Ryan Reich, Moriah Ritchie, & Masey Park | Episode 401

Ryan Reich teaches ceramics and serves as the Visual Arts Chair at Valencia High School in Placentia, California. Two of his star ceramic students, Moriah Ritchie and Masey Park, stayed after school with Ryan and talked clay over Skype with Paul. This was an fascinating conversation about the passion for ceramics as seen from both sides of the desk- The teacher and the students.

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Moriah where does inspiration come from?

I guess for me it is the support from my family. They just inspire me to keep pushing myself and keep making more. everyday when I come home with something new my dad says, Oh my gosh, let me see it right now. He grabs it and wants to look at everything. He gives me input in what he would want in it. He likes thumb holders for his mugs, so he gives me his thoughts from the outside looking in almost like a customer. It inspires me to keep pushing myself and keep making more.

Macey same question for you. Where does inspiration come from?

I think it is definitely classmates. I get a lot of praise and help from my classmates and they say, That looks really cool and I wish I could do it like that. Moriah an Mr.Ryan are a big help making my work better. They are like my family.

Ryan for you as a teacher, where does your inspiration come from?

Inspiration I think comes from everywhere. As an artist a lot of my inspiration comes from things from my childhood and aesthetics that I have learned to appreciate as an adult. So I guess inspiration for me comes from a lost of things, but not usually where it would normally come from. When I first graduated from high school I worked at an aluminum foundry and around big industrial processes and machines. That experience gave me some visual inspiration. I was a young adult around grown men doing labor and that ‘s when I learned, If I want to hang I have to work. I need to be able to work continuously. So it’s hard to pinpoint where inspiration comes from. A lot of it is just a fire inside of me, like I need to do more, I need to do better. It is a constant push to get better and to make something where I want to be as am artist.

Macey what is your favorite tool?

I think honestly the needle tool because since I have been making those little hands for my narrative project I have been using that very intricately. Using it for detail and when I am on the wheel making it level and using the needle tool to cut through it.

Moriah what is your favorite tool?

I would definitely say a rib, any kind of rib. I love to manipulate the shape and make things really smooth so they definitely have become my best friend. You can use them on the wheel or you can use them hand building so they are very versatile.

Ryan what is your favorite tool?

My favorite tool, if I could only have one tool, as silly as it sounds would be a regular wooden pencil. I use it when I do my cups, I use the pencil to make lines, I have done a lot of things with lines and dots. That is kind of my aesthetic- lines and dots. And I love the dot I can get with the end of an eraser, a nice, clean, new eraser. I have even improvised and use the side of a pencil as a rib to smooth things out. If I don’t have a pencil I feel like I can’t do what I really want to do the way I want to do it. It is great to write down notes and little sketches as well.

Moriah what is your favorite form to make?

I think when I first started out I loved making bowls. That’s all I would really make. I challenged myself to go bigger. So far this year I have kind of moved off to kind of the same shape, just round. Almost making a sphere as vases. I actually just finished making a pitcher and the top of it is almost like a sphere. So probably just circular forms.

Macey how about you? What is your favorite form to make?

I like mugs. I don’t know why I like mugs. I like making it rounder and more bubbly and squeezing it in from the top and having it not as big as on the bottom. Like the ones I have on Instagram with the drips. I like that shape of mug.

Ryan what is your favorite form to make?

Definitely mugs. Hashtag muglife. I think I heard you on one of your podcasts or someone say, mugs are the most valuable commodity in ceramics because it is something that a lot of people use everyday. It is very practical. I have a couple of ceramic friends and go to their house and they have whole mug collections. Just the challenge of making this totally intimate, handheld object that becomes a part of everyday life. I also like making lidded jars. The kind of freedom and possibilities you have by making two separate pieces that somehow interact together.

My last question for all of you is: What is your favorite ice cream?

Moriah: Plain chocolate. I don’t like to chew my ice cream with chocolate chips in it or malt balls or anything like that. Probably plain chocolate ice cream because it can also make a great chocolate shake.

Macey: Mine is Chocolate Malted Crunch so Maria would not like that. I think they only have it at Rite Aid. It is literally the best ice cream I have ever had.

Ryan: Anything that is really chocolaty. My favorite thing is late at night when everyone has gone to sleep, I go to the freezer, grab some ice cream, usually chocolate, and then I go grab the big jar of peanut butter and put a big ol’ glob of peanut butter on top of it.

Contact:

ryanreichceramics.com

Ryan’s Instagram: @ryanreichceramics

Masey’s Instagram: @maseyparkceramics

Moriah’s Instagram: @ritchieceramics