Myriam’s story of craft & community
For ceramic artist Myriam Goos, working with clay began as a simple curiosity.
For ceramic artist Myriam Goos, working with clay began as a simple curiosity and quickly became something more lasting. What started at a local Nelson pottery club soon turned into a creative rhythm that continues to shape both her work and her connection to the Nelson Tasman community.
Sitting at the wheel for the first time, Myriam discovered the quiet satisfaction of shaping earth with her hands. As she likes to say, she has been ‘muddy ever since’. These days, ceramics are part of her daily life as she moves between wheel-thrown pieces and hand-built forms, allowing each approach to influence the other as her style continues to evolve.
From her home studio in the hills of the Maitai Valley, Myriam creates ceramics that balance usefulness with artistic expression. Her pieces often feature darker tones, textured surfaces and organic forms that celebrate the natural character of clay.
Place plays an important role in her practice. Myriam often blends sand collected from beaches across Aotearoa New Zealand into her clay, quietly weaving the country’s landscapes into each piece. It’s a subtle detail that grounds her work in the places that inspire it.
You’ll often find Myriam at the Nelson Saturday Market, where Claybound ceramics sit among our region’s growers, makers and creatives. It’s a space she enjoys, meeting locals and visitors while sharing the stories behind her work.
Alongside creating, Myriam also opens her studio for small pottery classes. These hands-on sessions invite people to slow down, try something new and discover the simple pleasure of shaping clay themselves. Watching students find their own creative spark is, she says, one of the most rewarding parts of the process.
Through Claybound, Myriam continues to shape pieces that feel grounded in place and community, a quiet reflection of the creativity that runs deep in Nelson Tasman.
