Clay Lounge Teachers
Each of our teachers bring a unique lens for our students to consider in their work with experience ranging from advanced degrees in ceramics to learned experience making their own work and backgrounds in professional studios. All of our teachers share a passion for the craft and are eager to share their knowledge with new and experienced students alike.
Jesse Golden
Teacher, Artist, Owner
Jesse, the artist behind J.G Clay, opened Clay Lounge in 2020 looking to build a community over the joy and beauty of making pottery.
Jesse has been a student of the craft for over a decade. In 2019 he was living in Los Angeles and tired of working a corporate career while moonlighting as a potter. He decided to leave his job and coordinate a 5 month ‘Ceramic Sabbatical’ across Asia where he participated in artist residencies, studio visits, and home stays throughout China, Taiwan, S. Korea, and Japan.
Returning to his home city of Boston, Jesse sought to coalesce these styles to help inspire others with his art.
Kaila Braley
Studio Manager, Teacher, Artist
Kaila has been making functional pottery for the last eight years. She has taught wheel-throwing at Fuller Craft Museum and loves introducing people to the joy of making pots. There's nothing quite like the excitement of throwing a piece that makes you proud.
Kaila is drawn to pottery because she loves the idea that you can make objects that add a bit of magic, whimsy, beauty, and human connection to an ordinary activity such as making a cup of coffee.
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Jacy Inskeep
Teacher, Artist
Jacy Inskeep is a Ceramics artist from Indianapolis, Indiana. She graduated from Herron School of Art and Design with a Fine Arts degree and Psychology Minor in May of 2023 and is currently pursuing a graduate degree in Art Therapy here in Boston. As an aspiring art therapist, she is interested in the relationship between creative expression and healing.
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Focusing on the process-based catharsis of clay, her pieces are an exploration of personal memories and emotions. While much of her work is done in large scale installations, she enjoys creating functional pieces to share with loved ones and community.
Caitlyn Chwatek
Teacher, Artist
Caitlyn Chwatek was born and raised in New Jersey before moving to Boston where she recently graduated from Massachusetts College of Art and Design. She completed a BFA in both Painting and Ceramics.
Her paintings are primarily genre scenes done in oil, while her ceramic work is comprised of functional vessels. Her studio practice is mainly inspired by history, current events, and psychology.
Sarah Mennell
Teacher, Artist
Pottery was a love-at-first-sight thing for Sarah, and the excitement of giving a piece of clay new life and purpose hasn’t gone away. Her work focuses around functional pieces that carry a sense of joy through playful touches and simple, yet energetic, designs. She loves the way something as simple as a cup can bring such light and energy into everyday routines and rituals.
Pottery has always been a source of community for Sarah, and she feels so lucky to have the opportunity to teach and introduce others to this creative community.
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Morgan Piatek
Teacher, Artist
Morgan is a potter from Rhode Island. She moved to Boston to pursue a degree in Art Therapy and graduated from Lesley University in Fall of 2022.
She took her first pottery class in 2011 and immediately fell in love with the spontaneous yet meditative nature of clay. Though most of her work is thrown on the wheel, she also enjoys handbuilding processes like nerikomi and coiling.
When she isn't covered in clay, you can find Morgan collaging, thrifting or spending time in nature
Erin Doescher
Teacher, Artist
Erin is a ceramic artist from Clifton Park New York who has been working in clay for the past 7 years. She received her BFA in Ceramics from the State University of New York at Plattsburgh.
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Working both functionally and sculpturally, Erin's work consists of bright and bulbous forms, often connecting parts that symbolize and explore her observations and experiences of human connection.
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Erin's love for teaching led her to Boston and she is so happy to be teaching at Clay Lounge, connecting with others through clay and sharing her passion with our students.
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Jordan Greer
Teacher, Artist
Jordan was introduced to pottery at 5 years old, learning on a kick-wheel in her aunt’s basement. Over the past few years she has found home within the Clay Lounge community, and her passion for pottery has become a core part of her life.
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Jordan's work reflects a blend of creativity and technical precision. In addition to countless hours spent throwing, she also enjoys experimenting with surface treatments, color combinations, and geometric elements (possibly influenced by her background in engineering). As a teacher, Jordan inspires students of all levels to explore the endless intricacies of clay.
Marcy Kenney
Teacher, Artist
Marcy is the artist behind Goldie Ceramics, a small-batch ceramics brand made to brighten your day. Her work consists of both wheel-thrown and handbuilt pieces with colorful and playful designs. From your morning coffee to your late night dessert, Marcy loves that something as simple as a cup or a plate can make your day just a little more joyful.
Marcy graduated from the College of Holy Cross in 2012 with a double major in Studio Art and English and studied ceramics locally in Boston at Mudflat Studio and Harvard Ceramics while pursuing her career in tech.
When Marcy isn't in her basement studio or at Clay Lounge, you can find her reading romance novels, trying new restaurants or spending time on Cape Cod.
Nicole Ginzburg
Teacher, Artist
Nicole first fell in love with clay while pursuing an industrial design degree at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. Since graduating in 2021 with a ceramics minor, she has worked in studios across the United States, where she absorbed techniques for teaching a wide range of ways to work in clay. Most recently, Nicole completed a two-year residency at the Guilford Art Center in Connecticut, where she had the privilege of teaching classes while experimenting with her own style.
Believing that the beauty of pottery lies in the act of sharing, Nicole aims to give a part of herself to each piece she makes. Focusing primarily on handbuilt pottery, she creates moments in the clay that reflect her journey in the making process, hoping that whoever uses her pots will recall the significance of mindfulness and connection in their own lives.
Rachel Greider
Teacher, Artist
Rachel was born and raised in Ohio before moving to Massachusetts in 2022. She took up pottery in 2019 and immediately fell in love with the process of creating on the wheel.
Rachel’s work is functional and feminine, incorporating her love of nature and bright colors in the surface decorations. She is very excited to share this meditative and fulfilling art form with those new to the craft.
Addie Hornbeck
Teacher, Artist
Born and raised in the Seattle area, Addie recently moved to Boston in May 2023. She has been working with clay for the past 2 years & has fallen in love with the process. Her work focuses primarily on functional pieces that can be used in everyday life.
What she loves most about clay is that it brings people together, "Clay Lounge is one of those rare, special places where we can slow down and play. It's a community that is connected through exploration and mutual appreciation of the same process. That is not something we often come across and for that reason, it deserves to be celebrated."
Addie teaches because she hopes to help inspire more people to make creativity part of their daily routine.
Sally Lee
Teacher, Artist
Sally is an artist from Arkansas and moved to Boston when she wanted to pursue further education in studio arts. She graduated with her MFA at the SMFA at Tufts University in 2020. Sally has taught at Northeastern University, MassArt, RISD Pre-College, and the New Art Center.
She takes joy in teaching and sharing her love for ceramics with the community (and her dog). If you’re looking to really throw yourself into the world of ceramics, Sally highly suggests entering the studio with playfulness and watching The Great Pottery Throwdown.
