The story behind the happy pottery… 

Hello, my name is June Lee, resident artist at Mudflat Pottery Studio, Somerville Massachusetts. I also devote my time teaching ceramics at two local clay schools - Indigo Fire Pottery Studio in Watertown and The Clay School in Lynnfield.

I was born in Hong Kong and moved to Boston when I was 17. Life in Hong Kong wasn't the best. School was relatively difficult for me and I disliked all the subjects except Art & Design. And because I did poorly on my academic scores, I wasn't able to pick the subjects I would have liked to have studied.

Life changed after I moved to Boston. I am very thankful for all my high school teachers who gave me the freedom to enjoy what I liked to do, taught me the language and encouraged me to chase my dreams. Those were the happiest two years I spent.

Being born in a traditional Chinese family, it's a norm that you must study non-art subjects in college, such as science (so you can become a doctor); business (so you can become an accountant) etc. "Art" was never a subject I could choose. However, I still need to thank my parents for pushing me to get a degree in business which helped me find a job right after I graduated from college.

Long before I became a pottery artist, I had worked in the corporate world for a long time, about 17 jobs over my 20 corporate years (you are probably wow-ing now!) I was never happy in the corporate world, it wasn't what I wanted to do and depression was a by-product of the unhappy life.

Because of depression and other health issues, my husband and I decided to rearrange life’s priorities, we practiced a frugal living style for more than ten years and in 2018 I finally was able to quit my full time job to do what I loved - to become a full time artist and pottery teacher. The journey consisted of grit and self-battles. But if you don't give up, you can reach your goal, eventually. It's not easy to overcome financial difficulties but we want to live a simple lifestyle and be happy with what we have. Living minimally is our goal. I am very blessed to experience hardship in my early life so I learn how to appreciate the surroundings and take time to breath.

We really appreciate friends and customers who support my small business, buying happy pottery and gifts from me whenever they need something!

It has been a journey of blessings for sure!

The world has enough troubles, so I want to include happiness in my works! I hope each of my pieces will bring joy and happiness to someone's hands! And when they open the package, a smile is what I am looking for!