Our studio in Elizabeth is open. Come visit us at 238 N Main Street, Elizabeth, IL 61028. Please call 815-858-2327 or email eshelman@eshelmanpottery.com to be sure we are in the shop.
In My Studio: Paul Eshelman. American Craft Council.
Illinois Makers, Eshelman Pottery.
Through the Eye of the Artist, Every Piece Has a Story, Galena Jo Daviess County CVB.
Janet Koplos interviews with craft artists, 2011-2014. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Production Potters of the Midwest, Library of Congress.
The clay vessels of Eshelman Pottery order and dignify human life. Clarity is given to simple forms by contrasting glazed and unglazed surfaces. Pure clean glazes render elegant presentation of food and drink.
Paul's developing artistic interests were directed along practical lines as he grew up in Iowa. He received a B.A. in art from the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington and an M.F.A. in ceramics from the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island. Laurel received a B.S. in biology from Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois.
Since 1988 Paul and Laurel have been living and making pottery in Elizabeth, a small farming community in northwestern Illinois. They have three children who all worked in the pottery during their years at home.
The clay body is a red stoneware; the glazes are all lead free. The wares may be safely used in the microwave and dishwasher as well as the conventional oven if the oven is not preheated. (Casseroles may be used in a preheated oven.) The pieces should provide many years of service.
Paul and Laurel Eshelman
Articles
Raised in Clay by Hannah Marshall, Ceramics Monthly
Working Potter by Paul Eshelman, Ceramics Monthly
Table Space, Fosdick-Nelson Gallery, Alfred University
Paul Eshelman's Handled Soup Bowl by Paul Eshelman and Hannah Marshall, Ceramics Monthly
Curriculum vitae
Paul Eshelman (pdf)