You never know where creative exploration will lead. Liz Quan grew up in Connecticut and built a successful career in the New York publishing scene, working as a graphic designer and art director for magazines and catalogs like Town & Country, Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure and J. Crew.
But, eventually, Quan began looking for a hands-on alternative to computer-based design work, so she enrolled in wood-turning and jewelry-making classes while also taking workshops in ceramics. “I love the tactile connection of building and creating with my hands,” she says. “I enjoyed all the mediums, but ceramics just stuck. Perhaps it’s the versatility of it. It’s endless what you can do with clay.”
Quan’s artistic journey brought her to Boulder to study ceramics at the University of Colorado in 2005, and she’s been here ever since. She mixed in art director and design projects with Gaiam, Interweave Press and Shambala Publications before switching to ceramics full-time in 2019.
Today, Quan works from a studio in North Boulder, dreaming up creations ranging from necklaces to pendant lamps to bud vases, plus a fascinating variety of objects and wall-mounted sculptures. She also accepts commissions for custom pieces.
We chatted with Quan to learn more about how she creates her sculptural ceramics, where she finds inspiration and more.
Tell me about the range of pieces you create.
Years ago, I started with functional pieces on the wheel. There’s always something special about drinking from a handmade cup and eating from handcrafted bowls. I still make these on occasion, but my temperament is not that of a production potter. Most recently, I’ve been making wall pieces and tabletop sculptures. I like the exploration that sculpture leads to.
You’ve said that your artwork is influenced by the memory of kindergarten curiosity and exploration. What do you mean by that?
Kindergarten is all about play, thanks to Friedrich Froebel, who was the creator of kindergarten. His premise was that free activity and the impulse to explore is motivated by intellectual curiosity and is an essential part of learning. There are 20 “gifts” that Froebel invented to guide the children toward discovery and invention. These principles even influenced Frank Lloyd Wright’s and Buckminster Fuller’s design concepts. I love the concept of play as the basis of learning and that simple objects can be used to initiate big ideas.
Why do you like working with porcelain?
Porcelain has a smooth, pure aesthetic. It’s like starting with a blank sheet of white paper. The tactile quality of the clay is softer on the hands and results in smooth forms.
Could you explain your process?
All pieces are formed by hand—slip cast, thrown and/or altered. Slip casting is traditionally a way of making multiples. A plaster mold is made from the positive form you want to make. Then you pour slip, a liquid clay, into the molds. It sits in the mold for a few minutes and then you pour out the excess slip. The plaster absorbs the water from the slip and it allows the clay to be released after about 40 minutes, depending on the size. Oftentimes, I’ll alter the form after it comes out of the mold and is leather-hard. I also pour the slip free-form onto plaster blocks. It requires lots of clean-up of the edges before it dries and goes into the kiln.
Why do you encourage people to touch and listen to your surface pieces?
Porcelain has connotations of being fragile and delicate, but it’s actually quite strong. Most of the dishes in our kitchen cabinet are porcelain. With the Flora sculptures, I invite folks to handle and experience them. They have a soft sound quality and gentle feel. The piece is always changing and you can create your own arrangements. They are intimate in scale. Engaging with it brings us back to our senses. In this modern age, we are so removed from these sensations. I hope to extend this play and curiosity to the viewer.
There’s a timeless quality to the shapes and forms you create. Why is that?
I love that my work feels timeless. It’s not a conscious approach, but I like that the work can be universal and unique at the same time. I resist trends and lean toward traditional approaches. I appreciate well-made and considered objects. Perhaps the forms feel timeless because they reference forms in our natural world instead of the actual representational form. The organic characteristics are familiar in our subconsciousness.
What do you hope to express through your work?
I like an organic aesthetic that tends to rest between a space of pattern and randomness. The work shows an exploration, and calm curiosity of material and form. Appreciation of craft. There’s a sense of contemplation.
Are there any places you like to go when you need inspiration?
Hiking the many trails in Boulder helps clear my mind. Just being in nature recenters me. Denver’s museums and galleries also offer great inspiration: Denver Art Museum, Clyfford Still Museum, Robischon, David B. Smith.
This story originally appeared in Travel Boulder’s winter/spring 2025-26 print issue. Read the full magazine online.
