Meet Saundra Howard | Ceramicist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Saundra Howard and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Saundra, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Around 2018, I was feeling the need to do something with my hands so I took a chance and signed up for ceramics classes at the city college in Oakland. I loved the way I could get lost in the pottery wheel and express my voice creatively. At the same time, my partner and I had built a monthly ritual of gathering with chosen family over food and wine. The warmth and laughter of those evenings lead us to start thinking about dinnerware. As beginner potters, bowls and plates were perfect for us to start exploring color, form and function. Eventually we reached a point where we were creating pieces we felt really good about and decided to officially launch Lawa Ceramics.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Starting a business in Oakland was all about the hustle, with a huge focus on making money quickly in order to keep the business open. Thanks to the beautiful community we’d built over ten years, we were able to make big strides in little time. Our pottery dad let us trade use of his kiln for helping him out in the studio. Erin and Sarah over at Minimo, one of our favorite wine bars, helped us get our names out there by letting us throw a pop up shop alongside a tasting party for the great Tony Coturri. In many ways, the pandemic and our move to Tucson really slowed things down and forced us to take more time to figure out who we were, what we were doing, and what we were trying to put out there.

The past couple years led us (and many others I’m sure) to really think about what identity meant to us and how joy and abundance could be used as forms of resistance. We realized we wanted to create pieces that reflect a conversation with our West African, Filipino and Irish ancestors. Alongside all of that, I’ve also started to deeply consider how craft can bring people together by launching a slow-paced workshop series that incorporates playing with clay with self-exploration and community-building. We’ve only scratched the surface in many ways but we’re excited to keep shifting and growing as we settle more into ourselves as artists and our community within Tucson.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
We almost always bring visiting friends to Westbound which has great food options nearby and lots of outdoor seating where you can soak up a desert night with your pup and some dangerously good cocktails on tap. If brunch is your thing, 5 Points Market always hits the spot and you can pop in and grab some wine and snacks to keep things going at home.

For outdoor adventures, our go-to is Sabino Canyon which is great for hikes and swims if we’ve had some good rains. There’s an electric tram that takes you through the park which is great if you’re traveling with parents or babies.

Our hidden gem pick is the Red Light Lounge located in the Downtown Clifton Hotel. You wouldn’t expect a hotel bar to feel like something out of Cheers but the Red Light Lounge is a special thing. Both the bar and the hotel are dog friendly and their bartenders make some of our favorite margaritas in town.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Before there was Lawa Ceramics, there was just me and my partner Kat taking solo classes under Bill Kaplan. Initially a “just for fun” kind of hobby, it was Bill who first suggested we start selling what we made. It’s possible he said this to all his students but hearing him tell us he thought we had a natural talent gave us just the push we needed. He provided the perfect mix of support and hard lessons and reality checks-like the time Kat made what she proudly exclaimed was her “best bowl ever” only to find it at the next lesson upside down on a bag of clay being used as a weight. We privately call him our pottery papa as Lawa wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for good ole Bill.

Website: https://lawaceramics.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawaceramics

Other: https://www.instagram.com/eatclayloveworkshops/