Picking Up the Pieces: Hal Raines’ Journey Through Clay and Parkinson’s

In this episode of The Painterly Life Podcast, host Shannon Grissom sits down with ceramic artist Hal Raines for an inspiring and deeply personal conversation. Hal opens up about his journey with clay—from childhood influences to the way Parkinson’s has reshaped his creative practice. Together, they explore the power of community, mentorship, and the emotional dialogue between artist and material.

Hal shares how he “listens to the clay,” allowing it to guide his process, and reflects on the resilience and beauty found in picking up the pieces—both metaphorically and spiritually. This episode is a heartfelt reminder of the transformative power of art and the lessons it teaches along the way.

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Chapters

• 0:00 Igniting Creativity: The Painterly Life Podcast Introduction
• 1:11 Discovering Clay: Hal Raines' Artistic Journey
• 4:36 Redefining Good Enough: Personal Growth Through Art
• 7:52 From Mud Pies to Pottery: The Evolution of Craft
• 13:24 Navigating Parkinson's: Art as a Coping Mechanism
• 18:32 The Power of Community: Support Among Artists
• 21:34 Staying Motivated: Overcoming Challenges in Art
• 25:53 The Soul of Clay: What Art Means to Hal Raines
• 30:00 Listening to the Clay: A Journey of Trust and Growth
• 33:11 Finding Hal Raines: Connecting with His Work

Transcript

Shannon Grissom (00:05)
Hi, I'm Shannon Grissom. Are you looking to ignite your creativity? Or how about be inspired by a steady stream of muses? Welcome to Painterly Life, the podcast that celebrates those who create, inspire, and innovate. So whether you're looking to spark your next big idea, reignite your passion, or simply soak in some creative energy,

This is the place for you. Painterly life, where every guest is a new muse, just for you.

Welcome to the Painterly Life podcast. I'm your host, Shannon Grissom. Today's guest, Hal Raines, found clay late in life and it changed everything from mud pies to pottery shows and Parkinson's. This is the story of shaping meaning through art. Welcome, Hal.

Hal Raines (01:11)
⁓ thank you. It's so good to see you.

Shannon Grissom (01:13)
Yeah, it's great to see you. It's been a long time.

Hal Raines (01:16)
It's been too long. Covid, I think it was when we did all the art work together.

Shannon Grissom (01:21)
But I think of you a lot because I have ⁓ a couple of your pieces and one of them is center stage in my living room. it's like, hi, I'm constantly saying hi to you.

Hal Raines (01:34)
⁓ thank you. Thank you. It's that sweet of you.

Shannon Grissom (01:38)
Aw, well let's start with the big question. Okay, so what really drew you to ceramics in high school? What got you going there?

Hal Raines (01:48)
Okay, in high school, I thought I was nice looking, right? mean, you know, have guys are, well, not only guys, guess, but ladies too. Sometimes we're kind of full of ourselves when we're younger. And I had dated a girl who was a cheerleader when I was a freshman. Then I dated another one as she was like a three year girlfriend. And my parents thought we would get married right after senior year. Well.

As eyeballs do, they tend to wander. I appreciate what you have. So I thought, well, I'm pretty smart. I goofed off a lot and it did cut school too much, but ⁓ I wanted to be in pottery where all the cute girls were. More than I would see normally in a day in a crowd. So that's what drew me to clay initially.

Shannon Grissom (02:45)
⁓ that is funny. So I know you've mentioned your mom being a skilled artist. Did she influence you in your work?

