NorthWest Profile #2: Jesse Bean Goodman & Anderson Baily

From 2003-2005 I was acting Artist in Residence at The Appalachian Center for Craft in Smithville, Tennessee. While being one of the only Jews in the buckle of the bible belt I met a couple people that would forever change the face of creative energy and spirit as I knew it. Anderson Bailey and Jesse Bean Goodman hail form the Dirty South, Anderson from TN and Jesse from Mississippi.
They both received B.F.A.'s from the Craft Center and then transplanted to the Northwest. I am constantly inspired by these two artists because of their honest approach to material and creativity. It is important to live through your art and feed it while it feeds you. Jesse and Anderson do this with humor and character in a fascinating way.
Jesse, who legend has it is an amazing wrestler writes:
"I was born in the deep dirty delta lands with cotton fields, feral cats, and an attic full of curiosities to keep me entertained. After a stint in Tennessee, where I learned how to create magical objects, I slowly began to move in an upward direction until I ended in Portland, Oregon. To me this city has become known as the land of no thunder, and home to no lightning bugs. Facts like this could slowly break my heart, but I have been keeping my hands busy... yes!"

Anderson on the other hand began as a potter. He dabbles in glass, though the mud is his calling. His functional ceramic work is filled with subtle texture, clean lines and minimal forms. It seems that the challenge of creating objects that show the hand of the artist with a sense of recognition and integrity is overcome in Anderson's useful objects.

From the Sugar/Creamer sets, to lidded jars and even the mug I use almost every day in my kitchen, these silky surfaces; with lips, feet and love handles beg to be handled, filled up and incorporated into our lives.

Beyond the objects that these two create, they are great humans and bring a smile to even the most degenerate souls.

Unfortunately for us, they have left the Northwest. Back in the fall of 2009 Jesse and Anderson left Portland, Oregon and moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee. They now reside in the dirty dirty once again and apparently are loving every minute of it. So if you are looking for a good time and happen to be passing through Chattahoochee, look them up, you will not be disappointed!