Glazed Over

Vanessa Steele is a lifelong artist and creative entrepreneur who has owned and operated her own art studio for over 14 years. With a deep love for community and creativity, Vanessa has spent her career helping people of all ages find joy through artistic expression. 

After the COVID-19 pandemic, Vanessa noticed a powerful shift—more and more people were seeking hands-on, tactile experiences, especially with clay. Recognizing this growing demand, she began offering not just structured classes and workshops, but also walk-in clay building opportunities that welcomed clients of all experience levels. To make the process approachable and fun, she developed her own patterns and templates, empowering even total beginners to create beautiful, successful pieces. 

As her clay program flourished, Vanessa saw an opportunity to support other studio owners looking to do the same. In 2023, alongside fellow creative and studio owner Leigh Anne Filkins, she launched Teaching Clay—a subscription service designed specifically for PYOP studios. Teaching Clay offers monthly tips, techniques, and project ideas, plus yearly in-person workshops that focus on the whole picture of running a successful clay program—not just the projects, but the business behind it. 

Vanessa and Leigh Anne believe that clay is more than a medium—it’s a movement. And through Teaching Clay, they’re on a mission to help other studios harness its potential to grow, inspire, and thrive.

Jessica Cowan is a Tennessee-based artist and entrepreneur with over 15 years of management, marketing, and hospitality experience, giving her a unique perspective on bringing together people, products, and experiences. Currently in her fifth year of studio ownership with over nine years of experience in the arts as entertainment space, Jess has tried (and failed!) at a lot of things. What she has learned along the way is that there is no community without hospitality and there is no success in this business without community. Leaning into her passion for small business and community building, Jessica is actively involved several local organizations, including the Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Chattanooga Hospitality Association, the Department of Tourism, and arts outreach via the Be the Change Youth Initiative. In her free time, Jessica loves connecting small businesses together through independent consulting, hearing stories from the community, and being an agent of change with the hopes of creating thriving local economies that people love to live and work in.