Karen Long says she knew she wanted to work with pottery as soon as she started learning. The artist behind Phire Pottery started taking classes in 2018, which she says were her “favourite two hours of each week.” She quickly acquired her own equipment and, for roughly the past five years, has been trying “to squeeze in a few hours here and there throughout the week,” to further hone her skills.

Long’s work is inspired and influenced by the Thunder Bay region’s landscapes and natural features she’s immersed in during her hikes and camping excursions, including the rocky shores of Lake Superior and the boreal forest. She moved north nearly 30 years ago from Elmira, Ontario, near Kitchener-Waterloo—an area she says that also boasts a lot of natural beauty, although in very different ways, with its farmlands and maple forests. “Phire”, she says, comes from “sapphire,” a longtime nickname of hers, and its pronunciation references the fire needed to fuel the kiln.

While Long has a background in architecture, which requires meticulous attention to form and detail, she says that aspect alone really isn’t what attracts her to pottery. “I love shape and dimension,” she says. “[I] love creating space, whether it’s a building or a vessel to drink coffee out of. I just really like the tactile expression of shape.” Plus, she adds, working with the clay and the messiness of it is also rewarding, as is the support in the local scene. “There are so many talented potters in Thunder Bay whose work I greatly admire,” she says. “I’m just really excited and honoured to be part of this community of artists.”