Bruce Odell Works

Bruce Odell

THREE-TIME U.S. POTTERY OLYMPICS CHAMPION

1992 WORLD CHAMPION

Since 1976, Bruce Odell has been sharpening his vision and skill at the potter's wheel.  Designing and producing clay lamp bases for an international decorative accessories firm provided years of practice.

In 1991, he entered the United States Pottery Olympics on a whim, and halfway through the contest realized he was winning.  As it turns out, the countless hours of lamp production paid off in the ability to make large cylinders, platters and spheres.  He won this competition three years in a row.

In 1992, he entered the World Championship in Faenza, Italy.  While the rest of the potters were making beautiful amphorae, kylixes and other classic shapes from antiquity, Bruce made pots with designs develped in a barn in north Louisiana.  Texturing a cylinder and then expanding the shape from within, he created textures mysteriously related to nature as are all internally expanded surfaces, from tree bark and human skin to geological features, clouds and even the ripples and waves of a body of water.  The judge crowned him, "Principle Mondial Esteta - World Prince of Aesthetics", with a genuine crown and a million lire first prize.  This was followed by a fabulous feast in a 13th century ballroom, with Venetian glass chandeliers and frescoed ceilings, in honor of the first American to win the World Championship.

After twenty-five years in Ruston, Bruce now makes his home in Lafayette, LA, the heart of Cajun Country.