Hal Raines (02:56)
She really, my mom was, she's one of those people who was really, I don't know, she's really kind and she cared about people. I mean, when I was in summer school as a little kid, it was 100 years ago, there wasn't a free lunch, right? And one of the kids in summer school, I only met him during summer school. He didn't have anything to eat. So I'd share my lunch with him that my mom sent with me. And I'd come home just like,

ready to eat a bear, you know, and she she asked me a couple of times, Are you okay? What's going on? Why are you hungry? I've sent you a big lunch. And that explains her that I shared it with one of the kids. So she started packing a lunch for him as well. So she's just one of those really, really good people, you know, she's really sweet lady. Like she reminds me of you in many ways, you know, she's she's a she's a really neat, neat person, wonderful. So ⁓

Shannon Grissom (03:46)
you

Hal Raines (03:52)
And let me get back to your story, to your question, mean. Yeah, she was she had lots and lots of talents, you know, and she went to an art kind of a festival sort of thing where they there were seniors who helped coach young people. So she was in many ways mentored in a way that you would be by a teacher. So I watched her do things like painting and doodling and drawing and things.

Her people looked really real, you know? I thought, that's not gonna happen for me. Stick figures with hair. That's how that was. yeah, anyway.

Shannon Grissom (04:34)
Well, you know, I know that you've mentioned that you never felt good enough and I have struggled with this off and on over the years. So how has your definition of good in art or just in life changed over the years?

Hal Raines (04:50)
Ooh, that's a toughie. Because I don't think that somebody, gosh, I'd like to say that you grow into it, or maybe you just age into it where you realize the things that we were concerned about initially really aren't as important as we thought they were. know, I mean, somebody's opinion of you when you're older doesn't hold the same weight, I guess. Yes.

You just are more free. I remember a really good friend who was a science teacher when I was still teaching English. I asked her one time, what's the best age? What is the best age? Because she was considerably older than me. That's bad. But she was, is. What is worth? She said, well, turning 50 for her was the best place because she, at that point, didn't care. Somebody liked her, great.

If they didn't like her, great. There would be other friends in a larger circle that she had at that point. And so I thought, wow, that's really wonderful. And so when I got there, I don't know if this is good or not, but I started speaking up about things that I were wrong at the school I was teaching. And I became a greater advocate. I had been for the kids anyway, but I became a much more vocal advocate. Like if a kid got in trouble.

You know, I would go and intercede if you will. You know, like, what happened? How can we fix this? How can we keep this from happening again? You know, so I think that that's, you know, that's what changed my idea of good enough. You know, I wasn't at that point Mr. Raines anymore. I was the guy that the kids sometimes called Grandpa Raines and I got that more than I was all together comfortable with. But, you know, that's that's what I mean.

your perception of yourself changes and then you can give that those changed values to the people you with. And for me, a lot of it was the kids.

Shannon Grissom (06:58)
So how's that freed up your art expression?

Hal Raines (07:02)
Ooh, great question too. Yeah. I think it has because when I first started with clay, I remember setting down to the wheel the first time and thinking, ⁓ my gosh. See, we couldn't get on the wheel in high school. I mean, there weren't enough. So the lady, Mrs. Olson, she, will not allow it. You know, there just weren't enough to share. You could go in after school, you know, and play if you wanted to, but

I just remember thinking, I don't know if I'm ever going to be able to do this, but I did. And I made a lot of mess.

Shannon Grissom (07:41)
Well, speaking of mess, you've talked a lot about mud pies. So ⁓ do you think your early plays shaped what you're doing now?

Hal Raines (07:52)
Yeah, my cousins and I, I loved my cousins so much. We would, our backyard was massive, right? And there was, you know, mean, unfortunately there were some bald places back there, but that's where we would find the mud and we would take out pie pans and whatever we could sneak out of the house and we'd be playing, you know, like cousins, you know, but that was like a real life imitation, really.

We just had so much fun. We just played all the time. Every time we were together, it was dirty. you remember the term grandma beads where you played so hard and you'd get rings of dirt around your neck? That's what I had. Almost every time I'd see them, my mom would go, go scrub yourself. Golly you got grandma beads. I got sorry. But yeah, it was.

Shannon Grissom (08:45)
Did you always do pottery, ⁓ you know, straight through all your life? Did you have any gaps? How did that evolve? Or did you have like a pivotal moment after a gap or?

