takes place Nov. 5–6 at venues throughout Ferndale and Bellingham — most of which will host additional artists for the event.
Through the weekend, she’ll share space with WACK member Jesse Rasmussen, a talented artist who formerly taught classes at the Jansen Art Center in Lynden and now teaches at Whatcom Community College.
Ann Marie DeCollibus peels off paper from an underglaze transfer, revealing a carrot on a plate. The platter eventually included leeks, garlic and turnips inspired by her garden. (Hailey Hoffman/Cascadia Daily News)
Watching DeCollibus transfer her paintings on to hand- or wheel-turned clay during a demonstration promises to be mesmerizing, but be aware it’s only one step in many that turn her pieces from functional pottery into one-of-kind works of art. Since retiring from teaching ceramics at the age of 58 — first at Ferndale High School, then at Bellingham High School — she’s spent serious time perfecting her process, which includes painting, tracing, cutting and sponging each cutout onto the clay (among many other steps).
“The beauty of this technique is that the drawing looks really fresh,”
DeCollibus said. “I try to tell a little story on the surface. I garden and fish, and grow flowers.
I’m an artist. I like to decorate, put my hand into it.”
The tales DeCollibus tells through her art reflect the trajectory of her life. Her many pieces with aquatic themes reflect the decades of summers she and her husband spent on their fish tender in Alaska, which they recently sold. The carrots, leeks, garlic and turnips she recently used to demonstrate her process were pulled from her garden and, before being eaten, were memorialized in paint and will eventually be finished in a kiln.
Many of Ann Marie DeCollibus’ pieces feature fish designs in homage to her and her family’s work as fish tenders in both Alaska and Bellingham. (Hailey Hoffman/Cascadia Daily News)
As part of the Whatcom Artists of Clay and Kiln, DeCollibus is committed to sharing what she’s learned over the years with those who drop by to peruse and purchase her art. Because part of WACK’s mission is to educate the community about the ever-growing ceramics scene in Whatcom County — which includes Burnish Studio and Baker Creek Ceramics, which will both be on the tour — she also learns something new when she collaborates with fellow artists.
DeCollibus said another good thing about the tour is the way it draws together other members of the community and even helps form lasting relationships.
“For example,”
DeCollibus said, “last year some neighbors came over. They were new, they didn’t know this was going on. Now she’ll text me, ‘Hey, I have a wedding to go to. Do you have a big bowl?’ I like the idea of being the neighborhood potter.”
The WACK Studio Tour takes place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 5–6 at studios and venues throughout Whatcom County. Entry to the self-guided tour is free. Info: whatcomartistsofclayandkiln.org.
