Studio Artists

Lesa Fleet’s work is heavily influenced by her love for nature. In 2004, she began designing a series of leaf-imprinted ceramics, as well as jewelry made from fresh-water pearls. She offered her work for sale, first at the 17th Street Farmer’s Market and later at the South of the James Market. Today, Lesa works out of her home studio and at Shockoe Bottom Clay Studios, creating a wide range of decorative and functional pottery. Her love for creation goes into each vessel she shapes.

Susan Gaible believes that many ceramic artists of today focus on the art rather than the function. For her, the pleasure lies in entwining visual images and designs into functional ware. This approach heightens the pleasure and enjoyment one can have from the simple everyday experiences of eating and entertaining. Susan is all about food; introducing an element that extends her creativity into the entire dining experience brings her joy and personal satisfaction.

Mark Koslow is a local Richmond ceramic artist known for his one-of-a-kind bowls and vases. He is passionate about creating ‘arts and crafts’ style vases, cups, and bowls with reticulate glaze and needle nose vases. Mark started his career as a woodworker, creating clocks, furniture, and turning bowls. He has been known to say, “One slip of a chisel and a wood bowl is history. Clay is forgiving and allows for limitless exploration and creativity!”

Jane Martin’s “Wallflowers” first bloomed in her imagination as a result of her fascination with flowers and an inexplicable need to decorate her functional ceramic ware. She put tulips on pitchers and daffodils on vases; however, she found that the daffodil seemed inadequate—a poor facsimile of the actual flowers the vase was meant to hold. She wondered how one could improve on nature.

Additionally, Jane realized that her delicate flowers seemed misplaced on vessels meant for use and began to see them as more suitable for decoration. Affixed to tiles, they became whimsical studies of their natural counterparts. Working in a decorative rather than functional manner, Jane draws horticultural inspiration from her own garden and from the botanical prints and “flower portraits” of the 19th century that have always fascinated her.

Other influences include an obsession with vintage textiles, evidenced in the hand-painted and stenciled background of her tiles. Jane’s Wallflowers are her tribute to the real thing—those garden beauties that bring joy and smiles. Her goal is to capture their charm and to surprise and delight.

Johnnie Bess is a potter, painter, and arts educator based out of Richmond’s Shockoe Bottom Clay. A Howard University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in painting, he has spent over fifteen years working in clay and teaching, developing a practice informed by Zen aesthetics, African spirituality, wood-fired traditions, and Japanese teaware. Having lived in and traveled through multiple countries, including Japan, his work reflects a deep respect for process, place, and lineage. His vessels—shown nationally and sold from farmers markets to Fifth Avenue through Bergdorf Goodman and other high-end retailers—are created to carry the refinement of luxury while remaining accessible, bringing beauty, peace, and quiet joy into everyday life.

Heidi Reszies is a transdisciplinary artist working in various media, including ceramics, paint, text, and textiles. In her creative practice, she aims to foreground processes and materials—where mark-making, impressions, gestures, torn edges, stitches, and brush strokes serve as stand-ins for the body—in art that expands outward and suggests an underlying structure of time.

To reconnect with his heritage and identity, Josh Singleton creates utilitarian ceramics that address the intersectional relations of his Korean-American background and the foods he eats. Throughout his struggles with reclaiming his ethnic identity, food, and art have become anchors for him. He discovered ceramics to be an ideal medium, as it is inextricably tied to food culture in both Korean and Western traditions.

The forms, decorations, and glazes he uses reflect historic Korean ceramics. Josh has repurposed floral and nature motifs to tell his own story through ceramics and food. He hopes that by sharing his experience, others caught between two cultures can be inspired to share their own.

Josh Singleton is a Korean-American ceramic artist. He received his BFA with an emphasis on ceramics from West Virginia University and currently lives in Richmond, VA.

Hunter graduated with a BFA in ceramics from West Virginia University in 2017. After relocating to Richmond, Virginia he began pursuing his ceramic career in 2021. His work explores ideas of consumption, environmental impact, sustainability, and one’s own contributions to global waste.

Artist Statement
Due to my interest in fashion and self expression through fashion, I am often faced with the reality of the fashion industry’s negative impact on our planet. My work is a representation of my thoughts on America’s overconsumption in regards to clothing. I craft my vessels to reflect the piles of clothing that inevitably end up in landfills. With my work, I challenge people to question their own ideas of consumption and sustainability.