Tony Ferguson is a wood, gas and raku ceramic artist/educator working in Duluth, MN making functional and sculptural works in clay.  He also moonlights as a web designer,  computer consultant and digital photo/videographer.  Tony holds a BA in English Composition and Literature, an MA in Studio Arts and soon an MFA in Professional Screenwriting from NU’s Los Angeles based program.

Tony’s been making work since 1991 learning formally from American Ceramic artists Mike Weber and Jim Grittner and influenced and inspired by Toshiko Takaezu, Peter Voulkos, Don Reitz, Shiro Tsujimura, Tom & Elaine Coleman, Ernest Miller, Tony & Mindy Winchester, Bob & Cheryl Husby, Richard Gruchalla, Michael Shale, Bob Briscoe, Lisa Hammond, Robert Fornell, Akira Satake, John Britt and many others. Okakura Kakuzō’s work “The Book of Tea” (茶の本 Cha no Hon) and Tony’s study of Eastern philosophy, religion, and meditation also influence his work. Occasionally Tony teaches at local colleges as well as gives workshops.

Tony’s work in clay explores traditional Japanese wabi sabi aesthetics combined with Chinese and Korean influences from his travels with a focus on tea ware and experimentation.  

With a modern twist, Tony pushes his forms, surfaces, and glaze treatments in a variety of firing environments and techniques exploring shino, tenmoku, oribe, celadon, chun, ash and other glazes he creates from raw elements.  Whether his explorations find their way into porcelain, a dark chocolate stoneware or shigaraki type clay body, Tony’s forms follow function.

Tony Ferguson’s work currently can be found on Etsy or this web site and is found in private and public collections around the world including: Ami-Machi City Museum, Ami-Machi, Japan; Nanfeng Kiln Contemporary Museum, Foshan, China; Mesabi Range Technical College Collection, Virginia, MN; Tweed Museum, University of Minnesota, Duluth, MN; University of Wisconsin Superior, Superior, Wisconsin; Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, CA and Flint Institute of Arts.

Married with four children, Tony and his wife Anna are very busy with their creative work, doodle, herbalism and plant based cooking.

If you would like to sign up for Tony’s mailing list to be aware of new firings, workshop announcements, innovations and developments, go here.