JD Jorgenson

Bismarck, North Dakota Native and Potter

Artist Statement

I make unique handmade pottery using local clays and porcelain for everyday use in the home. The tools I use are a variety of handmade traditional Japanese throwing tools called Heras.  Ceramics are formed on both, wooden kick wheels as well as electric wheels.  My work is a combination of repetition, utility, transition and timing.  I try to draw on aspects from nature and my surroundings and incorporate them into my pottery.  Whether the approach is hand built, wheel thrown, brushwork, carving or altering the form the end goal is the same.  My hope is that someone will be drawn to a piece and pick it up and use it, completing the circle.  The primary source of firing my work has been using wood-fired kilns. I am particularly interested in the process of wood-firing which I was introduced to in college. Most of my pottery is unglazed and only fired once to be more efficient and resource conscious.  The beauty of wood fired ceramics is rooted in the ancient traditions of Japan, Korea and China. The natural ash glazing of the pieces and flame patterns on the pieces are aspects of traditional Japanese pottery that I admire greatly.  The firing combines the elements of fire and clay to create a new form.  Wood is not solely fuel to heat the kiln it is integral in transforming whatever it touches. Through the artist's work, the clay, the loading of the kiln and the community that is wood firing, this combination lets the ceramics quietly speaks the process to you.
I became hooked on clay at St. Mary's Central High School in Bismarck, North Dakota. College began for me at North Dakota State University and eventually I obtained a BFA in ceramics from the University of Iowa in 1999. Minneapolis/St. Paul area is where I lived and taught ceramics at Northern Clay Center, the premiere community clay art studio.  I was awarded a Jerome Foundation Emerging Artist grant at the Saint John's Pottery in Collegeville, MN in 2002. After my grant, I apprenticed under Richard Bresnahan for a year and a half, also at the Saint John's Pottery.  The mentors I have had through school and during my apprenticeship remain strong influences in what I do and who I am today.  Using local clays and glaze materials in the pottery making process combined with using recycled materials when possible is important to me.  Currently, I have established Jorgenson Pottery.  I live in St. Joseph, MN with my wife Sara, son Micah  and daughter Ofelia.