Mountain xpress

July 16, 2015

Coffee with Character

Coffee with character In 2010 while living in Portland, Ore., ceramicist Laura Cooke began a series of animal-branded drinkware after being inpired by a whale drawing done by her friend, Jon Wagner. “ I was charmed by the animals’s ho-hum expression, and with Jon’s permission, created the first animal mug,” Cooke says. “It was a huge hit, and we decided to formalize our collaboration and create a whole line of animal-decorated pottery.” Cooke also makes a body of animal-free pottery. But, “the whale has always been a best-seller,” says Cooke. “We’ve found that more obscure animals, like the armadillo and the ostrich, have not attracted as many fans.” Location is an influencing factor: “The buffalo is popular in Wyoming, for example, the fox is a hit in Atlanta, Cooke says. ”And the squirrel is a top seller in North Carolina.” cookeceramics.com

WHAT: The Big Crafty, thebigcrafty.com

WHERE: Asheville Art Museum, inside and outdoors

WHEN: Sunday, July 12, noon-6 p.m.