About the Artist
Hello and welcome. My name is Claire Gill and I have wanted to be an artist for as long as I can remember. I particularly remember being in elementary school in art class when my teacher asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I told her that I wanted to be an artist and my dream has stayed the same since then. Over the years I played around with various career ideas, all in the art field. After high school I decided to attend Aquinas College and it was there that I found my love for ceramics. After a few years I graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Ceramics.
I love making utilitarian objects. Art that has a function outside of being wonderful to look at. To me, there is something incredibly special about the idea of someone using MY art as an everyday item. This is one of the reasons that I love making mugs so much.
Outside of functional work, I also enjoy making sculptural pieces by hand carving pots that were thrown on the wheel.
I just want to create beautiful things and for people to be able to find joy in the things that I create. Please feel free to start a conversation with me, I love to talk with people about my work.
Why BlueGill Ceramics?
For years I struggled with what to call myself and my business. I always wanted a business name rather than just going by my name. I don’t really know what drove this particular want, but I needed to follow through with it. It look me years of playing with ideas to come up with BlueGill Ceramics. The backstory is largely based on “BlueGill” being my nickname in my middle school track and cross country years. My coaches came up with the nickname and I continued to use it ever since then, so it seemed fitting that my business use it as well. It fits really well because I also just love and vibe with all things aquatic. I love the ecosystems and animals that reside in water, be it fresh or sea. So I like to think that is also part of my reasoning.