Hal Raines (08:58)
Yeah, okay, so let's skip to high school. Okay, and then I don't remember how long I was in pottery, but I would think it was probably a couple years for electives, you know, and then I left high school and I didn't have any until gosh, I was let me see, I was probably 62 or 63. One of my wife's really good friends and teaching buddies was taking pottery classes and

She had made some pieces that she was particularly proud of and she had entered them, entered them into a show. And so we were invited. So we went to this one class. ⁓ Well, again, it was a show and the teacher was there. ⁓ my gosh. ⁓ He's a crazy, crazy guy. Fun. His dad was a pastor, probably still is, but ⁓ his hair is white like yours. I love the white hair on Craig and he was a big

mischievous guy that he was such a he was such a fun fun fun person that you never knew what was going to come out of his mouth. It wasn't something that would cut you emotionally but you know he was funny and so you just tended to take whatever he had and you'd smack him with something later if you thought about it but I knew when I first met I mean I knew Becky forever but ⁓

When I was there and I went to that show and I heard Craig and I listened to his energy, I thought, uh-oh, that clock. I forgot to stop the clock. Okay.

Shannon Grissom (10:37)
That's okay.

It's punctuating your point. ⁓

Hal Raines (10:43)
But he was so funny, so, so funny. I just knew no matter what, I had to get to know him some way, somehow. And he was into my world at that point. So I figured, I guess I'm going to have to learn something about clay. And so I signed up for the class and I have no regrets. He was wonderful.

Shannon Grissom (11:03)
So what did you feel the first time you sat down at the wheel or was that the first time you sat down at the wheel?

Hal Raines (11:09)
⁓ well, you mean when I started class with Craig? Yeah. Yeah. That was the first time I had been at the wheel and my stuff was, I mean, everybody was like, you're such a natural. I'm thinking you guys are lying to me. Stop lying. These are horrible. And they, you know, they just, you know, went and for me, they were just like, okay, this is kind of dirt at home, you know, playing with the cousins kind of thing.

Shannon Grissom (11:14)
Yeah.

Hal Raines (11:37)
except obviously we didn't have anything to spin them. But ⁓ I learned to get the clay to lift pretty easily. And then ⁓ coning up, was not a big deal either. I learned that pretty quickly as well. So my first little pots, they really truly weren't very big and I'm sure they were really fat, fat, fat, like donuts. Maybe really chubby donuts, but.

Shannon Grissom (12:02)
No.

Hal Raines (12:07)
That's, know, when I fired him and all that stuff, everybody, you know, again, going on about, the hell there's, I'm not thinking, no, no, I can't take these home. These are, these are not even dog bowl quality games. So much to the distress of everybody else. I chucked them.

Shannon Grissom (12:29)
You know what? I throw a workout regularly. are some, some because they're well, some because the energy is just nasty. I was maybe just not in a good place when I started. And so I need to let that go. Some of them just don't always work out. And so, and I know, you know, I've had people call me before you throw it out. And I think, no, if I'm throwing it out, it needs to be gone. It needs to be gone.

Right. So you've had a lot of challenges through the years and then you were diagnosed with Parkinson's. How has that changed your art? How is that woven in? mean, you're still creating. ⁓ You totally inspire me. So how did this change what you're doing?

Hal Raines (13:24)
Wow, well thank you. First off, I'm going to try really hard not to cry because you touched on a point really tender to me and I ⁓ will just say that I like to carve. I truly love the way carved pieces look. ⁓ I did some decorating with things that are almost like cake frosting, you know, except it was thinner and you could, you know, doodle and put interesting things around some of the artwork to give it emphasis.

you know, and shading, but ⁓ I find myself trying to do more with brushes and instead of basically being able to use a, my gosh, like, what kind of brush is it? They're long, they have the long bristles. It's almost like they would use for sign making. They're lengthy bristles. You know what I'm talking about, right? And you should get the paint and you just kind of drag it across. Well, that's what I'm finding to be more useful at this point.

