Daily Inspiration: Meet Chancey Doster

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chancey Doster.

Hi Chancey, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I started young with my interest for art. I always loved drawing, used to make my own “books” by stapling pieces of paper together and coloring with markers, loved to paint, went to art camp, always enjoyed art at school, etc. As I got older, this love continued and developed. I took private art lessons, I took AP art in high school and joined an art club, and began taking commissioned drawings and entering works into contests or shows. My junior year of high school, I was blessed to attend a Summer art program at Savannah College of Art and Design. There, I was able to take two college art courses. I learned a ton about drawing and really grew in confidence about my artwork and in my artistic abilities.

I just always found peace in drawing and painting and decided to continue expanding my artistic talent throughout college.

I was a studio art major at the University of North Georgia and they required me to take a ceramics class. I was in my junior year of college (2017) and I hadn’t touched clay before (minus those pinch pots you make in elementary school) and was so sure I would absolutely hate it – was a little angry actually that they were setting me up to fail. Well, you guessed it! I fell in love with ceramics and have been doing it ever since.

Today, ceramics is my full-time job. I work out of my small home studio in Bogart, Georgia, creating functional ceramic works. I often hand paint on pieces, combining my two passions – painting and pottery. I sell online and at festivals and often take on custom orders.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
While I feel very blessed with how my business has taken off, I don’t believe anybody has a totally smooth road when taking off with something new.

Starting a business was extremely out of my comfort zone. I had NO idea what I was doing. Making the art, that part was easy! Mostly anyways, I will say I sometimes struggle with the motivation to self-start (even still today) and every now and then, I struggle to come up with new designs to keep things interesting. Luckily, I have a million ideas and enjoy exploring different techniques and styles! The business part of it though, wow.

My mom always urged me to take a business class in college or even get a degree in business and I told her, “For what? I’m never going to run my own business.” And I fully believed that. I never wanted to own a business. But, as you know, life likes to throw curve balls.

I fell in love with pottery, like I said, in my junior year of college, but I never expected that to become a career. When I graduated, I worked as a graphic designer at a marketing company for a bit. While this was great, it wasn’t the best fit for me. I put in my notice with no backup job (totally unlike me) and decided I’d make and sell pottery until I found something I loved. Turns out, pottery is what I loved. And it took off! People were putting in orders and commenting on pieces I posted, saying they wanted to buy them. I was amazed!

So, owning my own business was something I totally just fell into by mistake. And while I absolutely love what I do, keeping up with the business side of it has been a struggle for me. That’s just not how my mind works. My mind is very artistic and creative but doesn’t want to focus on numbers and business plans as much. There I was, all of a sudden in this thing; I’m a one-man show having to play every necessary role to keep this going.

Being one person and having to play the role of the artist, business manager, marketing agent, customer service, salesman, quality control, and be a social media content creator (which is a whole other struggle in itself. I think we all know how important this is in today’s world)… it’s a LOT. It did get easier with time, though. I had to find tracking processes that work for me and had to put up three months’ worth of calendars on my wall so I could see that far out in advance. It’s all about finding what works for you. I watched as other friends my age took off with their businesses and seemed to have no problems, but the thing is, what works for them, might not work for the next person. I had to get that through my head so I could move forward and find my own path.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Since 2017, I have made and sold functional ceramic stoneware. I think what made me fall so hard for pottery is the fact that it is functional. I love the idea that I can make this piece of art, and someone can come along and fall in love with it and then can utilize it in their everyday routines!

For those who don’t know, pottery is a lengthy process with many steps. It starts as a lump of clay that you must wedge to remove any air bubbles from. You can then put it on the potter’s wheel and “throw” it to form your shape. The piece has to dry a bit before you can trim away excess clay and perfect the shape you are looking for. You can then pull/attach handles, add any details or carvings you may want. The piece has to be completely dry before going in the kiln and this can take up to a week or more. This timing varies depending on the air outside or in the studio – for example, in the winter the air is dry and your piece dries so fast, sometimes faster than you want which can cause cracks! Once it is dry, you can put it in the kiln for what is called the bisque fire. This sets the clay and removes any moisture. Now, you can sand the piece smooth, glaze or paint the piece; then it must go back into the kiln for the glaze fire. This is where the glaze turns from a powdered surface to a shiny glass-like surface full of beautiful color and the clay is vitrified.

I have tried a ton of different looks and styles over the year, but I still have not found my one style. I actually may never because I love so many different looks and love using different techniques to create certain styles. However, I do specialize in hand-painted pottery, as this combines my two passions (painting and pottery) and, I believe, makes my pottery unique. Many potters can glaze their pieces beautifully with traditional glazes. I love this look as well, but hand-painting shows your talents off even more. Not only did I make this functional piece from a lump of clay, I also painted the surface design. It can’t be copied this way and it is truly one of a kind.

I have always been inspired by nature. I loved being outside as a kid, well, and even to this day. I just find peace and relaxation enjoying God’s creation and using it as inspiration for my artwork. Those handmade “books” I mentioned in the beginning were usually about birds or dolphins. And my high school art concentration was wildlife. Now, you’ll find a lot of my mugs contain paintings of different flowers, birds, various wildlife, or landscapes. So, by combining my two passions, I use my God given talent to create artwork of His creations, hoping to bring joy to others around me!

I am extremely proud of how far my work has come. When I first started, I was embarrassed to sell pieces (or looking back now, am horrified when seeing pieces people have on display in their homes). My work was all so heavy and thick. I worked very hard on getting my pottery to be lightweight – this just means I am able to throw with very little clay and trim as much as possible. Often, people will pick up pottery expecting it to be heavy, so it’s a nice surprise for many when they feel how light it is. I think it’s more comfy that way, though this is personal preference. And my paintings/surface designs have gotten much more interesting and overall better as I have learned to work with ceramic materials over the years.

So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Supporting small businesses doesn’t always mean buying their product. While this obviously helps and it’s an amazing feeling when someone wants to purchase something you’ve spent your time on and put so much love and work into, there are many ways to support us!

Simply referring a business to your friend, liking, commenting on, and sharing social media posts, showing up to events, suggesting handmade over big box stores… it all helps get the name out there, and that’s what we need most. If people don’t know you have a small business or don’t ever see the name, they won’t know you’re there.

If you do want to financially support but don’t have the room or don’t need anything, consider my work for housewarming or wedding gifts! It’s a unique gift that can be used and cherished, it supports my business financially, and it gets my name and work out there to new faces.

As far as collaborating, I’m definitely open to working with other businesses – doing give aways, creating logo mugs for you, combing niches to create something unique, whatever it may be! You can reach me through social media messaging or email.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.chanceydosterpottery.bigcartel.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/chanceydoster_pottery
• Facebook: www.Facebook.com/chanceydosterpottery
• Other: www.behance.net/chanceydoster1