Protecting the necessity of making: Katharine West

Abstract

My interview with Katharine West coincided appropriately with Earth day, 22 April 2016. Listening to her describe the age-old geological processes of the weathering of igneous rock, producing primary kaolins, the basis for porcelain, conveying images of riverbeds with rich mineral deposits; I understood how she draws students to work with her in ceramics. Her appreciation of the connection of ceramics with the haptic and hand-made, with ancient cultures, anthropology, and archaeology is compelling