Kelly O'Briant    

Kelly O’Briant’s work in ceramics has made an expansive journey of form and material alongside her own travels through North Carolina and abroad. A native of Julian, NC, Kelly earned a BFA in Design with a second major in Cultural Anthropology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. During this time, she participated in archaeological field work in Finland, and increased her knowledge of kiln building through a research assistantship grant that allowed her to build a wood kiln.

Afterwards, Kelly interned with potter Judith Duff in Cedar Mountain before entering the Penland School of Crafts as a two year Core student. While at Penland, she concentrated in clay and metals, also taking courses in books, wood and fibers. In clay, she gained expertise in a variety of techniques, including wood, salt and soda, porcelain, stoneware, low fire, earthenware, majolica and china painting. Her current focus is in high-fired functional porcelain work, which she appreciates for its clean lines and artistic accessibility. Her work has been featured in a number of exhibitions, among them the National Cup Show at Kent State University and the “Forms and Shapes: Cup” exhibition at the AKAR Architecture and Design gallery in Iowa City. .