Recently, we had the privilege of speaking with Vancouver-based potter and artist Jesse Cowan, founder of Atelier Jesse Cowan. In our conversation, he shared insights into his artistic journey and reflected on the profound connections that shape his work — to ourselves, our families, and the earth beneath our feet. These relationships, he explained, have been instrumental in molding his creative process.
Stepping into Jesse’s East Van home, we’re immediately welcomed by the comforting aroma of freshly brewed tea—served, naturally, in a beautiful ceramic set crafted by Jesse himself. Our host greets us warmly alongside his partner and their gentle giant of a dog, Enzo.
Settling into Jesse’s beautifully decorated living room, we begin our conversation by exploring his journey as a potter—a path shaped by family, tradition, and a deep appreciation for the handmade.
Ricardo: Last time we spoke you mentioned how during your summers as a kid, your mom would send you off to stay with your ceramicist aunt in Belgium. Could you tell me that story again?
I feel that people often have very clear memories of their first time connecting to their material or art form. I feel like mine coincided with when I started having my early childhood memories when I was just hanging out with my aunt. I guess one thing to clarify is that the term is Marraine which translates to Godmother, but it isn’t a religious thing necessarily. It’s a special role given to someone close to the family. I think my mom’s idea is that she would partially raise me while I spent my summers in Belgium.
Being a potter in Belgium is a tough career to make work, so she would always be in the studio working. And as a kid I naturally just wanted to hangout with her and playing with mud is such a fun thing to do. It was such a great shift from the school year, or homework, or sports. Her studio was just such an easy space for me to play, that’s what it really was. I never set out to be a potter. It was just this amazing thing I got to do as a kid and over time it became more serious. But at its root, it really is just play and connecting with my family.
Ricardo: I assume that at some point while you were, as you said, being a kid and playing with mud you realized that this is actually more than that for you?
Yeah, It's interesting. My initial career was a lot more traditional. I ended up in London, England working for quite a while in some bigger corporate jobs. In that time, my aunt’s studio became my getaway space. A place where I can do pottery, relax and recharge. There was a moment after my 30th birthday, my aunt was getting up in age but also in physical ability. She wrote me this really beautiful letter where she mentioned that she felt a special connection to me but also she saw some sort of potential in my ability. She thought that if I was interested, that it would be really worth spending more time to seriously learn the craft. Not just playing in the studio, but actually, you know, throwing(a method of forming pottery vessels on a potter’s wheel) a hundred bowls and a hundred cups and really learning the finer details.
So I took some time to think about it. I was at a point in my own career where I was rethinking where I wanted to spend my time and energy and it felt like a really natural progression of what I was trying to lean into in life in general. So I went and spent many months living with her in the middle of nowhere south of France, surrounded by lavender fields and olive trees. It was a lot of time in the studio, a lot of deep conversations, a lot of tea and she’s also a great gardener so I would help her in the garden too. We were living a simple life, which was a nice shift for me from where life was at the time.
I try not to over-think or over-plan where life is going but I have just step-by-step been able to lean more into the craft and I did notice at a certain point that my skillset was really blossoming. I was able to make what I wanted to make and it has all felt like a really natural progression to where I am today, which is still refining my own ‘clay language’ and way of sharing with people like you and those that feel a connection to whatever I am able to make. I keep coming back to what it means to me and my own life, and it is connection to the earth, connection to a sense of play and connection to family. I try to build a life that doesn’t have a sense of hurry to it.
Ricardo: A lot of your pieces have this really beautiful ombre look to them that I haven’t really seen much before. You’ve mentioned before that it has something to do with the dirt from where your family is from. Can you tell me more about that?
There is beautiful earth everywhere if you are able to go deep enough, but geographically every place has its own characteristics. There are certain places that I connect more, aesthetically, but then there’s always the story that feels important to me. To be able to use, simply the dirt from where my family lives, and incorporate that into how a piece looks and feels… I don’t know, maybe it brings me peace. When I look at this piece there. That is a teapot I made and the darker lines on it are all simply the earth from the land that my family is living on. There is something to it. It’s a feeling I guess.
Ricardo: Does your aunt’s work look similar?
There is definitely a connection there, visually. But our styles are very different. That was the start of a practice she was leaning into and she spent, probably 20 years trying to figure out the right portion of mixing, trying to figure out you know, is it a spray? Is it a dip? What thickness? And so I am continuing that work in a way and bringing my own personal touch to it and seeing where that goes. Maybe one day, ill be able to pass that on. It definitely feels connected. Almost like a shared experience.
Julianne: Do you think you take a lot of inspiration from her?
Absolutely, it's definitely something I think about a lot. I feel like you can connect to it and put your own touches to let it evolve. You always want to figure out your own artist identity, but there is something I find very cool about being able to have this touchpoint with what someone you deeply love has spent decades working on and be able to take that next step. And even to share her story is super important to me.
Ricardo: Aside from your aunt, where else do you find inspiration?
I’d say I draw inspiration from every aspect of life whether conscious or subconscious. I think a lot about textures and palettes. Those are two things that I try to reflect on. I try not to draw too much, which is a bit different from some folks. I like to just throw and let it do what it wants to do and then take a moment to see what I like and what I don't like. I try not to create the exact same shape perfectly again and again. I feel like there’s incredible technology and machines that can do that nowadays. What is more interesting to me is the human touch and a lot of my pieces would even celebrate the lines left behind by my fingers and tools. Many potters try to hide or remove those things, which is great too but I am really interested in what our hands and bodies can do by connecting with the earth.
I feel that having your hands deep in mud can really change how you feel and how you think.
Ricardo: How so?
I think it reminds us of some core principles of being human. You can feel a connection when you see a pot made a thousand years ago around an open fire because the practice hasn't changed that much. A thousand years later and I am still here, making pots.
You can view more of Jesse's work through his Instagram page here.
