Nicole Aquillano

Nicole Aquillano was raised in a small town outside of Pittsburgh, PA. She took an unconventional path to become a full time studio potter. After pursuing a career in civil engineering, she left to follow her passion and earned her MFA in ceramics from RISD.

Nicole etches each image into porcelain clay with a knife and inlays a bluish/black underglaze. The high temperature of the kiln combined with a clear glaze overlay slightly blurs the drawing, much like a faded memory. She often references imagery from her past as a way to establish a personal connection. She established her studio in the Fort Point Area of Boston where she lived and worked with her husband Sam and cat Luna until 2017, when she moved just outside of Boston after the addition of her daughter Rafaela.

Nicole has been working full-time as a studio potter since 2012 and has developed a successful ceramics line which she currently produces and sells across the country.