Fired Up

How one Pompton Plains resident is combining two passions

BY DEBBIE WALSH

Whether life imitates art or art imitates life is a subject long debated by renowned philosophers and poets. Local sculptor and potter Liz Lubansky feels the connection between the two whenever she picks up a piece of clay.

Lubansky, whose maiden name is Vogel, is a Pompton Plains native. She attended local schools through her sophomore year of high school. A family move took her to Tennessee, where she finished her secondary education. Afterward, she went to college in Delaware. All the while she kept in touch with a boy named Brett Lubansky, whom she met at her church youth group back in New Jersey when she was 15.

They married, and when it came to picking the perfect place to call home, they selected Pompton Plains. Their property included a backyard horse barn, which they converted into a pottery studio. The couple has two children, aged 4 and 9 months, and another on the way. Lubansky more recently earned a master’s in mental health counseling and art therapy and envisions a marriage between her pottery skills and art therapy.

A sampling of Lubansky’s work is displayed on her website, www.weareclaystudios.com. Her pieces are featured at a half dozen shops in New Jersey and the Washington, D.C. area, including Mayernik Kitchen on Newark-Pompton Turnpike.

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What do you like about living in Pompton Plains?

We just love it here. It has such a community feel. People in our neighborhood are so friendly and very kind. There are so many town events geared to people of all ages. It’s perfect for a young family.

How and when did you discover your passion for sculpting and making pottery?

I went to the University of Delaware and started as a nutrition major. It was very science-based, and I didn’t take to it. So, my parents encouraged me to just take a course or two in something that interested me. I took a painting class and a ceramics class, and it was the ceramics class that I fell in love with, and it just took off from there. At first, I laughed when my professor suggested I major in ceramics. Who does that? Well, I did. I received a bachelor of arts degree with a focus in ceramics.

Where do you draw inspiration from for your pieces?

Often, I’m inspired by something I see in nature or an event in my life. Sometimes I like to just play around. The experimentation can lead to a piece I enjoy and keep working on. But sometimes I start things and it doesn’t go anywhere. It’s like I’m just not feeling it. That’s the nature of it.

Why do you like sculpting and creating pottery?

I feel like there is a lot of parallel between the human experience and the experience with clay. There’s a lot of process to it. You start off with this sort of unformed piece, and then it goes through a series of processes until it becomes a finished work. It has to be tested. It has to be refined. It might have a piece you have to alter. I really enjoy that process. I think it really is a metaphor for the human experience. I enjoy the tactile nature as well. I love the touch and feel of it. Your hands are directly on the clay as opposed to, let’s say, painting. Most of the time you’re working with a paintbrush, so there’s something between you and your medium.

Do you offer classes in your studio?

I do a lot of workshops. Sometimes they’re for a small group like a bachelorette party or a shower. I’ve also done summer camps. People love the small group workshops. It’s very communal. When you’re engaging in a creative activity, you have to separate yourself from your phone, social media or whatever. You separate from stressors and allow yourself to engage in the present moment. When you’re at the wheel, you can’t touch your phone. You’re using both hands and you are using both the left and right side of your brain, which is a cool thing. It’s a fun experience, even if you try it one time.

Debbie Walsh has 30 years of experience writing for various newspapers and, more recently, as a ghost blogger.