Through the art of pottery, Jennifer M. Stevens rekindles a cultural history. She works with anthropologists and archaeologists at UW-Milwaukee and other institutions to analyze Indigenous pottery pieces and methods, particularly those of the Oneida-Haudenosaunee tribes, and then she incorporates those materials and techniques in her own work.
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Her process starts with examining shards of ancient pottery. She figures out the ingredients used to make the clay, what additives were mixed in – like freshwater mussels or granite – and then determines what the vessels were used for, such as cooking. After recreating these designs by hand, she fires her finished clay using a kiln or an outdoor fire pit.
Stevens, who’s an enrolled member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, started studying Oneida pottery in 1998. In 2002, she became an apprentice under Rose Kerstetter, known for revitalizing the centuries-old art. “This was life-changing,” she says. “I didn’t know the Oneida made pottery. The first time I made a pot, she said it looked like I had been making pots for years. I wonder if one of my ancestors made pottery.”
Currently, she’s fascinated by Cream City brick. “I would love to get a hold of that clay … to see how it would build pots,” says Stevens, who lives in Bay View.
For Stevens, every bit of clay and pottery helps her rediscover a lost history. “Pottery revitalizations give Indigenous people an insight into their ancestors – how they lived hundreds of years ago before European contact. I feel like I’m a conduit for our ancestors to our people today.”
Stevens’ pottery will be displayed at Il Bosco Eco Boutique (225 S. Second St.) on April 6.
