Today we’d like to introduce you to Tim Ingersoll.
Hi Tim, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I graduated college with a degree (MFA ) in graphic design from Moorhead State in Minnesota. I moved to the Denver area in 1993 and got a job at a design agency (Lundwall Creative) in 1994. While there I reunited with my first girl friend, Michelle, and we married in 2001. She had a love of horses so we purchased some horse property in the Kiowa area and moved here in late 2002.
I was by this time, senior art director at the agency and commuted for a couple of years, then made the decision in 2005 to work from home. Michelle knew I had always wanted to do pottery, so when she met a couple that lived by Elizabeth that were offering classes, she signed me up. My first class was in October of 2007, I was 42 years old.
I took classes for about a year, then purchased a wheel and a small kiln on Craigs List so I could work from home. I started off pretty slow as I was really busy with design work. Then in 2009 the housing crisis caused my design work to slow considerably. For therapy, I spent most of my time working on pottery. When asked where I went to school for pottery, I say “I went to YouTube University”. I got to the point where I either needed to stop making pottery or I had to start selling pottery, so Michelle signed us up for our first arts and crafts festival in Elizabeth at the Elizabash, in the summer of 2009. It went really well.
We did 4 to 5 shows a year for the fist several years, then gradually increased to 7 to 10. I would guess that it went from being a hobby to a business around 2015. The money we made from pottery all went back into the business till about 2020. I have taken over most of the basement, I now have a large capacity kiln, a large van and in 2020 we added a separate building as a gallery. When I talk about pottery, I refer to it as “ours” because Michelle does so much of it. She does most of the business side of it, the paperwork, taxes, and communication. Our slogan is: “I make things, she makes things happen”.
I still design a magazine every other month, but most of my time is now devoted to pottery. We do festivals in the metro area, Golden, Grand Lake, Elizabeth, Castle Rock, Elbert, and our holiday show at our gallery.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
As with most businesses, there were some financially lean years. Some of the festivals we done are very competitive to get into and so you can’t alway count on them. And when you do get in, they are a lot of work to set up and tear down. We’ve experienced a lot of extreme weather at some of the outdoor summer festivals. The pandemic year saw all of the festivals cancelled. While that was financially difficult it was, however, a very creative year for me. A lot of what I do now is from that time of being in that pandemic bubble.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a functional potter. I fire to cone 6, I make almost all of my glazes, and I’ve made most of the tools I use for decorating. I have never receive a greater compliments than when someone comes back and says “we use it all of the time” or they say “this is really different”. I don’t claim to be the first potter to do anything that I do, that said, I haven’t seen another potter with a similar style. I think being self taught has helped set me apart even though I make common items.
I would have to say that what makes my work stand apart is the type of tooling that I do, the use of terra sigillatta (fancy term for slip), and grouting glazes in my designs. Being a graphic designer has helped me with balance, color, textures and overall design. And being a cook, I really appreciate a well made functional item.
I’m most proud of how well received we are in our community. They have been supporting us since the beginning. Our best shows are those that are closest to home.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Making a living doing what you were meant to do.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.windyhillpottery.com
