Nancy Gardner
Nancy Gardner was born in 1954 in Philadelphia. Nancy remembers the excitement when she began working with clay at the Cheltinham Art Center. This led to undergraduate studies in art and a BFA from the Temple School of Art at Tyler University in Philadelphia.
Nancy moved to the Midwest for graduate school in ceramics at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale in 1981 where she studied with nationally renowned ceramic artist Harris Dellar and graduated in 1984 with an MFA in Ceramics. In 1984 Nancy moved to Dayton Ohio for a full time teaching position at Sinclair Community College.
In the summer of 1987 the artist moved to Chicago and taught at the College of Dupage and various other schools. In the time between the birth of her two children, Nancy decided that her ultimate goal was to work as a full time potter producing work that would be accessable to individual collectors. She set up a production pottery with her husband and collaborator Burton Isenstein in Chicago's Wicker Park neighborhood.
The production studio was scaled back and partially moved to Oak Park in 2002. All work since then has been handbuilt with pinch and coil technique. Each piece is one of a kind, individually hand formed and decorated with multiple layers of underglazes and glaze. The materials employed are food safe and water tight and intended to be used. Work is available through the Etsy store, at various fine craft shows, and from select retailers.
