About

Dirt & Ceremony is a passion project by Jenna Lee, living and working in Portland, OR.

I am continuously engaged in the challenge that clay presents; of taking soft earth and forming it into a refined, and often geometric, vessel. Working eye-level with my pieces to smooth their surfaces, eliminate unintentional markings and ensure the junctions are precise is a meticulous labor of love which both feeds my need for grounding materiality, and attention to detail.

After deciding that a vessel is ready to fire, it is then surrendered to the volatile and unpredictable nature of an atmospheric firing (wood and/or soda), resulting in a unique dynamic of precision and spontaneity between each form and its surface. A true collaboration with the elements, with nature's role almost always surpassing my expectations of what each vessel can be.

You can follow my work via my Instagram, email me at [email protected], or submit the contact form listed in the site's menu.

At Robbie Lobell's 9-day flameware workshop at Snow Farm Craft, 2018

In the earlier stages of throwing, I use a mirror so I can keep an eye on the form without continuously bending to one side. In the finishing stages, I work eye-level with my pots to ensure the form's profile is as precise as I can make it. 

The East Creek Anagama in Willamina, Oregon, where my work is wood fired. 

Read more about the wood firing process here.