Back to clay
In conversation with Adrianne Vincent, 77 22 AV / Nature’s gift
“A friend told me about a clay studio that just opened down the block, so I signed up for a class. Three days before it was due to start, my mother passed and everything fell apart. I could have just sat at home and cried or I go in there and do something. I hadn’t been around clay for some time, I might have broken down hysterically, anything could’ve happened. The minute my hands touched the clay it was like BOOM…I’m home.” -Adrianne Vincent
Adrianne Vincent nurturing the creative swell at Baker Beach, San Francisco CA,
© JP Defaut
“Have you met Adrianne yet?” The name kept coming up in the most random of social circles. Like a mythical being or social goddess that everyone either knew to have dinner with or lusted after. “You just have to meet her!” Over the years, I’ve learned to add a pinch of salt to those vocal amuse-bouche mouthfuls one hears at social events. Too many times I see people inflating themselves and enjoying the sound of their voice as they drop another name into their empty Martini glass. Still, I was curious.
After 8 years in San Francisco, I’ve discovered that “small world” is no cliché. Eventually, we connect through someone who actually knows us both. An email exchange later, Adrianne suggests a tiny Indian kitchen in Marin. When it comes to tandoori, I’ve been spoilt. I grew up in London. Since my better half is not a frequent flyer with spicy food, my dahl cravings were now at level orange. Papadums on the first meeting in a curry house I haven’t tried? I leave my masala box behind and cross the bridge on the old junker into Sausalito. As a rule, I don’t Google before meeting people. I want to be fully present to who they are at our first encounter. There were few tables in front of Avatar with sunny views overlooking a clean parking lot. A lady sits knitting at a table. As I pull up, she looks at me over her sunglasses: “I ordered you a chai, no sugar!”
“I can do whatever I want, so I do. I’m lucky, and for that I’m very grateful.” — Adrianne Vincent
From meditation to yoga instructor, mindful impact investing at a venture capital firm in Boston to Burning Man, this Bay Area creative force knows no boundaries. Add to that knitting, woodworking, shibori, rare leather, and vintage fabrics. Adrianne also knows a thing or two about baking. Months after she handed me a jar and said: “Here, stick your nose in this!”, her sourdough starter is still going. My father might be a French chef, but I’m a complete novice when it comes to baking. I get text messages like this from Adrianne, it’s inspiring but you know your loaf isn’t going to look that good…
The 77 22 AV sourdough, it’s quite something.
Since her mid-teens, pottery has always been her ‘go-to’. Adrianne started foraging for clay outside her parent’s house in Baker Beach. One day, on her way to buying earth shoes on Haight street, Adrianne walked past a store with 2 hippies spinning clay. I poked my head in, “What’s going on here? I wanna do this!” Still in her school uniform, she skipped the shoes and started hanging out at their studio. “The world fuckin’ opened up to me! From cigarettes to Ksan Radio, Patty Hearst had been abducted, it was all going on. She had long grey hair and was called Adrianne. Her lover was this gorgeous guy in his twenties and they became my people. I had found my tribe.”
The hippie period, early pieces by 77 22 AV
As part of the discovery process in an interview, I like creating analogies. One, in particular, requires people to take a look in the mirror and ask themselves the following: if they were a car, which model would they be? Adriane thought for a moment: “I’m an old pickup truck from the 70s: a little rust here and there, worn leather seats, and body scars to show her wisdom. She’s been around the block a few times and still gets the job done!”
Adrianne at the wheel of her beloved “Ethel” © JP Defaut
There’s also a ceremonial aspect to her work. ‘Civilized Communion’ she calls it. “It’s what happens when we sit down to break bread together. We hold something that took hours to make, have conversations while savoring the imperfections of ceramic.” None of Adrianne's’ creations are matching sets. They have a theme for sure, but if you want things perfectly made by a machine, this isn’t for you.
Civilized Communion by 77 22 AV
As we delve deeper into her purpose, and more importantly her return to clay, Adrianne takes me further into her world. Recently, while unwell and staying in the mountains, she came to a realization: “I only want to put my lips and hands-on something that’s nourishing me, that I alone create.” She explains that every morning, she used a cup and plate that she had made. Neither inherited or gifts, and they weren’t purchases.
“I made the vessels that carried the food and drink to nourish me. It was really deep for me. Adrianne Vincent 77 22 AV
“I only want to put my lips and hands-on something that’s nourishing me, that I alone create.” 77 22 AV
“In my recent return to clay, just after my mothers’ passing, I started experimenting. I glazed everything in black. It’s the space where I was. I made over 200 pieces and sold everything. But I couldn’t help wondering why people were so drawn to the pain channeled out of my darkened heart, through my hands, and into the clay. I couldn’t make them fast enough, then I discovered black clay… It got so busy at this workshop in San Francisco that I decided to buy a kiln and work from my home in Grass Valley.” Adrianne Vincent 77 22 AV
Where the magic happens, studio 77 22 AV Grass Valley, CA
“I love nothing more than reading, listening to the radio, and knitting for hours. Both my grandmothers were knitters. I started making my first clothing lines on trolls! When I worked in tech, I was super inconspicuous as I’d knit through meetings and listen to everything. During the 2nd world war, there were British women who would observe enemy movements, knit the information into code, and send it to the military. I’m so inspired by that. I still knit today, it keeps me grounded.” Adrienne Vincent 77 22 AV
Shibori, another creative channel at studio 77 22 AV Grass Valley, CA
As I experience AV’s ceramics and her many creative channels, I liken them to making bread: from a batch of dough, one makes a few loaves. They’re not identical. They’re all unique. With 77 22 AV ceramics, it’s the same thing. Every piece stems from the earth. Idiosyncratic, individual, eccentric, and all are one-offs. We live in a world where everything is about scaling, automation, and consistency. Adrianne has channeled environment, identity, moments, and nurtured her creative energy into things that are unrepeatable. She touches everything with her hands and goes beyond the technique of making. Each piece is an extension of mood, driven by a heartbeat. They are not planned or scheduled on a production sheet. They stem from a deep space of creativity, searching for a way out into the world.
“Have you met Adrianne Vincent?” I now see the people who wanted us to meet very differently. Adrianne is all about her connection to the land, her depth of Bay Area history, and the spiritual gold that has yet to be uncovered.
“I don’t do this out of necessity, this stuff just flows through me and my hands do all the work.” — Adrienne Vincent 77 22 AV
“These are not about perfection, but they are perfect…” Adrienne Vincent — 77 22 AV
Words and portrait photography by JP Defaut.
Product photography by 77 22 AV