Amy Beaudroit

Amy Beaudroit makes pots for keeping. Growing up on a farm in the south of France taught her that ordinary objects carry memory and that’s what she strives for with her work: pieces made not for display, but for hands and tables and daily use. Pieces that might still matter to someone decades from now.

“I came to clay by way of abstract landscape painting, a lot of Scottish coastline, and a grandmother in South of France with two gardens,” she says. “I now make functional pottery from local materials and my pieces carry the places I’ve lived. I believe objects hold memory differently from what photographs do, by putting you back in a moment.”

Amy exhibited abstract landscapes for 10 years, with work held in the permanent collections of the Museu da Cidade in Aveiro, Portugal, PARI in North Carolina, and a stipend residency at the Art Centre in Kokkola, Finland. In 2012, during a residency in North Carolina, she discovered pottery when she was given the opportunity to work at a wheel.

Largely self-taught, she works in stoneware and local wild clay, decorating with found materials: feathers, beach debris, mussel shells for burnishing, and mixing glazes from wild clay and volcanic ash gathered on hikes. Wood firing has become an important part of her practice, drawn to its communal tradition and to what flame adds that she cannot plan for: the meeting point of intention and accident.

This month, you can find Amy and her ceramics at The Maker’s Hand Fine Craft Show & Sale at the County Arts Lab, November 6-8, 2026. Experience and take home work by Amy and over 20 other artisans from Ontario and Quebec. See a list of exhibitors and learn more at themakershand.com.

Also in November, Amy will be a co-instructor, along with Rebecca Heasman, in the upcoming Youth Craft Academy Ceramics Level II course taking place in the County Arts Lab November 11th-December 2nd, 2026. This is YCA’s first-ever level two offering, where participants will explore using impressions to make their own unique, functional ceramic pieces. Students also have the chance to go on a field trip to the Gardiner Museum in Toronto on November 20th! The field trip will include a guided tour of the museum followed by a hands-on learning experience in the studio. Learn more about these exciting opportunities on our Youth Craft Academy page.

Learn more about Amy’s upcoming projects, recent work and more below:

Tell us about your upcoming projects:

This month I’m taking part in The Maker’s Hand, Acorn Beach Ceramics’ first craft fair since moving to the County from Montréal. I’m very excited, and slightly terrified, to finally watch people pick up my work and react to it in person rather than through a screen. I’m hoping to be part of a few local Christmas markets after that. I’m also looking forward to starting to teach with the Youth Craft Academy at the Arts Council alongside the wonderful Rebecca Heasman.

What have you worked on recently that has you excited?

I moved to the County to apprentice at the Ye11ow Studio, to learn more about pottery in general and about wood firing in particular. We’ve fired the kiln twice since I arrived in September, and I’m just as happy each time. It’s not only about my own pots coming out of the fire (though that never gets old). It’s also about helping the participants get the most out of the experience. Watching someone open a kiln for the first time is hard to beat.

Where in the County do you find the most creative inspiration?

The beach. I grew up near the water in Scotland and missed it terribly in Montréal. My favourite thing here is an early October swim, when the water is a little colder and the only other company is the geese. I also keep finding acorns on the shore, which always makes me smile. I named my business Acorn beach years ago and I’d never thought you could find them on a beach, and it feels like the two places of my childhood, the oaks of southern France and the Scottish coast, have somehow ended up in the same spot. Only here have I seen it, and I take it as a good sign.

What is your favourite comfort food?

I love food so much, it’s hard to pick just one! I’ll go with my seasonal favourite: baked tattie, beans, cheddar and a side of mushrooms. Or chestnuts roasted on the fire and shared with friends and a glass of red. I can’t choose one, food is love and it tastes so much better from a  handmade pot.