Houghton alumna Nancy Petrillo is the first artist to featured as part of the Steuben Artist Series in Wellsville. Her work is currently on display at the Steuben Trust and will be for the rest of the month. Petrillo is a member of the Allegany Artisans, which means her studio has been a part of a tour of local artists and craftspeople for the past five years. As for her art, the Wellsville Daily Reporter attributed an “understated elegance to [the work’s] softly patterned white, aqua and blue pottery”.
“The infinite beauty and design found in nature is probably the greatest influence on my work,” Petrillo commented. “It’s great to have a camera in my pocket at all times now to record a color combination or pattern found in the sky or on an insect while I’m out walking or playing with my grandchildren.”
One of Petrillo’s goals when creating her pottery was to marry the elegance of china “with the functionality of more practical, durable wheel-thrown pottery”. She recalled her grandmother’s teacup and saucer collection. As a child, she appreciated their delicacy and detail, but noticed they did not function for the everyday. “I don’t remember those cups ever being used. In fact, I don’t think my grandmother was a tea drinker,” said Petrillo. She continued to express that she designs her work so it won’t “be so fragile that it never leaves the china cabinet.” On her website, A Stone’s Throw Pottery, Petrillo said that when her family first returned to the United States, she wanted to make “a proper dinnerware set”. Today, Petrillo has a cupboard full of cups she made, which her family uses every day.
Petrillo’s work on display in Wellsville has a texture influenced both by her former slab work, her wheel-thrown forms, and some clay addition. She remarked on the new method, “It’s a bit time-consuming but I enjoy the decorative process, as well as, developing a method to produce these results. I am always finding new fabric scraps or other objects to tryout new textures with this process.” When reflecting on how she began gathering objects for the process, she said she began by “coming home with stones, seed pods, leaves and other bits of natural world.“ Petrillo made it to be porcelain clay because she found it “gives more clarity and brilliance to the glaze colors.” While she is always working from her past success, Petrillo explained that her experimentation with different materials and methods means her work is ever changing.
While at Houghton, Petrillo was an art major with a concentration in ceramics. She added that learning the process of ceramics inspired her to form her own ideas. Between her graduation in 1985 and opening her studio in 2007, Petrillo served in Nigeria and Senegal as a missionary alongside her husband. It was there that she raised a family, but also learned about local pottery methods. While she was able to work on some pieces, she could never fire and finish her work. “I didn’t mind considering it as a time of practice and really never thought one day I would have the opportunity to design my own studio and continue my ceramic work,” commented Petrillo.
Petrillo’s work will soon be available for purchase in the Campus Store. It also finds its way to a few gift shops and recently some of the large summer art festivals in the Buffalo and Rochester area.