Handmade Ceramics Inspired by the Maine Coast
Merrymeeting Clay is a small ceramics studio located on Merrymeeting Bay in Bath, Maine. We believe that the objects we surround ourselves with have a direct impact on the quality of our lives.
We want our home to be a place where even simple objects like bottle openers reflect what we find beautiful and inspirational. As lovers of nature, we see the beauty of the natural world every time we leave our home. As designers, we are driven to incorporate this into our work.
My name is Kai Evenson. I’m a designer with a background in technology and a lifelong passion for the fine arts. I started Merrymeeting Clay with my partner, Jackie, a lifelong visual artist. We work together to come up with ideas, and I design, prototype, and create the final pieces.
Our motivation and mission is simple—to borrow designs from nature to create sculptural forms and everyday objects that reflect the natural beauty all around us.
— connecting you to nature —
Our Orca Pods feature six individually-designed killer whales, all made with high-fired stoneware clay in a variety of glaze styles.
Our Orca Pods feature six individually-designed killer whales, all made with high-fired stoneware clay in a variety of glaze styles. Each whale was originally created in a 3D modeling program and then 3D printed using biodegradable thermoplastic.
Our pods are sold in sets of 3 or 6, and these pieces can also hang elegantly on a wall.
Our Humpback Whale Tails are designed to replicate the sight of a Humpback Whale diving deep below the surface.
Our Humpback Whale Tails are designed to replicate the sight of a Humpback Whale diving deep below the surface. They are made with high-fired stoneware clay in a variety of glaze styles, and hang easily on a wall. Like our Orca Pods, our Tails were originally created in a 3D modeling program and then 3D printed using biodegradable thermoplastic.
The New England Horseshoe Crab is made with high-fired stoneware clay from molds of real Maine Horseshoe Crab shells and a magnetically attached tail.
The New England Horseshoe Crab is made with high-fired stoneware clay from molds of real Maine Horseshoe Crab shells and a magnetically attached tail. These sculptures come in three sizes and can sit comfortably on a desk or hang elegantly on a wall.
We take conservation seriously, and spent many mornings and afternoons out combing the shoreline to find the perfect empty crab shells to use.
We created the New England Claw for those who like to top their bottles with style. Each ceramic claw is cast from an actual Maine lobster, with a chrome bottle stopper attached to make each claw a functional work of art.
We created the New England Claw for those who like to top their bottles with style. Each ceramic claw is cast from an actual Maine lobster, with a chrome bottle opener or stopper attached to make each claw a functional work of art.
While each and every claw is unique, we offer several standard glaze styles so you can select the perfect claw to complement your kitchen, bar, or restaurant. For those with singular taste, we also routinely offer one-of-a-kind and limited release styles.
New England Claws are handmade in Bath, Maine, and shipped using environmentally-friendly packaging.
We created the New England Claw for those who like to open their bottles with style. Each ceramic claw is cast from an actual Maine lobster, with a chrome bottle stopper attached to make each claw a functional work of art.
We created the New England Claw for those who like to open their bottles with style. Each ceramic claw is cast from an actual Maine lobster, with a chrome bottle opener or stopper attached to make each claw a functional work of art.
While each and every claw is unique, we offer several standard glaze styles so you can select the perfect claw to complement your kitchen, bar, or restaurant. For those with singular taste, we also routinely offer one-of-a-kind and limited release styles. New England Claws are handmade in Bath, Maine, and shipped using environmentally-friendly packaging.
Our giant Spiny Starfish are here to bring the ocean to your home.
Our giant Spiny Starfish are here to bring the ocean to your home. They are made with high-fired stoneware clay in a variety of glaze styles, and can sit on a surface or hang easily on a wall.
These starfish are enlarged replicas of an actual starfish, created through a process called photogrammetry, where 3D models are created by stitching together many 2D images of the original object.
Our studio is temporarily closed while we welcome a new member to the family. We will be updating our online store in the early spring of 2022.
For now you can purchase your own New England Claw or Crab in one of our partner stores in Maine, or online on Etsy.
Designs Inspired by Nature
Our process always begins with natural forms that we find enticing and evocative, like lobster claws, richly textured driftwood, or the silhouettes of whales breaking the surface of the ocean.
Sometimes these forms come directly from nature, like our lobster claws or horseshoe crab shells. For others, like our Humpback Whale tails, we first create a digital 3D model of the form we want to create, then print it in a biodegradable thermoplastic.
Once we have the form we need, we make a plaster mold and let it cure (dry) for several weeks. After this curing process, we can then begin casting liquid clay, or slip, into the molds. The plaster absorbs water from the clay, which begins to harden from the outside in, creating a hollow object in the exact shape of the original form.
Each piece then undergoes two firings in our kiln. The initial firing turns the clay into a porous ceramic that is ready to absorb glaze. We then apply a variety of custom glazes and different firing techniques to get the style we want. Finally, we attach any extra pieces–like the opener attachment for our New England Claws.
Once the molds are ready, it takes about three weeks to create a single piece.
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Please feel free to contact us with any questions or comments. You can reach us using the form below, or email us at info@merrymeetingclay.com. We will respond as soon as we can.