#14 “The Lobsterwoman” by Susan Kurtzman

I am the owner/designer of Jobi™Pottery in Truro, a cottage pottery industry that began in 1953 with Joe Colliano and Bill Hastings. The “Jobis” as they were known around Truro, were the last proprietors of the Highland House hotel and the early contributors to the establishment of the Highland House Museum and Truro Historical Society.

Although I studied Ceramic Design and Art History at University of California, Berkeley, I spent the majority of my career in advertising and didn’t get back to making pottery until I met Joe in 2000, when I was the Curator at the Highland House Museum. In 2003 I bought Jobi Pottery and learned about “slip casting” and hand-glazing. I have been in love with low-fire pottery ever since, perfecting my own designs while keeping alive the traditional Jobi designs. For this project, I wanted to “paint” something original and new.

My plate “The Lobsterwoman” is a tribute to the fishermen and women who have made their living hauling fish, scallops, and lobsters from the sea off Cape Cod. She is a lone fisherwoman, with her traps ready to set, rowing out to a good fishing ground. I love the ocean, I love to fish, and I wanted to express this in my work on this plate. It’s a dedication to the fishing industry of Truro in the past, and a celebration of the endless bounty from the sea presently, and hopefully in the future.

The plate project has been both a joy to work on and a challenge—as everything has become in this year of the pandemic. I’m grateful that so many talented, interested, adventurous people joined in to make this amazing exhibit for the benefit of the Highland House Museum.