Building community is at the center of everything they do at Anyhow Studio, according to founder and owner Liz Welch. For more than five years, she has led and operated the ceramics workspace on Acorn Street, providing a welcoming, safe space for early-career artists and beginners to hone their clayworking skills. “I had been thinking about opening a studio that would serve beginners in the first five years of their practice. There wasn’t really anything like that.” As a queer person, with a background in gender and sexuality studies and furniture design, Welch felt it was critically important to offer a creative space for artists that was both comfortable and inclusive.
“The physical space is really important. We’ve got comfy furniture, and we have a huge collection of handmade pottery and places to rest.” Crafting the culture she envisioned has been a deliberate effort in every aspect of the studio. “It’s also about how we teach our classes. This is a place where you can feel safe to fail, which can be so difficult for adults to find.”
During LGBTQIA+ Pride each June, Anyhow Studio lights the way as a shining example of belonging-focused with their parade float emblazoned with the theme, “Gay for Clay.” Welsh says, “We have so much fun. We made a pottery kiln out of a two-by-four armature covered in Styrofoam sheets and wrapped in tin foil. It’s very, very DIY, but it looks incredible. We built out a platform that fits in the bed of my pickup truck, and we put the kiln on top.”
Giving back to people who have been historically marginalized and underrepresented in the arts is a critical piece of Welch’s vision for Anyhow Studio. Scholarships are available for participants who identify as QT/BIPOC (Queer, Trans, Black, Indigenous, Person of Color), and members produce and donate more than 100 bowls each year for Empty Bowls, a fundraiser for the Rhode Island Community Food Bank. “My interest in the community is one of service. The more sharing we can do, the more I can get to what’s deep at the core of my personal values. It’s all about being a community resource,” adds Welch.
That sense of collaboration derives directly from the art form itself, as Welch explained, “I do think there is something inherently communal about clay as a medium. You need a lot of people to fill a kiln. You need a lot of people to run an atmospheric kiln. You can do it alone, but it’s better and easier when you do it with other people.”
New England’s largest LGBTQIA+ PrideFest Celebration and Illuminated Night Parade is planned for Saturday, June 20. The Festival at District Park begins at 11:30am, and the parade kicks off at 8pm, and is viewable from locations across downtown. Be sure to look for Anyhow Studio’s kiln float and join in on the fun!
Learn more about classes, memberships, and studio use at AnyhowStudioProvidence.com, and about Pride festivities at PrideRI.org.
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