Except I obviously can't hold it with one hand because the trimmers are crazy. So I found ways to lean the hands against the the ⁓ the bowl for the wheel, you know, and when I move something, it's like two hands against the bowl and just kind of swooshing it around. So I get more of a flow. It's kind of a fluid motion rather than a line that's really jiggly. So there was there was a video that I really

feel compelled to tell you about I was very lucky to find it or or maybe found me. don't know. Fate sometimes has ways of doing that for you, but it's a video called Embrace the Shake and S.H.A.K.E. like, know, like if your hands tremor or whatever. And it's about a guy who did pointillism. You know, you know what pointillism is, right? Anyway, he was doing pointillism and he was great. my gosh. His pieces are exquisite.

But he, ⁓ he developed this really bad tremor and he could not, he couldn't paint like it was before. So his life completely switched directions. mean, it was an absolute 180 from where he was before. And he found ways to incorporate using much bigger pieces so he could still get a similar look. And then his, his way changed again. And so we started using candles and then he layered them over one another.

And the paintings and the work that he did, much of it was never even put together until he assembled the pieces and got the layers like you do with the candles. But if you get a chance and anybody who struggles with things related to movement disorder, ⁓ my goodness. you can just, and it's right there, it's a TED talk. So it's easy to find it on YouTube, but wow, it gave me hope that I didn't have.

I really wasn't sure where I was gonna end up or how it was gonna work in my life. So. ⁓

Shannon Grissom (16:27)
That's awesome. I will find that video and put it in the show notes so that people can appreciate that and watch that. So.

Hal Raines (16:34)
thank you.

Shannon Grissom (16:39)
In what ways has working with clay or creating your art helped you through all of this?

Hal Raines (16:48)
Okay. I'm lucky in this way that I have people who truly care. You we all are fortunate if we have a ⁓ cadre of buddies who look out for us, you know, and ⁓ that we trust enough for them to be honest with us without getting offended. And one of my friends, Don Bardo lives in... ⁓

Shannon Grissom (16:52)
⁓

Hal Raines (17:18)
in one of the Dakotas and he'll see my work and he's a retired professor himself and he will say something like, this is really you. I can see that you're struggling with Parkinson's and this doesn't look like your work. ⁓ In fact, he said that about a piece that I think I maybe sent you pictures of it's yellow and pink or maybe it'll turn red when it's fired but.

It's got lines in it and there are colored blocks on it and stuff. And ⁓ Dan could see, having known me for a while, he could see that it really truly wasn't reflective of me. And he could see based on the lines, you know, and how they weren't really crisp, that, yeah, I'm struggling. And he said, this is more like you. This is more what you're going to be able to do working with Parkinson's. So he has helped me.

channel that energy and move it in the inner direction that feels right, you know, so. ⁓

Shannon Grissom (18:21)
That's great to have that support.

Hal Raines (18:24)
Yeah,

you need those people. just just people that I feel very fortunate to have as part of my world.

Shannon Grissom (18:32)
Well, I've heard you talk, you mentioned that the clay people are incredibly supportive. Can you talk about that? ⁓

Hal Raines (18:44)
my gosh. Okay, so the people that I'm part of, that sounds weird, but we're all like, I don't know, twins or cousins, going back to the cousin analogy, you know, there's one that I refer to as my big sister, her name's Karen. And then there's one that's, we're all just goofballs together. And we tease each other about our work and you know, what.

what I would like to do with their work and what they would like to do with mine. And I think if we just created a bunch of crazy pots and cut pieces off and stuck them together to make something really odd and weird, it would be really fun to do. But they're not into that idea as much as I am. So we just are very supportive when somebody is going through something like, I don't want to bring up politics, but one of my friends is really struggling at this point.

And she's in the pottery class with me ⁓ or with us collectively. And ⁓ after class the other day, we all got together for a big group hug and talked about what was going on and what we could do if something doesn't go particularly well with her and how we would, you know, either take her something or take her someplace or just anything we could do to help one another to get through a time, you know, that's tough.

