BUTTE — A pair of Butte potters are inviting the community to transform everyday routines into something more meaningful — one handmade object at a time.
Artists Racheal Marjamaa and Ilona Wilde have teamed up to open Wilde Rabbit Pottery in the heart of Uptown Butte. The shop is located at 68 West Park Street inside the Phoenix Building, where a community clay studio called Hungry Hill Art Center occupies the basement. The building is also home to a print-making studio, two galleries, a yoga center, a plant shop, a suit shop, and a coffee shop.
WATCH: New pottery shop opens in Uptown Butte's Phoenix Building
"It's an art hub. The pottery studio Hungry Hill Art Center is downstairs, and that's where we throw all of our pieces," Wilde said.
The shop offers everything from large sculptures to ceramic pie dishes and mugs built for everyday use. All pieces are fired to cone 10, a high-fire process that makes them fully vitrified, food-safe, dishwasher-safe, and microwave-safe.
"These are very hardy pots," Wilde said.
While Marjamaa and Wilde share similar glazing techniques — including a style called sgraffito — each piece is individually marked, so buyers can identify the maker.
"We both do a very similar underglaze technique called sgraffito, but... if you flip them upside down you can see our chops. So, Ilona has 'iwilde' and mine is 'Rama,'" Marjamaa said.
The artists say the shop is about more than selling pottery. With only a handful of galleries in Butte, they hope Wilde Rabbit becomes a resource for showcasing ceramic art.
"There's that constant of art versus craft, and I think pottery is really an art. I think it's important to have places to sell your art, and it's not a competition ... there's room for us all. So, that's what we're really excited about," Wilde said.
That philosophy extends to the objects themselves. Marjamaa said handmade pieces can elevate the mundane.
"Just using a broom every day by your fireplace or for cooking — it turns something that might be boring into a really beautiful object that has soul. It turns it into a ritual versus a chore," Marjamaa said.
Wilde Rabbit Pottery will feature a guest artist each month. The grand opening is July 9 from 6 to 8 p.m. at 68 West Park Street in Butte.
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