Hello, my name is Caleb Phillips and this is my pottery. It is named for the black-billed magpie (Pica hudsonia) a conspicuous and charismatic resident of the Colorado plateau.

I make functional domesticware in the production style, taking inspiration from high desert and mountain landscapes of the western USA. The sedimentary geological record is both palette and medium, providing clays, slips and glaze components to my decorated pots.

The concept of this pottery is for proceeds from pottery sales to go to charitable causes. Because the dollars can have a larger impact there, the focus is on vetted international charities. In 2023, funds raised through the sale of my pots supported Womens’ health in rural Nepal. In 2024 and 2025, funds raised have provided medical supplies to civilian defenders through Sunflower Seeds Ukraine. In a prior life, I was trained as an EMT and have done volunteer medical work, so these health related causes also align with my values.

I am thankful for inspiration from many contemporary production potters, including those who have been so kind to invite me into their studios and share their craft. I did my initial pottery training with Liz Aylmer and Jenny Stock at the Artesania del Prado nearby to Olvera, Andalucia, Spain. I’ve also had the wonderful opportunity to practice at a number of community studios and learn from the residents there: Ceramics Academy with Taz Pollard in South Molton, Devon, UK; Céramiques in Melbourne, Australia; and the Wakatipu Society of Potters in Queenstown, New Zealand. I’ve also done skills workshops and firings with Kayenta Fire in rural Utah, and sometimes fire with St. Johns Clay in my neighborhood in North Portland, Oregon, USA.

You can visit my personal webpage if you’d like to learn more about some of my other projects. The current Pica Pottery logo was designed by and in collaboration with icon artistry in Portland, Oregon.