Apprenticeship at Papavero Studio
Applications for studio apprenticeship are reopened for 2024! One to two positions are available, See below for more details and application requirements and procedures.
Details
In exchange for 18 hours a week of work around the studio you will receive 24 hour studio access to a 1500 sq. foot, lake front studio space, assistance with materials, access to kilns, critique and guidance on work/professionalism. Work would include general studio upkeep, building projects, loading kilns, community projects, teaching opportunities, packing and shipping work, photographing work, website upkeep and general PR, assistance in my own studio practice, gallery retail assistance, customer service, scheduling and appointment maintenance, and programming development . Housing is not included. There are restaurants, coffee shops, etc. here in town for possible employment opportunities and Syracuse is only 20-30 minutes away containing many more options for both housing and employment. The studio has a retail crafts gallery carrying contemporary ceramics, jewelry, and handcraft, foot traffic in town is steady, and selling work is available and encouraged if those options are fitting.
In March of 2022, Rusty Wheel Pottery moved from its location in Tully NY to Skaneateles NY, 20 miles to the west of Syracuse, occupying the space that Imagine Handmade, a family owned Handcraft gallery of 30 years lived, and became Papavero Clay Studio. I currently have 8 wheels and plenty of hand building space. Extruders, Slab Roller, Large and small electric kilns are all located in the studio. Semi-private studio space will be provided for apprentices, with full studio access available at all times. Currently we have five spaces for apprenticeship, which creates a unique learning opportunity both in an operating studio and gallery business, as well as a creative community of dedicated makers. I consistently have a number of Ideas and plans for the year, with workshops, programming, teaching, and am looking for those who are interested in helping these plans grow to completion and beyond.
Ideally, the right candidate will have a BFA or MFA in ceramics or studio art, and a solid command of clay, clays properties, and processes. Teaching experience and interest is a strong plus, as running or assisting classes in the studio will be necessary, and good hand skills should be evident in your work as I will be looking for assistance in the studio with my own work. I ask for a letter of intent, resume, two letters of recommendation, and a portfolio of your current work. All of these things can be emailed to me at jeremydrandall@gmail.com or mailed to Jeremy Randall C/O Papavero Apprenticeship, 38 East Genesee St, Skaneateles NY. This will be a revolving application process and the position is currently open until filled. Because you will be working closely with me, my family, and studio community, I am taking this application process very seriously to achieve a great fit in all of these areas.
Background
In 2001 I had a unique opportunity to be an apprentice at Bennington Potters in Bennington, VT, learning industrial production techniques and mold making/plaster processes from David Gil, an Alfred University graduate in 1948 . It was never a position that I though that I would be in, but the situation presented itself, and I was looking to be surrounded by new situations in clay. I quickly found that there was valuable information to be gained, beyond what I had expected, and far different from the academic learning that I had been accustomed to in my recently finished BFA program in ceramics. After a year there, three years of graduate school, and 15 years teaching in college level art, ceramics, and design, I have realized a number of things about the educational process. Mainly, I have learned that there are valuable things to learn about working within the walls of a functioning studio, things that are about practice, practicality, business, functionality, and community interaction. This is where you may come in. Above you will find the guidelines and parameters of a new facet of my studio practice that has been evolving for the past four years, and one that will continue to evolve with input and assistance by amazing makers in clay. Come be a part of the way this whole story evolves.