Artist Spotlight: Natalie Schneider
Three days a week you can find Natalie Schneider throwing clay and shaping bowls on the potter’s wheel while plugged into tunes on her headphones. She came to Imagine Art to further her independence and quality of life after surviving a near fatal car wreck. Due to a traumatic brain injury, the accident left her totally blind and hard of hearing.
In the Imagine Art ceramics Studio. Notice headphones? Having fun at at the Cathedral of Junk.
“It sucks not having your eyesight.” Her loss of sight and the traumatic brain injury is what she calls a double whammy!
She believes God saved her life. The police had told her parents, “Come quick! Your daughter's dying.” But Natalie, who was about to turn 25, felt she was going to pull through. The accident, however, would drastically change her life.
Before the accident, she had worked quite a bit with her dad in the hospitality industry where he was director of food and beverage for a large hotel. After the accident, she spent a lot of time in therapy and had to learn to get around using a white cane.
The place where she worked after the accident offered monthly art classes and introduced her to the potter’s wheel. She began learning the art of throwing clay. One thing she discovered about herself during this transitional period of her life, was that she had a genuine passion for pottery.
Not only has working with clay been great therapy, but it’s also given Natalie a sense of satisfaction, accomplishment and independence. Her parents have expressed astonishment how ceramics has changed their daughter's quality of life and level of happiness for the better.
Through Touch and Feeling In the Imagine Art studio she has established her bearings by a corner window of the ceramic’s room in front of a potter’s wheel. Natalie sometimes trades with other ceramists. She traded one of her bowls to another artist (who is also blind and can’t speak) for one of his ceramic trash trucks. She can't communicate with him because she doesn’t know sign language. But Jon, an AmeriCorps artist-in-residence, signs on Natalie’s behalf.
It really bugs her that she can't relocate items when she puts them down. She depends on the ceramic artists-in-residence, Jon and Justine, to help with the little things that sighted artists take for granted.
Natalie relies on her other senses to help her see. Touch is very important in shaping her bowls and getting centered and seated around the potter’s wheel. But as she will tell you, that except for taste, all her senses come in handy and contribute in one way or another to the success of her pieces.
Her bowls are unique because they are typically thick at the walls. This is because when throwing the bowls she does not pull them up far enough. One piece she is particularly proud of is a copper bowl that her parents seem to really like. It’s the metallic copper glaze makes it special, so she’s been told.
FB Entrepreneur By offering a variety of many bowls to choose from, and the occasional coffee mug, she has started selling her ceramics on Facebook’s Marketplace. For $15, plus shipping, customers can get one of her colorful, hand thrown bowls. Natalie's FB Page
Touted as the Blind Potter, she estimates that around 90 have sold so far. Selling her wares is somewhat of a side job since she also works part-time at the Travis County Lighthouse.
Natalie’s many colorful, hand thrown bowls are for sale on Facebook’s Marketplace.
Keeping Occupied and Staying in Shape When not building bowls or working, she swims in the pool that her dad built just for her in their backyard. She does breaststroke and freestyle. It's a small in-ground pool, about 9 strokes from end to end, with a hot tub next to it. She’s also a member of the YMCA.
Thanks to her great family and the support of organizations like Imagine Art and Travis County Lighthouse, Natalie has been able to excel.
