JoAnn Coffino
About JoAnn
JoAnn’s current body of porcelain work includes subtle and sophisticated wearable art (earrings and necklaces), elegant housewares (salt cellars and decorative bowls) and provocative sculpture. Each piece is a unique, hand-crafted expression of her exploration of form and material, and reflect her intuitive process. They range from glazed and unglazed white finishes, to cobalt blue, cadmium red and smoky grey.
JoAnn’s approach to form and material has emerged organically from her hands-on interaction with porcelain. Porcelain is a light ceramic material fired at high-temperatures. It is strong, and its translucent qualities capture and hold light. JoAnn, drawing on her years of experience as a renowned professional baker, works quickly and intuitively. The forms that emerge are delicate, playful and elemental.
The technical processes vary from series to series, but often involve multiple firings and utilize the highest quality materials. In her various series of earrings, she utilized French sterling silver earwires attached to wire directly embedded in the piece before firing. Because no glue is used in this process, each earring is created to last a lifetime.
JoAnn creates all of her work by hand and works primarily at The Potters’ Studio in Berkeley, California.