Licia Joy

---

 “It’s a slow and intentional business,” Licia ‘Joy’ says. She juxtaposes her organic forms with precious elements of porcelain and gold. Her work is more than ceramic art; It’s built around the idea that ceramics can heal. Bringing it to the table is a way to slow down and pause, to take time to breathe deeper, to reconnect with friends. It creates a space to process what one carries. A companion for hard times, it brings one home when lost. She explores emotions and feelings with form, texture and color, hoping that her work evokes joy, peace and healing in those using her ceramics. Finding joy in the little things of this world, Licia Joy calls her business Little Joy. 

Licia Lucas-Pfadt grew up in rural Pennsylvania, but also lived in SouthWest Montana for 25 years. Licia returned to Pennsylvania in early 2024. Licia received her BFA in Ceramics and Fibers from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, graduating Magna cum Laude in 1998. Licia has been a professional studio potter and educator for almost 30 years. She uses mid-range porcelain, underglazes and real gold luster, working from her home studio.

Adding to her credits a Montana Artreprenuer Program in 2023. Some exhibits include The Yellowstone Art Museum in Billings, MT; The Danforth Gallery in Livingston, MT; delecTABLE in Denver, CO; Dirty Cup in LA; Big Sky Auction, MT; 10 Gallery in Livingston, MT; Eberle Studios in Pittsburgh, PA; Waterworks Museum in Miles City, MT.

Formerly known as Shady Grove Pottery

 at Grey Cliffs Ranch

Bozeman, MT.

I am an artist that makes pots. The artist in me is a playful child. My ideas come from something bigger than me, coming to me at any moment of the day. If I am open to receiving them, I will make notes or sketches and work on the idea later. It will continue to develop throughout the making process: trimming, decorating, glazing, firing and using, and then again revisiting and revising the design.  It is the process that I enjoy and that motivates me. I lose myself in the process. 

My mom was an elementary art teacher which greatly influenced me. I come from an extended family that always cooked and gathered together to eat and talk around a table, literally farm-to-table before that was a trend.  I am really interested in exploring those vessels that hold the food we share together. 

Combining form and function, aesthetics and utilitarianism, ceramics makes art accessible to the general public because it is useful and affordable, providing one of a kind art for everyday use. Ceramic art fuses both art and craft. The cup is an intimate object. One that you use everyday holding and feeling with your hands and putting it to your lips, tasting what’s inside, sipping over and over again. Ultimately, bringing the simple experience up a notch that touches one's soul.

I begin my work by weighing the clay depending on what it is I’m making. Then wedging,  and centering it on the wheel, or I roll out slabs of clay to texture, cut and form.  Clay is earth and the glazes are the minerals and chemicals from the earth also.  It is working with nature directly. It is a very slow process and one must take their time or it won’t be good craftsmanship.  Clay teaches us many things, including patience and resilience. I only use a few simple tools because my favorite tools are just my hands with direct contact with the clay. 

Working in clay is healing and therapeutic. It is a form of meditation for me, keeping me centered in life.  Each day I am doing something different. It fills my days with pleasure, creating and sharing. It gives me satisfaction and makes me feel complete. I also really like to work alone. I am motivated to educate people on what good pottery is, so they can be excellent collectors or potters themselves. I want people to actually use my pieces everyday, not just let them sit on a shelf. They are aesthetic pieces with function and they work well. 

I am inspired by nature and any type of vessel, from a lake holding an ecosystem to a nest lined with soft feathers. I love to look at other peoples’ work, any kind of art and I love to walk through nature and gather treasures to bring home. I take from nature the organic patterns and acknowledge the imperfections.

Always growing and changing, my designs are uniquely mine. I formulate and make my own speckly slips and drippy aqua and bronze glazes.  I also use one of a kind hand carved vintage printing blocks to texture and pattern the clay. I want my work to bring smiles to people's faces to bring them an appreciation for food, drink and company in a new light. I want my work to be integrated into people's lives and give them appreciation for the rest of the world. I want to be that someone who adds creative energy to this destructive world.  Others say my work is tranquil, balanced, simple, elegant, delicate. I assure you it is made with head, heart and soul.

I speak in a language of visual metaphors using clay and intuition to tell my stories. Opening my heart and learning to listen to the universe and its source is the grounding of my work. Through routinely making, experimenting and exploring, I am guided by powers beyond my understanding. Paying attention to things that rock my spirit, that make me question, that make me smile; Being an artist is a way of life.  I like to intuitively make, with skills from practice but a sense of exploration for new expressions. Clay feeds, heals and holds my soul. Nature is my inspiration.