L. Shea Dimock

Custom Pottery

L. Shea Dimock is a Massachusetts resident with family ties to Shell, Wyoming. She started making Zuni-inspired pottery in 1999 after having the privilege of viewing some beautiful examples of both historic & contemporary Zuni pieces.

Shea currently resides in Haverhill, Massachusetts with her potbelly pig, Honey, and fox terrier, KC, where she works on restoring her 1920 bungalow and keeps bees along with pursuing her other interests. Her pottery work is created in the Millvale Studio in Haverhill and is marketed through 'Bar D Quarter Circle Design' and this website.

Background:

Shea’s eclectic background encompasses many aspects of design and fabrication. After receiving her BA in Philosophy from Bates College, she worked as a welder, machinist, carpenter & draftsman before becoming a cabinetmaker and foreman for the woodworking firm of DW Brummitt. After five years of custom furniture building, she attended a year of graduate school towards her Masters of Architecture at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. After a brief stint as a designer with a Boston architectural firm, she returned to her first love, furniture design. Since 1985, she has worked as designer/manager for the fine custom architectural woodworking firm of CW Keller & Associates, where she holds the position of Senior Associate.

Shea remains extremely involved in the woodworking community: She is past president of the New England Architectural Woodworking Institute (AWI) and a member of the New England Association of Woodworking Teachers, a newly formed group of secondary school vocational teachers & coordinators. She served as a member of the faculty of the Boston Architectural Center (BAC), where she taught furniture design. And, she currently teaches pottery at the Millvale Studio.

About the pottery:

Shea spent her school year summers on her grandmother’s ranch, the historic Paton Ranch in north central Wyoming, catching the snakes & lizards that now live as design elements on her pots.

The majority of Shea’s pieces are hand formed, while some are wheel thrown. Her preferred medium is stoneware with heavy ‘grog’. ‘Grog’ is reground pottery shards added back into the base clay body, giving it a sandy feel and natural earthy textural quality, reminiscent of the desert earth from which these designs originate.

Prior to the first firing, the ‘green’ undecorated pots are gently surface sponged to bring up the ‘sandy’ characteristic of the stoneware’s texture. The pots are then ‘bisque’ fired (the first of two firings, usually done before the pot is glazed or decorated in any manner). She then freehand decorates the pot with matte under-glazes in a natural pallet of colors. The pot is then re-fired, integrating the glaze fully into the pot’s surface.

Some of the pots may get a matte black or terracotta glaze on the inside, which then suits the pot for use with water as a vase. However, the majority remains unglazed both inside & out and are suitable for storing or displaying dry goods.

Each pot is one-of-a-kind, totally unique in both its form and decoration. Prices range from $85. to $475. (plus packing & shipping), generally dependent upon the intricacy of the design. Please send e-mail inquiries for individual item prices.

You can see examples of Shea’s pottery by clicking on BDQC Pottery

You can contact Shea direct at studio@bdqcdesign.com