Meet Diana Gillispie

DIANA GILLISPIE graduated with a BFA in Ceramics from the Kansas City Art Institute in 1978. She moved to North Carolina with two other potters and set up a huge pottery shop. After five years the building was torn down and Diana and the other potters went their separate ways. She took the opportunity to go to graduate school and receive her MFA in Sculpture/Ceramics from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1985. She has taught ceramics at the college level and conducted workshops around the country. Her work has been exhibited nationally. In 1991 Diana and her husband had the opportunity to move back to the Asheville area and in 1996 she started Asheville Tileworks.

Asheville Tileworks & Pottery combines the talents of co-owners Diana Gillispie and Anne Alexander. Anne Alexander has worked in a variety of capacities for small businesses and organizations. Her technical abilities were honed in her first career as a union carpenter. Later she was the marketing manager for a natural fruit juice company and also worked as property and project manager for an affordable housing organization.
Asheville Tileworks & Pottery creates tile and pottery designed to bring joy, pleasure and utility to their customers. Working with care and skill in their Asheville studio, they are inspired to contribute to the continuation of the craft tradition in western North Carolina.
Their hand painted tiles are created in the majolica style. Majolica originated in the Middle East during the 10th century in an attempt to imitate Chinese porcelains brought to the Majorcan port on the spice trade routes. The clay is covered with an opaque white glaze and lavishly decorated. It is a technique that later flourished throughout the Mediterranean using indigenous clays and glaze materials.

The relief tiles are hand pressed with red earthenware clay in molds that they carve and cast. They are decorated with their own glaze formulas. They offer a full line of dinnerware for the discriminating cook who wishes to bring a delightful accent to his or her table. Plates, bowls, serving platters and more are all hand painted.
Their logo, the floating oak leaf, symbolizes strength, resilience and the joy of life. It is their hope that their tiles and pottery will enliven the spaces in which they are used. 

Diana Gillispie is proudly represented by WICKWIRE fine art/folk art in Hendersonville, North Carolina.