Wheeling and Dealing

When Jill Bright’s pottery wheel begins to spin, her hands work at the clay blocks with ease only decades of practice could bring. Soon, one of Bright’s ceramic creations is born. From there, it might be added to the inventory she builds for the Chattanooga Market season, or it might stand as an example of her craft for the pottery classes she teaches at her Fort Oglethorpe studio.

Jill Bright, Chattanooga native and owner of MudHoe Pottery Studio, joined the Chattanooga Market in 2023 as a vendor of her many ceramic wonders — especially mugs, covered in bright-colored gradient glazes and the occasional humorous, tongue-in-cheek saying.

“People love them,” she says. “It’s an affordable piece of art.”

Bright spends most of her time teaching classes at her studio, showing pottery novices how to be patient with the wheel, and also how to hand-build their clay — her favorite method because of its laidback nature and the “artistic touch” required.

When she’s on the wheel, Bright says her mind doesn’t wander from the clay — otherwise, the magic won’t happen.

“I think about what I’m doing. It’s kind of like the zen thing where you’re not even thinking; you’re just being,” she says.

Bright was involved in smaller markets in the past, so she could mainly focus on her business. She decided to venture into the Chattanooga Market last year and has now shifted gears to incorporate the vendor hustle into her schedule, cutting down a bit on teaching classes to spend time assembling her inventory in the off-season before it becomes a permanent fixture in the back of her car come April.

At the market, Bright sells mugs, bowls, jars with lids, earrings, pendants and other “little things” she likes to make. She brings an assortment from her collection each week to switch it up, keeping some of the same pieces in case a shopper wants to circle back for last week’s mug they regretted leaving behind, while bringing in the new for those wanting more.

“I’m so excited about the season starting up. I’m living a blessed life,” Bright says. “I don’t know what I did in a past life, but I feel so fortunate to be able to share this and to live it.”

Visit MudHoe on Facebook or @mud.hoe on Instagram.