Updraft Pottery

Pottery shaped by hand,
fired in Tacoma.

Functional and sculptural ceramics
from Updraft Pottery Studio.

Shop available pieces

Aaron Filson standing in front of the open soda kiln
At the soda kiln

Recent work

Bisque-fired terracotta-colored planters and white porcelain bowls on a folding table, with a small scruffy white dog sitting on a rug in front
Bisque day, with supervisor
Four large dark brown glazed planters with combed sides inside an open electric kiln
Dark stoneware planters
A tall brown vase, a ribbed jar, a ribbed bowl and three bowls with a blue brushed lantern motif inside a kiln
Lightened stoneware body with lantern motif, mystery glaze with soda flashing, plus a bonus porcelain bowl.
Eight pale green plates and dishes with blue brushed lantern motifs and letters, viewed from above inside a kiln
Lantern plates
A table of brown stoneware vases, bowls and cups with blue lantern motifs, with celadon plates and bowls on a table behind
Fresh out of the glaze firing
Two bowls from above on a paisley tablecloth, one pale porcelain and one brown stoneware, each with a blue lantern motif
Lantern bowl pair
Two crackled green vases, a celadon bowl with a blue lantern, a brown bowl and two round letter tiles inside a kiln
Crackle and cobalt
An outdoor table display of lantern-motif vases, bowls, plates and cups, T-O-P letter tiles and small textured ornaments
Summer table
Four unglazed buff dinner plates with wide rims on a kiln shelf, viewed from above
Loaded for bisque
A table of bisque-fired terracotta-colored dinner plates, a planter and small honeycomb-textured pieces outdoors
Bisqued dinnerware

See earlier work →

About the studio

I was raised in Auburn, Washington, and went to Auburn High. It was not until the last semester of my senior year at the University of Puget Sound that I discovered pottery. I was drawn in by the wheel, and the tangible results that were available. Ken Stevens was my first instructor.

In 2007 I returned to ceramics, taking classes at Green River Community College from Ed Brannon, John A. Taylor, and Paul Metivier. I also learned a great deal from the instructional tech, Vic Rivet. It was at Green River that I really started to get a feel for clay and how to fire a gas kiln to high temperatures.

In 2010 I started working with Elinor Maroney at her studio in Covington, Washington. Elinor has been working in clay for more than 45 years and is a wonderful artist. I have learned immensely from Elinor, and in turn I assist with the heavy lifting. I constructed a soda kiln at the studio so we could experiment with atmospheric glazing and learn the fine details of this challenging process. You can follow that project on the kilns page.

Updraft Pottery Studio is my studio in Tacoma. It has the right electrical to run kilns, wheels, and lights at the same time, and a propane updraft kiln of its own. Follow along with new work and kiln openings on Instagram and Facebook.

Smiling bearded man in a flat cap and navy jacket on a Puget Sound beach at low tide
Meet the potter
Aaron Filson standing in front of the open soda kiln
At the soda kiln
Snow-covered Mount Rainier rising above the Tacoma tideflats and city on a clear day
The mountain is out
Forested mountain ridge with mist on the peaks under a lavender dusk sky
Dusk in the mountains
Selfie in front of a tall stepped Maya temple under a clear sky
At Tikal
Selfie in a rain-soaked jacket and hood with a covered backpack among evergreens
GTNP last day hike out
Selfie in a blue Mariners jersey at a crowded baseball stadium
Go M's
Small scruffy white and tan dog asleep on a bed in stripes of sunlight
Sunbeam nap
Small scruffy white and tan dog curled on a couch with its chin on a pale blue pillow
Supervisor at rest