PDX Profile: Anitra Cameron, and her Coffee Pot People

As a child, I fervently believed that all my toys came to life at night while I was asleep. And so I love Anitra Cameron's work. She takes ordinary things -- like coffee pots, serving trays, baking pans and such -- and assembles them into characters. Who look like they're fondly remembering the adventures they had last night while you were sleeping. You can see more of Anitra's work at her Etsy Shop, and locally, you can find her China Blossoms at the Trillium Artisans Store.
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Tell us how you first became inspired to find personalities in teapots.
It all began at an estate sale. I picked up a coffee pot, which for some reason was upside down, and for the first time, saw what an obvious nose the spout was. I bought it, took it home, and made the first Coffee Pot Person, Pierre. He's still with me, sitting in my shop watching over everything. Teapots came later, as a natural progression.

When you're making a Coffee Pot Person, do you know ahead of time what it will look like, or does the character emerge as you're working?
It can work both ways. Usually, some piece of something will inspire me. I'll think, "What a great hat that would make!" or "Wouldn't that be perfect for a dress?" and then I start stacking things up. I have a whole cabinet full of coffee pots, and sometimes I'll have to try five or six of them before finding the right head. It's funny, because there's a certain point at which the Coffee Pot People seem to take over for themselves, and while they can't select their parts, they sure are good at telling me whether I've got it right or not.

Then, when I've got all the pieces assembled and have painted on the face, I set them up where we can look at each other. Eventually, they'll tell me who they are—the name, career choices, history, that sort of thing. Coffee Pot People come with a laminated tag that has his or her name and personality profile on it.

I'm not really saying I hear voices in my head….

I imagine your studio as being filled with assorted pottery and bits of this and that, waiting to be transformed. Is that what it's like? How do you manage to stay organized?
That's exactly what it's like! There's this ADD part of me that's afraid to actually put anything away, for fear I'll forget it, so nearly all the shelves are open. I start out organized, and tell myself not to add anything to the mass, not until more Coffee Pot People and Tea Kettle Characters are finished, but some things are just too perfect not to have, and it kind of can add up and...well, I did say I start out organized.

One of the things I like to do in my shop is stack things so they're already something, usually a face. If you look closely at the shelves, you'll see eyes, noses, sometimes somebody sticking out a tongue. It makes me smile to walk in and look around.

What kinds of things inspire your work?
There's a quotation I like, "The journey lies not in seeing new places, but in having new eyes." Sometimes the materials make me feel like I have new eyes -- when two jell-o molds suddenly become a perfect 1940's hairstyle, for instance. It's exciting to see what something could be, instead of just what it already is.

Mostly, though, people inspire me. I'm constantly awed by the creativity, passion, quirkiness, joy, and skill of other artists. It takes almost more discipline than I possess not to just poke around www.etsy.com all day to see what people have come up with that I've never seen or imagined. Amazing. Wonderful. Laughter-making, thought provoking. Who wouldn't be inspired?

How do you define the difference between "Art" and "Craft?"
I think art lies in the imagination, in coming up with something new. Craft is the ability to reproduce art.

What are some of your favorite creative spots in Portland?
Estate and garage sales, in general. The Rebuilding Center. Michaels and Jo-Ann Fabrics. The Bins. The main Goodwill store, on MLK. Dava Beads on Broadway. All the Stars Antique Malls.