Ben Owen Pottery

Ben Owen III is a potter from Seagrove, North Carolina. His forefathers came to North Carolina from England as early as the late 1700s to ply their craft and furnish storage jars and other utilitarian wares for the early settlers. Ben's grandfather, master potter Ben Owen, Sr., admired early oriental pottery displayed in museums and collections and translated those works into his own style of pottery through the opportunity to work with Jacque and Juliana Busbee for over 36 years at Jugtown Pottery. His grandson, Ben the III was influenced at an early age while working around the family pottery tradition.. He studied pottery as an apprentice with his grandfather and later at East Carolina University. Like his grandfather, Ben III's pottery reflects a foundation of traditional designs as well as oriental translations. In later years, he traveled around the US attending workshops and conferences and abroad to Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Europe and recently to China where he diversified his experience while taking advantage of an exchange program and visiting local artists.

"As a potter for over 30 years, my approach to working in clay is inspired by many
influences. With a mentor in my grandfather, Master Potter Ben Owen Sr., and father,
Ben Wade Owen Jr., they taught me at an early age the importance of clay and how to focus on good form and design, says Ben III. For several generations, we have used local stoneware and earthenware clays to produce functional and decorative pieces inspired by early american pottery and the orient. Many of these are finished in wood and gas kilns. For many pots, I use a four chambered kiln with a firing process of up to four days. With this technique, I develop a wide range of colors and surfaces on the clay. With outside influences from studying other cultures, I have continued to create a unique identity with further refinement of distinct colors and designs. Inspirations from nature has recently been a focus in my style and the challenge of making larger scale vessels on the wheel."

Many of Ben’s one of a kind works have recently been installed by various interior designers in a series of hotels over the last 10 years including the Umstead Hotel in Cary, NC, the Ritz Carlton in Tokyo, Japan, White Plains, NY, Charlotte, NC and the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Boston. Other installations have been for numerous private residencies as well.

We hope you enjoy looking around and learning more about Ben's tradition in clay as well as info about our process.