Aj Evansen- Co owner

AJ Evansen is originally from Portland, Oregon and recently moved to Bend to start a community ceramics studio with his close friend and business partner, Sydney Irene. Prior to opening Synergy Ceramics, AJ had been working in a solo studio in Portland. Growing up in a city felt stifling to AJ’s creative side, and he found solace in working with clay. Bringing nature and art into his life gave AJ a renewed sense of purpose, and jump-started his obsession with all things ceramic. His preferred style is highly specialized crystalline glazes on dramatic porcelain forms, echoing the shapes and colors found in his outdoor explorations. AJ is drawn to crystalline because the glazes stand out in both their depth and colors, a rare find for a colorblind potter. This love of dramatic shapes also guides AJ’s secondary style of carved geometric pieces. He describes these works as a reflection of the geometry we find in life, like the radial symmetry of a sunflower or the logarithmic spiral of a shell. AJ believes that he will never be a master, which guides him to continually learn new techniques and gain experience in crystalline glaze chemistry.

While fine-tuning his crystalline glazes in Portland, he quickly realized that being surrounded by other artists is an integral part of his love of pottery. This sense of community is AJ’s first priority with his new joint venture into Bend’s art scene. When describing his ideal teaching style, several themes arise: community, free-form exploration, and continual learning. AJ believes that each person has something to offer, both as students and as teachers. He rejects the rigidity of the formal education system, instead encouraging students to pursue their own ideas and style under his guidance. AJ encourages students to try several techniques with the same objective, to find which methods work the best for each person. This approach allows students to learn at their own pace and not be constrained by traditional art dogma. His hope is that pottery will be as therapeutic for his students as it continues to be for him.

In his free time, AJ can be found fire spinning, climbing trees and rocks, disc golfing, mountain biking, ping pong, kayaking, and exploring Central Oregon. Drop AJ a line if you have any recommendations!

Sydney Irene- Co owner

Sydney is a young potter from Portland Oregon. She moved to Bend shortly after graduating Woodrow Wilson Highschool- where she first began creating pottery under the instruction of Andrew Butterfield.

After moving to Bend, she wasn’t quite sure where her business degree at COCC would lead her. Fortunately, she decided to take what she thought would be, “one last” pottery class. Turns out, that pottery studio was hiring. After getting hired as a kiln and fire technician for the COCC studio- she only grew from there. She began assisting date nights and classes at Pottery By Yvonne in Tumalo, OR. She created a line of glazes for the school, as they decided to transfer from one type of firing, to another. In the following years she helped run various community studios, and even taught classes from her home.

Once expansion got on her mind, she got to chatting with her close friend AJ. That was when the decision was made, and Synergy Ceramics was born. They decided to bring their opposing strengths together, to open a welcoming and inviting studio. It seemed about time to expand the clay community in Bend OR.

Sydney's personal line of work, Centered Syd Ceramics, focuses on functional, fun pots for the home. She enjoys carving, imprinting flowers from around Bend, and altering her forms to make them unique. She also enjoys hand building quite a bit. She finds it fun to switch it up from circles on the wheel… as those can get old quickly. You can find her work online at CenteredSyd.com. You can also purchase her work in person at the NWX Farmers market every Saturday mid june- october, 10am-2pm.

Alex Gnefkow- Teacher

Alex was born and raised in the south, spending a majority of his life living in Dallas Texas. After graduating high school, Alex moved to Florida to pursue a beach bum lifestyle, soaking in the rays and spending plenty of time out at sea.

After three years, Alex discovered his love for different forms of art and decided to move to the PNW to pursue his newfound passion. After starting at COCC as a student, Alex unearthed a love for ceramics and joined the ceramics department under the tutelage of Sydney Irene herself as a lab assistant. Eventually, Alex was promoted to the Kiln Technician position and put in charge of managing the ceramic studio. This included maintaining and creating glazes, scheduling and firing both electric and gas kilns filled with students work, As well as communicating with both students and falcuty in order to run the studio as efficiently as possible.

During this time, Alex also involved himself in both the 3D sculpture and metalwork departments of he college as an employee and a student.

Alex currently specializes in raku firings as well as sculptal work.

Outside of ceramics, Alex enjoys road tripping and keeping in contact with friends all over the United States. When the sun's out, Alex is usually floating the river or hiking and kayaking up in the cascades.