Lois Jean and William Elton Barker are the husband and wife team that combine their middle names to produce the studio name - being convinced that “Jean Elton” is more “artsy” than the “Bill & Lois Pottery Company”. While the company wasn’t formally started until later, the couple began their mostly self-taught odyssey in ceramics in 1973, where Bill was stationed at Fort Sill, OK and they began to explore the on-base ceramic shop. Their history is outlined in a series of blog posts found here: http://blog.jeanelton.com/category/the-history-of-je
LOIS
Lois is the artist of the pair. Her first expressions of design were in home decorating, starting when she was a teenager who loved to rearrange paintings, furniture and other decorative objects in her parents’ home (sometimes to their frustration). Today, she awakens in the morning eager to get to the studio, often with a fresh design idea. “I love creating designs on clay shapes, always imagining them in a lovely home where they help create an ambience that encourages rich interaction among people and their modes of expression”, says Lois. The development of the current Gallery Line is evident in the series of blog posts found here: http://blog.jeanelton.com/category/inspiration
BILL
Bill is a semi-retired businessman who once won a contest for the most unusual summer activity of New York City businessmen when he said he would be making plaster molds for his wife’s ceramic art business. More the design engineer of the two, Bill works with Lois to bring new shapes to fruition through plaster modeling and die-making.
CONNECTICUT
The couple work in their Connecticut studio where their daughter Amy assists them, as well several other wonderful helpers, including their 6 pound Yorkie, Rex. The couple welcomes studio tours, but only with advance notice so that Rex may be locked away for the safety of guests.
Jean Elton Studio & Gallery, LLC
www.jeaneltonstudio.com
www.jeanelton.com
http://www.facebook.com/jeanelton
