MY STORY

My name is Renee Zantay and I am a potter.

I was working as a charter yacht chef

when I sailed to Abaco from Maine in 2008.  I met my husband that same year.

We married in 2018.  September 1, 2019 our island home took a direct hit from the catastrophic category 5 (more like a 7) called Hurricane Dorian.

After the hurricane everything changed. we no longer had boats to work on.

There wasn't even one marina left, no fuel docks no amenitties what so ever. 

I didn’t know what to do with myself and I felt compleatly lost.

 My husband Raymond suggested I get a potter’s wheel and start doing pottery again.

I had taken a ceramics class in high school and was hooked immediately.

 Took 20 + years and a Hurrican for me to find my way back to clay

but here i am back on the wheel where i belong. Pottery gave me my life back.

My life now had purpose again. i knew what i needed to do, build a Studio.

 In order to get a studio together after the hurricane i had a lot of help,

I started a fundraiser for supplies and was overwhelmed by the generosity of our family and friends. We were miraculously able to find a Gas Kiln

which allowed me to work despite the fact that we did not have power for 479 days.

We got power restored right before Christmas. It felt like a Christmas miracle.

My hope for the future is to continue to grow my studio,

bulid a much larger gas kiln and maybe even a wood fired one too!

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A great way to support me is through purchasing my art,

joining my Patreon, or by liking and following my social media.

 If you would like to follow my progress,

please follow me on Instagram @saltwaterstoneware   

 

Thank you to all for the continued love and support!

Renee A Zantay

 

 

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