Nicole Aquillano
MFA Ceramics, Rhode Island School of Design, 2012
After pursuing a career in civil engineering, Nicole left to follow her passion and earned her MFA in ceramics from RISD. Nicole etches each image into porcelain clay with a knife and inlays a bluish/black underglaze. The high temperature of the kiln combined with a clear glaze overlay slightly blurs the drawing, much like a faded memory. She often references imagery from her past to establish a personal connection. Nicole has been working full-time as a studio potter since 2012 and has developed a successful ceramics line which is sold in museums, galleries and shops across the country. Her work has also been carried at Anthropologie Stores across the US and online.
Aside from the work she produces for gallery shops, her one-of-a-kind pieces are exhibited nationally and have earned numerous awards including Best in Show at the Society for Contemporary Craft’s Crafted Exhibition, First Place Award in Workhouse Ceramics Drink This Exhibition, Best of Show in the Academy of Fine Arts Battle of the Bowls and Award of Distinction, Award of Excellence, & Purchase Award for Starbrick Gallery’s National Cup Show. In 2015, Nicole was awarded the prestigious Brother Thomas Fellowship from the Boston Foundation. She was also an American Made Finalist for Martha Stewart (2015) and a Leap Award Finalist for the Society for Contemporary Craft (2013).
“Fascinated by the potential of place to define and connect us, I draw subtle narratives on functional work to elicit memories of past experiences. Through the labor-intensive act of making, I establish a close personal relationship with each piece. I am personally influenced by a nostalgia for my childhood home. Architectural imagery drawn from my photographic collection - inlaid with intense attention to detail directly into the porcelain clay body - prompts display of my work when not in use, as a meaningful addition to any collection. Blurred by the movement of glaze, the imagery is much like a faded memory. I am particularly interested in exploring the human need to maintain collections, as a way to preserve the past and satisfy the longing with which we inhabit the world: driven by a desire to hold onto that which will inevitably be lost. My memories and experiences are carved onto objects intended to be both used and collected: as a way to facilitate new relationships to fill the void left by that which we will never have again.”