About OG Ceramics
Purpose
OG Ceramics is a website for ceramic artist Greg Van Velsir. The site serves primarily as a gallery for my family and friends. You likely already have one or more pieces of my work but this site tracks all the major series I created out of clay and many unique pieces. As I build this site I will be adding more completed work, work in progress and eventually I will have some more affordable work for sale. Check back from time to time to see what's new in the last galleries at the bottom.
Wondering about the name? "OG" is short for Original Gangsta', an urban term that connotes experience and expertise. But it might just mean "Old Guy". You decide!
Don't forget..... All the images and text on this site are copyright protected so the right to use them is only by permission of the artist . Thank you. Images are best viewed on a lager format device than your phone.
Expertise
With over 50 years of experience with various techniques in creating clay art I have focused primarily on throwing larger pieces, but include hand building and slip casting where necessary to create the piece I've imagined. It all begins with imagination. Sometimes I may have an image in my head for a year or more before I attempt to make it. I thrive on the challenge of making something that's difficult to make.
I have an MFA from Claremont Graduate School where I studied with Paul Soldner. Over the years I've attended seminars and workshops with other famous clay gurus. While I consider myself an expert, I've never met a ceramic artist that I didn't learn something new from.
Greg Van Velsir MFA, MS
Process
You either make art ..... or you do something else. For many clay artists that 'something else' includes marketing, selling, packing, shipping, submitting to shows and museums, and maintaining a social media presence. I would rather make art than do any of that. I'm always asked why don't I show or sell my work?
It takes all of my time to purchase materials, make clay and glazes, build kilns, make the pieces, then glaze and fire my work.
And now I have this website to build and manage. That's more than enough!