Elizabeth Peters is sophomore communications journalism major in the Wood Honors College with minors in both art and biology. Peters is involved on campus, working as a student ambassador, the head copy editor for The Slate and as a member of The Reflector’s art committee.

Her artistic journey started early in life and her talents have grown throughout college. “I distinctly remember making a flipbook sitting in preschool and being so mad that the unicorn on my carousel got cut off because I didn't align the pages right,” Peters said. 

Peters has carried this strong desire for perfect work, yet she has not been working with ceramics for long at all. “I’d never thrown at all before last year,” Peters said. 

Her current project is a tea set for her friend Jeremy Satyawan Putra’s mother. She has been spending time making sure the cups are all equal in shape and size. Much of Peters’s work is meticulous and shows a keen attention to detail. “My professor describes my work as ‘gem-like,’” she said when asked about her style. 

While I sat interviewing Peters, she was fixing the handle of a delicate teacup that she had broken just moments after showing it off. She never accepts defeat, and though it is her favorite medium, sometimes clay can be unpredictable. 

“If I ever ‘flop’ a piece,” said Peters, referencing a clay project folding in on itself, “I take that shape and make it into a tree stump. Nature is my biggest inspiration.” Peters walked over to a nearby shelf and grabbed a delicate tree stump pitcher, complete with small mushrooms and lichens. She enjoys clay for its forgiveness in this way, and also because it has “the squish.”

The ceramics studio will be hosting an art sale sometime during the spring semester which will include a few of Peters’s pieces. The funds from this sale will go towards sending students to the National Council on Education for the Ceramics Arts (NCECA) in California.

Editor's Note: Elizabeth Peters is an active member of the Slate staff.

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