Today we’d like to introduce you to Bethany Etgen.
Hi Bethany, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
We moved to NC in 2000 and raised our family in Cary…while a lovely place to raise children, we were ready for a change of scenery once our youngest graduated. We needed something more vibrant and diverse. We fine-tuned our possessions and relocated to an apartment in DTR and haven’t looked back!
We love being a part of the downtown Raleigh community, watching it grow and change.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
I love to travel & I love being available for involvement with our children, currently 24, 22 & 21, and so carving out time for my own pursuits has long been a challenge for me, but it is so worthwhile!
I’ve gone through periods of intense production and selling but have found that in doing so I lose my experimental playtime; it makes the work feel a bit stressful and less free, with deadlines and expectations. Suddenly something I love begins to feel a little less fun.
When you create things, people tend to want a “piece” of it to carry away — and this is wonderful and flattering and so sweet and supportive, but it’s also easy to slip into a world where you’re spending time making things that you know will “sell” and then your inner voice and personal pursuits get a little muddied or set aside.
More recently, I’ve taken a breather from that and attempt to find a nice balance between “making things to sell” and playing with some more personal things I’m dreaming of making, and that list is endless…but exciting!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’ve always had an interest in ceramics and have had phases throughout life where I’ve been able to dedicate my effort to this, on and off, it has always called me! If I could do it all over I would have listened to that a little more carefully and studied ceramics more in my college years. I still take classes here and there, but I regret not having formally studied this when I had a great opportunity to do so.
I have found throughout my life that I may be labeled an artist, but I realize I may identify more with the idea of being a “maker” I think…there is artistry within that for sure, but I’m just generally happiest and most fulfilled when my hands are busy making things – and porcelain has settled with me, (after playing around with clay for over 30 years!) as the material I enjoy “making” with most.
It’s a miracle to me to take something natural, clay, from the earth, add a little bit of fire & my making hands to create something pulled from my mind to share with others.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I like to think I’m adventurous and a risk-taker in life and in my work, I don’t know if I’d consider them “major” but I’ll elaborate:
Leaving our suburban home of 20 years to move downtown felt like a huge leap at the time, some of my closest family and friends thought we were crazy or weird, but we just knew it was the right move for us – there were so many questions about it and we definitely didn’t have all the answers. My new life motto about unknown things that lie ahead has become simply: shrug, “we’ll figure it out.”
We love to travel nationally and internationally…We’ve just purchased property in Taos, NM, after a trip earlier this year…no idea what our plan is, but! we’ll figure it out! 🙂 It just feels like something fun to dream about right now. There’s a beautiful vibe to the town, historic and humble, artistic and expansive, and breathtakingly gorgeous.
In my work, I’m often dreaming up ideas and sometimes they don’t have specifics, and they are hard to describe to others…but I came across a quote recently from the founder of “Make” magazine that just struck me so fully and clearly, about the essence of being a maker, as well as a pretty accurate description about how I seek to live my life:
“Making is an approach to doing things in spite of the fact you don’t know how they will turn out. Making is an active mindset. It means you can learn to do anything you really want to learn. The effort itself is worthwhile, even if all you gain is an appreciation of how much better others are at it than you.
Experiment on your own, and try to live a life of your own making. It will be messy, imperfect, and a lot more fun. It will be your adventure.”
Contact Info:
- Email: 919porcelain@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/919porcelain
- Instagram: 919porcelain
- Other: The Maker’s Space, https://www.themakersspaceraleigh.com/
