Peter was born and raised in Cairo, Egypt. His journey with clay began after he took his first throwing class following his graduation from Gordon College, where he studied communication arts and business. He has a passion for spaces that foster creativity, hands-on work, and connections with others, which is why the pottery studio became the perfect environment for him. Peter served as the former studio manager at Indigo Fire in Watertown. His work is constantly evolving, though he particularly enjoys creating simple forms for everyday use. After living in Beverly for a few years, he is excited to be relocating back to the North Shore

Marta Kaemmer’s artistic journey spans painting, sculpture, mixed media, and ceramics, unified by her love for form, color, texture, patterns, and occasional absurdity. She delights in the freedom and texture of hand-building with coils, slabs, and pinching.

Born in Zimbabwe, Marta has lived in the Midwest and Austria, experiences that have enriched her understanding of human interaction and expression. She earned a post-baccalaureate in Fine Arts from Brandeis University in 2008 and an MFA in Painting from Boston University in 2011.

Residing in Waltham, Marta has focused on ceramics for the past five years, studying at DeCordova as both a student and teacher. She currently teaches ceramics at the New Art Center in Newton and Lexington Arts and Crafts in Lexington, as well as painting at Mosesian Center for the Arts in Watertown.

Toni first worked with clay in a ceramics class at Skidmore College, where she received a Bachelor’s degree in Studio Art with a focus on drawing, painting, and printmaking. She continued exploring three-dimensional art at the Massachusetts College of Art, earning her MFA in 3D Art with a concentration in fibers, while also taking ceramics classes at Mudflat Studio in Somerville. After working in the art museum world for a few years, she switched gears and went back to school to study art education while raising two children. Currently, she is a full-time high school art teacher, teaching ceramics, 3D design, AP Art, and Art 1, 2, 3, and 4. As a Beverly resident, she is excited to be a member of the local art community through this new studio. Toni enjoys both hand-building and throwing on the wheel and finds it rewarding to hone her craft and continue learning new things about clay by working with her students.

Jackie is a North Shore native with a year and a half of clay experience and many more years of general art experience. She prefers hand-building and loves to experiment with textures and underglazing/glazing techniques. In addition to her job as a recreation supervisor for a local municipality, Jackie teaches youth arts and crafts part-time. She has a master’s degree in elementary education and loves to learn, which is why she picked up pottery. For her, there is always more to learn and try!

Conor has been working with clay for over 15 years. After graduating from Eckerd College in 2013 and receiving a BA with high honors in Visual Art, Conor moved back to Salem, MA and he began working as a studio technician and teaching kids classes at The Clay School in Lynn.

In 2014, he moved to San Francisco where he worked as a Carpenter’s Apprentice and Beekeeper before joining the team at Clay By The Bay where he taught and led the operations and program development for 5 years. Conor returned to the North Shore in 2020 and began teaching at The Umbrella Arts Center, Indigo Fire, and The Clay School. He is now the Ceramics Teacher and Gallery Director at Pingree School in Hamilton, MA.

Conor’s work is both thrown and functional as well as hand built and sculptural, with a heavy emphasis on surface design. His style is constantly growing and changing by honoring play in the studio.  His lack of concern for the function or purpose of the piece provides room for the whimsical and gestural shapes that emerge as he interacts with the clay.  This playfulness and freedom to explore informs his style of teaching.

Tim is a Beverly native with over 15 years of ceramics experience, including 7 years as a full time high school ceramics instructor. He is also the proud owner of @Tim.McAuliffe.Pottery where he sells his functional wheel thrown pottery. He fell in love with pottery after doing his first raku firing, his favorite type of firing, in highschool. As a potter, his work focuses on putting his own twist on traditional forms. As an instructor, he combines his ceramics experience with 14 years in education and 15+ years coaching to provide a supportive and enriching environment for his students. He enjoys working with beginner students, where his focus on technique and skill building help students embrace the daunting process of using the wheel. Seeing the joy when someone saves their first piece off the wheel is always rewarding. When not in the studio, Tim enjoys spending time with his wife, two little girls, and their dog. He is excited to share his passion for the wheel with a new community.