Lori Hannan

Rye, CO

(b. Pennsylvania, 1959)

Lori Hannan has always been inspired by the natural world, even as a child. Creating art in some form has always been part of her life. She went to college at Edinboro State University in Pennsylvania, right out of high school. Her dream was to become a famous painter, but while taking her required clay class, her dream changed. Clay became her art, her way of expressing her love of nature. She transferred to The University of Texas at Austin, and earned her BFA in ceramics, with a minor in weaving. After graduation, she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area to pursue her art. This was harder that she had anticipated, and so she worked in a custom frame shop. Lori had the opportunity to move to Germany, and was able to travel throughout Europe, looking at art everywhere she went. She got a job working for the U.S. Army while in Germany, teaching pottery and photography to Soldiers and their families. She was invited to teach art at an International Youth Camp in Norway, and loved communicating with the kids through art. This sparked her interest in teaching high school. She returned to the U.S., and went to San Francisco State University. She earned her teaching credential and taught art and ceramics for five years there in the Bay Area. She met her husband, Steve and they got married. Along came two beautiful boys, Jonathan and Nicholas. This prompted a move to Colorado. And here amidst the Wet Mountains of Southern Colorado, Red Cloud Pottery was born in 1999. Lori  continues to be inspired by the earth, the sky, the waters and all of the animals that surround her studio and home. Her clay journey continues, and is always evolving, reflecting nature and life. She still loves to work on her pottery wheel, creating thrown forms, her favorite, being the bowl. The colors and textures she uses on her work always reflect the natural world that she loves. She continues to live in gratitude for the many gifts she has in her life, and hopes to put that type of energy into all of her work.