Professionals Tamborine Mountain 
Andrew Moir’s Potta Studio is part of North Stores, the trendy new development that’s sprung up on Main Street and is already making waves. Despite how new his business might be to Tamborine Mountain, he has a wealth of experience in the field and a few interesting insights that he’s more than happy to share.
by Kyle Hitchmough
How long have you been working in pottery?
Sixteen years, roughly, all up. I went to uni and did visual arts, ended up majoring in ceramics. I did 12 years professionally after 3 years of uni, so fifteen years. I had a break, came back to it, and I’ve done another year on top of that. I had a break doing other projects.
What was your inspiration to create this location?
My partner has an eatery next door, I’ve done the landscaping here, so the businesses here are all interlinked, working together, doing what we love.
Everything you sell here, you make yourself?
Yep, it’s all made here. I sell all my pottery in my studio and do some commissions too, and then also I have a pottery class every fortnight. It’s very busy, and very popular.
Are there any particularly bestselling items?
Not really, I don’t focus on what’s popular, I focus on what I like doing. If something’s a slow seller, I don’t have to sell them out instantly. If something’s more popular and it moves quickly, I’m not drawn to making just that. I’ll make things that’ll sit on the shelves for a while, but that keeps the shop full, too. I couldn’t keep pace!
Do you have a favourite to make?
I like the lightshades. They’re my favourite, the big lights in here. They’re probably my number one. I’m building myself up to make one right now for an order, a big black one. I just enjoy making them, it’s a bit more of an art piece.
Can you tell us more about the workshops you offer?
The thing is people seem to be interested in learning something they can do at home. The good thing with pottery classes is I can tell them what they need to produce stuff at home, which makes it really easy. It’s not on a pottery wheel, its hand built. If it was on a wheel, it would take a long time to learn, but hand-building is pretty quick. You can come out with a piece after two and a half hours, which is pretty good. And I fire it and glaze it, and then return it to them.
What goes into an average day’s work for you?
I’m usually pretty busy. I’m a one-man band, running the workshops and doing all the pottery, I really just knuckle down and work. It’s not easy, keeping on top of it all, but I just devote myself and have days when I’m closed and days when I’m open. The days when I’m open, I devote myself to selling, the days when I’m closed, I make. I don’t mix the two.
Are there any particular trends in your clientele?
Not really. I do very diverse products, so I have different looks, and I’m hoping that those looks in the pottery will go with lots of different people. I don’t target anybody, I do things that I naturally want to do, and then somebody here will like that and a person over there will like something different.
What do you think your studio really provides to the area?
I think it provides quality work from an experienced potter and artist. I’m an artist, I do paint as well. I just provide something that people can really enjoy in their houses.
What do you enjoy most about doing this?
I enjoy the freedom I have. I can turn up to work when I want and go home when I want. I enjoy the fact that I’m making something that’s from me. I’m not working to make something for somebody else. It’s my product, and my artwork. I enjoy that.
Do you have any particularly memorable moments from your time here so far?
I usually have flowers that I scrounge around from my garden, and I put them in the vases. Quite often people will walk out with a vase, unwrapped, water and some flowers. I think that’s pretty cool. I love that. It’s enjoyable to see.
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