Tom Neugebauer

"I like expansive, classic, and fluid forms subjected to the spontaneous and ever-surprising variations of the raku and saggar firing techniques. These techniques drive my creative energy and have kept decades of claywork exciting and fresh for me and, hopefully, for those who view and own my work."

Tom Neugebauer is a master potter, ceramic artist, and teacher who has been making pottery and sculpture for more than forty years. He is known for beautiful forms used as a canvas for alternative firings, especially raku and saggar techniques. He enjoys comparing his pieces to children: you bring them to birth, you guide and influence them, but in the end, each one is unique and has a distinct personality. He would not have it any other way!

Most of Neugebauer's pieces are thrown on the potter's wheel, and some are given textural imprints, carvings, or appliques (for example, his Kashigata series). He formulates his own glazes and is known for adding copper filings or particles to some. He has developed a raku firing method that captures a dynamic balance between metallic lusters, deep, vibrant colors, crackle patterns, and the rich black hues of raw clay.

Tom Neugebauer is mostly self-taught, and has been working as a studio artist since 1972. He was selected as a ceramics resident at the Peters Valley Craft Center in Layton, NJ from 1975 to 1983. He has worked with many well-known ceramic artists, including Paul Soldner, Peter Voulkos, and Hopi potter Fawn Navasie. Since 1983, he has maintained a home and studio on a beautiful rural farm property outside of Milford, PA.