We have a lady who recently lost her dad. And at this point now, one of the things she's doing to work through the grief is for her to make his funeral iron. So it's just a, God, what a great group of people. I couldn't ask for a better bunch of friends. I just truly could not. That I feel like if you believe in God, I believe that fate has brought us together.

That's just how I see it. I've been very fortunate.

Shannon Grissom (20:46)
You have, have. And I find that, ⁓ that artists, creative creatives of any genre, go deeper. Their relationships are not just surface level. So with that, you do get the support because it's the whole person. So how do you stay motivated as your D as your disease progresses?

What is it through the people that you know, what are tools that you use that would help other people stay motivated as they go through challenges?

Hal Raines (21:29)
That is that is.

probably one of the most difficult things to face, having been one of those individuals to walk through the valley. And it does feel like a valley, know, like like you're really truly walking through this deep place. You're not sure how you're to get to the other side because either the chasm feels too big or it's too deep. You know, well, you're surely not jumping over that thing. You've got just got to walk through. And it's ⁓

knowing that if I can get to a place where I can release the anxiety and free again. whatever the stuff looks like, it's, if it feels problematic and I just can push, you know, like I made a plate the other day. And when I was making this plate, was thinking, I don't know what this is going to look like. And when it came out of the kiln, it was flat, like a, like a cake plate. Right.

Shannon Grissom (22:07)
you

Hal Raines (22:33)
And it was one of those pieces that think, I need to throw this away. And the other people in the studio went, no, no, no, this is perfect. And one of the gals who does the firing came in and she said, ⁓ I want that for sushi. I'm like, enjoy it. So yeah, just, you just kind of let the stuff bounce, you know, if it's not a good thing, you just kind of, well, I'm okay. Like we were talking about throwing stuff, well.

And once in a while, if it's a piece that you're embarrassed about, it's got your name on it. And that can be a gift rather than me breaking one. So, no, my name's on this. No, it's too bad. So, it's kind of what I do.

Shannon Grissom (23:19)
Well, Ian, that's one of the things that I've learned over time is that just because I'm thinking it's not up to par, ⁓ you know, it's one of those things where I can't believe everything I think. Then, and there really is a lid for every pot. So there might be somebody that's like, wow, that's awesome. I love it. So I've learned, I've learned that it's, ⁓ it's back to what you said. If I'm not feeling bad about it.

then maybe hold off on throwing it away because there might be somebody, just because it's not my cup of tea doesn't mean that somebody else might not love it. So, yeah. So looking back, what would you say to your younger self? Let's go back to the, maybe the high school person who didn't think they were good enough. What would you say to your younger self?

about that.

Hal Raines (24:20)
I'd say probably don't stay in the pottery class too long. There are cute girls everywhere. Go find one. Don't go to pottery right now. That's what I'd say. There are other blessings in your life if you look for them, but yeah, it didn't have to be in pottery.

Shannon Grissom (24:26)
Ha ha!

Ha ha!

When people experience your work, what do you hope they take away from it? What do you hope they see or feel from it?

Hal Raines (24:55)
I love that question. Wow, that's a good one. Okay. So for me, I tell everybody to pick up the pieces. You know, it is they have to experience it and I don't think that something as intimate as clay or something like a painting you've you're there's part of your soul in there. You know, biblically, it talks about we're clay for the master's hand, you know, and

That's a tough concept for some people to grasp, but it makes perfect sense to me because I'm in that situation, the master, and I kind of wait for the clay to talk to me when I'm working. So I think every piece that I do, I try to hear where that clay, what it needs to do or what it wants to do. There are times when I'll sketch something out like, OK, I know where this what this should look like. But most of the time.

I just go and whatever feels right intuitively, that's what I'll do. And there are times when I make a piece, like I made one that was a big salad bowl. And even as I was making it and I was carving it and I was putting things in there about Judaism, one of my really good friends came to mind who is, anyway, I didn't need to go into all that detail, but I knew as soon as I made that bowl,

It was not mine. It wasn't mine to sell. I needed to gift it. And that's what I did. called her and I said, Look, are you you know, I have a bowl for you. ⁓ It's it's only for you. ⁓ And that's and she really enjoyed it. She just you know, she she was using it and then she thought, this is too unique. I need to put it on the on some places like, no, use it. If you break it.

