Born and raised in the Piedmont of North Carolina, Avery Wells received a BA in Art and Art History from the University of North Carolina at Asheville in 2017. Her undergraduate work in ceramics and art history were interconnected, exploring the intersection of folk and art potteries at Black Mountain College. In 2022, Avery graduated with an MFA in Ceramics from the State University of New York at New Paltz. Avery was an Artist-in-Residence at the Clay Art Center in New York, and has taught at SUNY New Paltz as well as in multiple community studios throughout New York and North Carolina.
Avery works mostly in clay, but also patchworks together a variety of techniques and media to explore feminine histories in the decorative arts. Inspired by the quilts and weavings made by the Appalachian matriarchs in her family line, she pulls apart, warps, and repeats patterns to create an engaging interplay between surface and form. Avery wanders between pots and sculpture, seeking to treat each object she makes with joy and curiosity.
Domestic Sketch, 2022, terracotta, majolica, white pine, vellum, oil pastel
Daisy, 2022, terracotta, low-fire glaze, majolica
Making Something Out of Something, 2023, terracotta, plywood scrap, white pine, hardware, kraft paper, acrylic paint, blue tape, oil pastel, studio assistant
Quilt Panel (from Making Something Out of Something), 2023, terracotta, plywood scrap, hardware, acrylic paint, oil pastel
Breeze Blocks (from Making Something out of Something), 2023, terracotta, white pine, hardware, kraft paper, acrylic paint, blue tape
