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TAKE IT Shop East Fork’s pottery at eastfork.com.
ALEX &
CONNIE MATISSE
THINK OF CLAY and you probably think about the way
humans can shape it. You probably do not think about
the way clay can shape humans—but that’s only because
you aren’t Alex or Connie Matisse, the married founders
of North Carolina’s East Fork pottery company.
Alex comes from a long line of artists (his great-
grandfather was the painter Henri Matisse). He has
been tinkering with ceramics since the fourth grade;
he was raised in Massachusetts but followed the clay
down South to North Carolina, were he met Connie.
“There are tons of potters in North Carolina because
this state is really clay-rich—white clay on the coast,
blue in the mountains, red in the middle,” says Connie
of the magnetic effect of the region’s prized resource.
Limiting themselves to clays harvested in the South-
east not only has positioned East Fork as a homegrown
outfit but also has shaped the company’s aesthetic. The
local material is rich in iron and minimally refined,
qualities that lend the final bowls, mugs, plates, and
tumblers their unique speckled look.
But the clay isn’t the only thing worthy of a deep
dive at East Fork. The proprietary glazes give a special
matte effect; the shapes are engineered for utility. (Ask
Connie about the hundreds of plate-lip iterations they
explored to land on a piece that a server could clear
without touching the table, and you’ll understand why
they’re a favorite at restaurants like Cúrate in Asheville.)
It’s this level of care—obsession, really—that has rock-
eted East Fork from a craft-fair operation powered by
one hand-built kiln to a rapidly expanding business on
the leading edge of American ceramics. Not bad for a
lump of clay. JORDANA ROTHMAN
THE
POTTERS
“OUR BUSINESS IS THE BEST WAY
WE KNOW TO AFFECT THE CHANGE
WE WANT TO SEE IN THE WORLD.
WE HOPE TO GROW EAST FORK TO
A PLACE THAT CAN SUPPORT OUR
VALUES.” —CONNIE MATISSE
EAST FORK
ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA
from top: A staffer shapes tumblers in molds; plates in their bisque-
ware state, ready to be glazed; mugs fresh from the glaze kiln. opposite:
Cofounders Alex and Connie Matisse in East Fork’s new factory.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY CEDRIC ANGELES