Some of the best things in life are unexpected experiences and unplanned moments, and Rhonda Willers has made a career out of that very sentiment. Stumbling upon a natural skill and quick passion for various art forms during her undergrad years at UW-River Falls, Rhonda has made a life out of being a maker.

While Rhonda’s formal training and bulk of education focused on ceramics, she also studied painting, drawing, sculpture, and printmaking. After spending 11 years as a professor, her artwork became her business, too. She still teaches, but does so through workshops centered around her book, Terra Sigillata: Contemporary Techniques, published in 2019.

“I fell in love with studying art before I realized I could do this (for a living). At the core, artists are just makers.”
–Rhonda Willers

Before her work as an educator, being a parent, becoming a published author, and her current volunteer position as a working board member of NCECA (National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts), she grew up with parents who lived with a vibrant curiosity — and no professional connection to the arts.

“I just gravitated towards art. Any topic or experience can be pulled into what I create and that’s really the most appealing thing to me,” Rhonda said. “I didn’t have family experience in arts – my dad is a retired machinist and my mom worked in human resources – and I didn’t really understand that somebody could focus on art for a living. It wasn’t planned.”

At The Local Store, Rhonda’s work stands out for its simplicity and obvious level of honed craftsmanship. The “Garden Series,” a collection of pottery created with practicality in mind, is a black-and-white collection with stunning hand-painted florals.

“The series came about because of my children,” she recalled. “I was teaching university at the time and wasn’t getting a lot of time to make my own work, and then I finally started hiring a babysitter for one afternoon a week. I thought, ‘What can I do in that time?’ ”

She decided to draw the flowers that had begun blooming in her garden. Sitting on a folding lawn chair at her home in the rural hills of Elk Mound, she began her afternoons of studio practice by pencil drawing for 15 minutes. After about one year, those drawings came to life through brushwork on her pottery.

Thematically, her work continues to dance along and explore the fine line between feelings: How life can make you feel one way and then change, and what events cause that to happen. Rhonda is first and foremost driven by idea and concept. As she explained, the root of it all is curiosity. She continues to foster curiosity in her three children who also dabble in art thanks to a designated space in her home studio.

Leading with a philosophy based on curiosity, Rhonda encourages anyone and everyone to explore whatever sparks intrigue and to reach out to people who inspire them.

“(My husband and I) talk to our kids about how it’s not typical to grow up in a house with a full art studio in it,” Rhonda laughed. “But I know they’ll appreciate it when they’re older. More importantly, what I care about is nurturing curiosity and wonder in them.”

Leading with a philosophy based on curiosity, Rhonda encourages anyone and everyone to explore whatever sparks intrigue and to reach out to people who inspire them.

“I fell in love with studying art before I realized I could do this (for a living),” Rhonda said. “At the core, artists are just makers.”

Learn more about Rhonda Willers’ pottery and other works at rhondawillers.com and find the “Garden Series” at The Local Store (205 N. Dewey St., Eau Claire).