Jess Ruiz: A little cup of joy

By Daniel A'Vard Ask Jess Ruiz what her pottery is for and the answer is simple: she wants it to make people happy. “A cup is something that you can use every day,” she said. “But I’d much rather drink my coffee from this cup than a plain cup [from a big chain store].” Jess grew up among sewing machines. In Chile, her mother was a dressmaker and her father a leatherworker. As a child, she moved between their two work areas, helping out or making her own items, like clothes for her dolls. Her parents hoped she’d choose a more stable path and she became an early childhood educator. Even so, she found her way back to making. Thirteen years ago she moved to Myrtleford from Coffs Harbour, drawn by the rivers and snow which reminded her of home. She took pottery classes in Wangaratta and Yackandandah. When COVID closed them, she started working at home. Driving pieces away to be fired cost her about half of them, so she bought herself a kiln, set up in a garden shed and kept going. Jess is a hand builder, cutting slabs from flat patterns. The first time she tried it, “there was that immediate connection, like, ‘I know how to do this.’” It brought back memories of what her parents did: turning a flat pattern into something you can hold. Her work carries bold, playful patterns inspired by poppies, Billy buttons and leaves from the country around Falls Creek. The colours trace their way back to her grandmother’s bright vinyl tablecloths. Working with clay keeps her grounded. “No matter how expert you are, it keeps you humble,” she said, as the morning we spoke, a kiln opening had gone badly and work she was excited about had cracked and broken. You can find her work at the Beechworth Farmers’ Market and on her Alma Terra website. She runs workshops, but said if they tempt you to try clay, she is not responsible for your future addiction.

Jess Ruiz: A little cup of joy

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