Artful living: Stephen Kilborn--My collector's obsession

Aug. 6—Three years ago, I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to build my dream kitchen. I have always wanted to display all the pieces that I have procured over the years from my favorite potter/artist, Stephen Kilborn. The whimsy of his work has always made me smile. None of my dinner plates, bowls, dessert plates, platters, serving dishes, pitchers or sugar bowls match, but it makes me happy every single time I serve a meal with them. There are ginger cats, dragonflies, rabbits, strawberries, guitars, black cats, sacred hearts, dancing Day of the Dead skeletons—some even waving the American flag and the New Mexico flag. There are sunflowers, turtles, magpies, cacti of different sorts, New Mexico tableaus and highways, leopard prints and other assorted stylistic themes (oh, my!) ... hence, the decision for open shelving and tiled walls upon which to hang my Stephen Kilborn treasures.

I first came across Stephen's work in his gallery in Taos, and then again in his studio in Pilar in 2006. It has taken me all this time to obtain my collection. (Having said that, I just bought two more pieces last week!) I love rummaging around in his studio and finding the perfect pieces to add to my hoarding of his works. Stephen always has a sweet dog hanging around; this time it was Rosie, with the big floppy tongue and kind, adorable eyes. That always adds to the joy of visiting the studio. Stephen has always been such a delight to talk to, and I love to see his latest ideas for pieces. This time, I was smitten with several but ended up with one of his rabbit platters and a dragonfly salsa pot.

Stephen has been fortunate enough over the last 48 years to do what he loves. He earned a bachelor's of fine arts in painting and ceramics from Bowling Green State University. Not long after graduation, he moved to New Mexico. He worked as a furniture maker in Santa Fe for a few years before switching to pottery design and production. Then, in 1978, he moved to Pilar, where he opened his pottery studio. His work has been carried in more than one hundred shops and galleries in the United States, Europe and Japan. At the height of production from the studio, Stephen had twelve assistants to fulfill the demand for his pieces. In 1994, Stephen and his lovely wife, Laverne, opened a gallery in Taos, where his studio produced and the gallery sold close to 500,000 pieces, all made and decorated by hand. Much of his work is considered craft; however, he has a few pieces in museum collections.

His art and creations intimately affect his clients, like me, who continue to follow his work and collect him. I know his work affects my life every time I look at my collection of pottery pieces designed in his art brain. That means every single time I take a piece down and have a cup of coffee, all the times I entertain guests and all the times I take one of his pieces out of the dishwasher or oven. And yes! You can use his pottery in the oven (or microwave) and wash it in the dishwasher. That's because of his clay-and-glaze formula, which he's had for over 30 years now. "I fire in an oxidizing atmosphere," he explains, "which makes the clay stronger." So his pieces are both beautiful and useful.

Stephen, or rather my relationship with Stephen, is why I'm writing about him now. If it's not yet clear, I thrive on relationships—with my clients, with my suppliers, with people like Stephen. When you find something you like, or love, and you can't explain it but you just have to have it—that feeling deepens when you get to know the person behind that piece of tapestry, or pot or painting or rug or chair or whatever. Their personality, and in time, your relationship with them, become as much a part of the piece and why it means so much to you as the piece in and of itself. And when you have something in your home, you develop a relationship with it—no matter what it is: from your refrigerator to your pillows. If they truly mean something to you, and you truly love them, you can't help but develop a story about them. And that story usually begins with its origin: who made it. And then you want to know more about the maker, and then you want to have some sort of relationship with the person who made it. That's how life works. That's the key to good, if not great interior design. Relationships.

While Stephen's pottery is one of my obsessions, please know that his paintings are as much a part of his studio these days as his pottery. He now has one assistant and is still painting and making pottery in his Pilar studio. He is a learned artist and a delightful person (and a wicked good swing dancer). Do yourself a favor and stop in and see him one of these days. His website and studio and his gallery in Taos are the places to see and purchase his work, but you won't be disappointed if you stop in just to meet the artist.

Artful living: Stephen Kilborn—My collector's obsession