Meet Bryan Cronk | Potter

Fear of risk will hold you back. There is risk in everything and therefore I don’t think about it much. I’m not fearless, but I trust my gut even if it feels like stepping off the edge of a cliff. We learn more from our failures than from success. I made the decision to leave a “safe” and predictable corporate job to try my hands at being an artist. I had no idea if I would be successful, and I don’t know if the success will continue, but it is a risk I am willing to take. My quality of life has improved ten-fold simply by taking a chance and not holding back on what I want to be doing.

My ceramics business started organically over time. I was working in the corporate world, filling my days with meetings, reports, business lunches, and more meetings. To get away from my computer I signed up for a ceramics class. I always considered myself an artistic person but had convinced myself making a career out of art was not an option. Once I found there was interest in my style of ceramics, I packed up my bags, moved out of NYC, and set up a home studio in The Catskills of New York. Do what you love and (hopefully) the rest will fall in place.

The start of my ceramics journey began because I wanted handmade plates for my house in the Catskills. Specifically, I wanted something rustic in style and when I began making the plates and bowls, other people liked them as well. The foundation was set and I continue to make what I want to make and what I feel I need in my life. It is easy to get caught up in trends and try to mimic other’s successes, but it’s not genuine. If you don’t have a connection to what you are making, people will feel it.

When someone purchases a piece of my ceramics, I want them to know who I am, why I make what I make, and how it’s made. I don’t have a team or assistants. Every piece is made by me, and I put my heart into what I do.

I live in a small rural town in the South Western Catskills of New York. While the area has become incredibly touristy, if a friend was visiting the area, I would encourage them to sit on the porch as the sun comes up with a hot cup of coffee, take afternoon hikes to find the old fire towers, walk through the garden and pick what’s ripe to make a delicious dinner, and then hang out by the fire pit enjoying s’mores while telling stories and enjoying each other’s company.