How did you get the name Betty's?
Betty is my grandmother's name. We wanted a name that felt fun and familiar. Before Betty's opened here, we did a fundraiser in Brooklyn for COVID relief, and we called it Betty's just for fun. We already had this name that had a little story to it, and I felt connected to it.
Did you like pottery as a child?
I did. I really liked it as a child, and then when I was a teenager, I started taking it more seriously on a weekly basis.
What's the most difficult thing that you've made?
To me, the most difficult things to make are the things I don't really want to make. Once someone commissioned a big bowl — commission means someone ordered it — and they wanted an exact replica of something. It took a really long time to paint, and I think it was cursed: every single time we fired it, it cracked, or had a defect in the glaze, and it took so many tries. At the end, I didn't really feel like it represented my artwork, and it was not that satisfying.
What's the most expensive thing you've sold in the shop?
We've sold things for $200. A couple of big vases and a few lamps were about that much. But we like to intentionally sell things that are less expensive, so more people can buy them.
How long did it take for you to make that piece?
The big vase took about an hour. Ceramics doesn't take that long; it takes years of practice, but during the actual process, things can fall apart on you if you work them too long.
What's the hardest design to make?
There's this thing that is kind of popular right now, but it's called a moon jar. A moon jar is a vase that's shaped kind of like a balloon. It's typically the hardest shape to make.
I went to see the clay recycler, and I was a bit confused how it works. So how exactly does it work?
It's both the easiest and hardest thing in ceramics: a very simple process, and then lots of minute details that make up the difference. The clay dries up, and it becomes very brittle. When you add the right amount of water to it, it turns it back. We put used clay in the machine, and it makes it more consistent and easier to work with. Then it pumps it out to a clay that feels normal to us.
If you make dishes, can you put them in the dishwasher, or do you have to hand wash them?
You need to hand wash them. Some people might tell you that you can do it in the dishwasher, but I don't think that's a good idea. I always say it's a piece of art, right? It feels weird putting art in the dishwasher.
We're doing this interview in the AndCo coworking space above the studio. Were those mugs on the wall made by people from Betty's?
Those mugs were not, but there are things in here made by Betty's! The wall sconces were made at Betty's, and so was the big tile archway on the other side of the room. It was a really big project for us. There's matching tile on the front desk, as well. It took a long time, and we intentionally made the tiles distressed — distressed means a little rough around the edges. We're not professional tile people, so we had to produce something that looked a little flawed, so we could do it over and over again and it would look intentional. You want to know a funny story about the tile? Summer camp was happening in the studio when we made the tiles, and I don't know how this happened, but one of the campers threw popcorn kernels down the clay chute! It got into the reclaimed clay we were using, so some of the tiles have little holes in them, from popcorn. I wonder if it turned into popcorn in the kiln for a split second.
Has anyone mistakenly put clay in the laundry chute, or laundry in the clay chute?
Yes, we have found aprons in the clay chute, and some kids have thrown clay down the laundry chute intentionally. They got in trouble for it!
A few weeks ago, I read this article about clay, and it said that there's this Japanese technique where you use the cracks on purpose as part of the art.
Yes, it's called Kintsugi. It's so beautiful. My ceramics teacher was Japanese, and without knowing it at the beginning, I was surrounded by some of these techniques and philosophies. It took a while, until I was a bit older, that I started appreciating those philosophies. There's nuances to how we take care of things.
From Arohan: My favorite takeaway was that art from Betty's was used in the office spaces right upstairs. People from Jersey City worked together to create a place with a local story. Now when anyone sees the tiles, they will think of the artists who made them.