Grim Pottery- Debbie Grim Yates

"It's a lifestyle," Debbie Grimm Yates, artisan and owner of Grim Pottery in Damascus, Virginia, says of her choice to be a working potter. Her path down that road began about 15 years ago, she recalls. "I was singing up on stage at a festival and there was someone there making pottery. I was mesmerized. I just couldn't take my eyes off it." Encouragement from mom followed. "She saw how interested I was, so she went out and bought me a wheel."

Self-taught from the beginning, Debbie soon discovered kindered spirits and gallery owners Robin and Bet Mangum of Sparta, NC (Magnum Pottery). Debbie's desire and dedication to learn the craft soon had her driving two or three times each week from home in Virginia to the studio gallery after a full day of school or work. "I just knew it was something I wanted to do."

You need only spend a little while with Debbie to see the passion she had in the beginning remains as alive as ever today. When she talks about the process, she lights up, her entire face becomes animated in the glow of sharing it with others. Sadie, 6, and Molly, 8, Debbie's daughters seem to love it, too. Each can throw a pot like a seasoned professional and are excellent helpers in the production of Grim Pottery from Debbie's home workshop. Debbie's part time assistant, Kelly Dancer, is her "right hand" she says. "It's a family affair. I don't know if I would want to work with anyone else;we just feel like family."

Grim Pottery supplies about 10 galleries with items as well as filling custom orders. An annual home show occurs throughout November and December for the Christmas season and usually features at least three additional artisans. "Every day I work with the clay feels like Christmas to me," says Debbie. "It's very exciting to open up the kiln to see what you've created. You never quite know what it will be like." There's much joy in sharing the pieces, too. "During the home show, I think 'Wow, someone will open this up on Christmas morning, and it will make them smile.'"

"Music and clay go hand in hand", she believes. "Each piece is a part of your soul." An accomplished musician, Debbie plays the fiddle and guitar. You are likely to find her performing with her husband, Tim, at a weekend festival during the summer. "The girls go with us and sometimes, we literally sing for our supper." Debbie explains the family often appears at special events, such as aBed & Breakfast promotion, where they will provide the evening's musical entertainment in exchange for lodging at the establishment. "It's a nice getaway."

Home schooling her daughters allows Debbie to be pretty mobile. "We like to try to keep everything we do at a 25% level," she explains. The pottery at 25%, the music at 25%, the home-front duties(gardening and canning, etc.) at 25% and other work at 25% balances everything out. Debbie holds workshops at local schools at least once a school year. The kids each get a chance to be hands-on with the clay. For some of them, it may be their only exposure to the making of this kind of art.

Debbie claims the clay she uses is easy to work with. "It's very forgiving," she say, "but it remembers where its weak spots are, and that can be where cracks occur, and it can also make it off center." (The clay sounds similar to people in that respect, if you ask me.)

Check out www.acousticheritage.com for information on Debbie and Tim's musical endeavors and search for Grimm Pottery on www.roundthemountain.org.