‘I often look at myself as a piece of pottery being created and I think when we start it looks like a blob of clay… it’s not very inspiring, but then there’s a process.’
At age 9 Lucy Aboagye came across an image of a Valentino dress and realised the outfits she’d been drawing on her notepad were something people did as a profession.
From that day Lucy knew she would pursue fashion (even when a classmate told her they’d never seen a black person design clothing).
Fashion would remain her career choice and would ultimately take her across the world where she would come to appreciate the stories told through fabric and textiles.
She also drew parallels between her own heritage and recognised the ways her culture uses weaving to tell stories and translate into garments.
It was on a visit to India that a perception shift occurred as she noticed creativity could cultivate community. This would see her leave fashion for teaching and teaching would see her look for a creative outlet.
Enter Lucy’s first pottery class.
Lucy takes us into her experience and connection with the pottery process, how it opened her world to areas she had not yet explored and taught her so much more about life than she could’ve ever imagined.
After working in the fashion industry where she had always strived for perfection and openly admits she was harsh and unrealistic on herself,
having the freedom and space to create anything she wanted was a whole new unfamiliar and liberating education.
Lucy says, ‘I think we’re all going through that process of being crafted. And some parts of that process are really lovely and other parts of the process are really painful and are really challenging.’
Today Lucy runs a pottery studio called Not Yet Perfect where she cultivates a place of creativity, community and connection through workshops and courses.
Not Yet Perfect is Lucy’s way of providing a space where you don’t have to be perfect, where you can craft and create and enjoy the process of making something without having to produce perfection.
On doing things you haven’t done before Lucy says, ‘I think as uncomfortable as it is, it’s important to be comfortable with being uncomfortable to a certain extent.’
Lucy will capture you with her story that takes you from Norway to Australia, Ghana, Japan, India and into her workshop in Perth.
Connect with Lucy
Website https://www.notyetperfect.com
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/nyperfectshop
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/nyperfect
IN LUCY’S WORDS
‘We all carry a different light but we all have light and I think you’re meant to stand out.’
‘I think as uncomfortable as it is it’s important to be comfortable with being uncomfortable to a certain extent.’
‘I often look at myself as a piece of pottery being created and I think when we start it looks like a blob of clay… it’s not very inspiring, but then there’s a process.’
‘I think we’re all going through that process of being crafted and some parts of that process are really lovely and other parts of the process are really painful and are really challenging.’
‘When I look at the pottery process and creative process, it’s like you’re put on the wheel, you’re moulded into this shape and it looks beautiful but in order for it be functional it has to go through this firing process and it has to go through the heat and it has to go through it twice and the second time is when the clay is taken to its full maturity.’
“We’re all going through this process of being moulded and being shaped into something that has a purpose, has a function but in order to come to the point where your actually functional and it can operate as it’s been created, it has to go through the firing process and it has to come to its full maturity.”
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With Love,
Annie
