Julie Lowry: A Glimpse of the Artist Behind the Work

Sep 26

As Troy Bungart Studios hosts a Michiana Pottery Tour stop for the first time, we wanted to introduce everyone to the guest artists visiting us at the 2025 Michiana Pottery Tour September 27 & 28, 2025 here in Three Rivers, Michigan.

*Ceramic artist Julie Lowry says playing with Legos happily conditioned her brain to want to build with her hands and design with geometric elements, especially blocks and slabs.*

Blame it on Legos. Julie does. Ceramic artist Julie Lowry says that being a “Lego kid” growing up shaped how her brain wants to make everything. She has been working with clay for 11 years and builds everything 100% through hand building techniques, mostly utilizing clay slabs. Though she sometimes adds some coiled or pinched clay to her work, she never uses a potter’s wheel. She likes working with her hands and prefers standing to sitting. Add in that she “can wear whatever she wants to work” and Julie feels that being a ceramic artist is a career choice that suits her very well.

Julie’s graphic design skills get lots of exercise when she’s designing and making her ceramic ware. She has found that her work fits into Minimalist, Mid-Century Modern and Contemporary environments and appeals to collectors who appreciate the design, detail and level of precision she puts into every piece, no matter the size.

Julie seems very connected to the planet. She has chosen to make a living, literally, from an “earthy” medium and she tries to design her work with a “worldly” appeal. Julie is a global traveler. She has lived in 8 states over the course of her life (so far), and loves traveling to countries and destinations that are “off-the-beaten-path.” She and her husband plan their vacations by deciding upon a UNESCO World Heritage Site to visit then expand their plans from there. “We’ve only visited one country where bringing a suitcase made sense, Ha! If it can’t be carried on your back it’s probably not going to suit the travel,” she elaborated.

Julie Lowry uses a custom made chop tool to make the mark that “signs” her ceramic work. We think it looks like two joyful people who travel in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Are we right?

Ceramic artist Julie Lowry uses a very large electric kiln to fire her ceramic ware during each of her creative cycles.

Julie likes to work in cycles of 2-4 months before shows on her calendar. This allows her to build up a suitable inventory while still keeping work available on her website. Each cycle starts with an inventory assessment, then builds from there, step by step, just like a Lego project! First there’s making slabs and assembling pieces from moist clay. Then the clay is bisque fired. Next comes prepping her designs, which she says is “quite the process.” Glazing, glaze firing, photography, and website and social media management, pricing and packing all follow before she’s ready to pack and head to a show. Bit by bit it has all gotten done, and here she is, a guest at our Michiana Pottery Tour stop ready to enjoy all the people stopping by to enjoy shopping the inventory from her latest creative work cycle.

We asked Julie, as we’ve asked every guest artist at our stop this year, to imagine a “what if” scenario: that someone bought one of her ceramic pieces to use as a prop or set piece on a television series or movie (old, current or imaginary of any genre) then describe the scene that comes to mind as a place where the artist’s work “belongs.” Julie’s answer: “I love a fun question! I could see my work popping up in Her, Ex Machina, Fraiser, Star Wars: Andor, and possibly Severance if they used a tad more decor.”

We’re going to have a fun weekend visiting with Julie Lowry here in Three Rivers at Stop #10. Come, join us and buy a little something from Julie that will help you make your world a better place.