Okay, it's not a big thing. I'll make another one for you or something, you know, it's just something to replace it. But I hope when people pick up my pieces, they like the weight. They like the feel of the clay. I use different kinds of clay. they have a, you know, there are different colors. Some of have speckles others. like porcelain. Porcelain is a bear to work with, you know, just simply because it feels like pudding. It's tough when you first take it out of the bag, then you move it a little bit.

It just feels like pudding. So I think that that's part of the allure for clay too, is that there are some clay bodies just like with kids, right? I mean, you've seen kids that have been in the grocery store and they're like, oh, what an adorable little child. And then you go down the next aisle and there's some kids screeching. That's like clay. back to clay. Yes, sir.

Shannon Grissom (27:48)
So is it fair to say that over the years you've become more adept at listening to your pieces and letting them tell you what to do rather than imposing your will on them?

Hal Raines (28:02)
Yes, the guy who I was mentioning initially remember I told you about Craig, the guy with the crazy wonderful hair, white hair and fun, fun, When he passed, that took such a big chunk of the hearts out of all of our potters who worked really closely with him. And I will say it was hard for me to overcome his loss.

But his wife Shirley ⁓ knew that Craig and I were close. And she allowed me to purchase his wheel that he used all the time. And she gave me his studio chair and a torch that he used all the time when the pieces became too soft. So I would use his wheel and his chair and his torch when I needed it. And I would kind of channel his energy like

That sounds nutty for somebody out there. But I would sit in the chair and I would think, what would Craig do with this clay? I mean, he's still at this point, even though he's gone and I've still continued to work. ⁓ His work is still just gorgeous. In fact, if you look on eBay, almost anytime there are five to seven pieces of his work online. Craig Easter. Just like the holiday Easter.

Shannon Grissom (29:28)
Okay, I'll look them up. We'll put a link to that as well. Yeah.

Hal Raines (29:33)
And so, I just kind of at this point now, I trust my own ability to follow, you know, to follow where the clay is trying to lead me. ⁓ And if I'm in class with the other crazy Potter friends, they'll say, well, that looks like and I'll do the same to them. And so we find ourselves walking in somebody else's footsteps, you know.

That's fun too, because they can see things that we can't always.

Shannon Grissom (30:04)
Yeah, yeah, I get blind after a while, you know, I'll put it away somewhere, but then I will also, I have a group of friends that I will email a piece to and say, hey, you know, what am I missing? Cause I can't see it anymore. And it's very helpful. Yeah. So if clay could talk back to you, what do think it would say?

Hal Raines (30:22)
Yes it is.

It would say, that's smart of you to say don't stay in clay class when the girls are there. That's the first thing I would say. The second one was.

whatever you're doing, whatever the journey is, whatever the path that you're walking, slow down. Slow down enough to take it in. Look at the water after a rain, know, look at the water in the street, look at the water in the gutter. There's something you can take away from every part. Even if you just look at it as part of the cycle of life, there's something so beautiful about every phase of it. Like Craig, Craig's biggest influence.

⁓ was Yosemite. Most everything he did had pieces of Yosemite in it. Now he wasn't carving Yosemite, but the pieces used the colors of the mosses and the colors of the redwoods. And he, he put porcelain on a lot of the areas and then would carve into those representing the footprints of different, ⁓ natural, ⁓ animals. And he used fire. He used, ⁓ reduction firing.

for his glazes. So there was a quality of matte finish with some runs on them. my god, they were absolutely beautiful pieces, which is why they're, you know, ⁓ they're very expensive. Some of them, not all of them, but some of them are quite, quite expensive, you know. So I'm fortunate to have several of his pieces, but my goodness, I am fortunate. Again, I'll go back to I'm fortunate that.

that I found him or that he found me, but that surely his wife could see that, you know, we had this goofball bond, you know, keep saying goofball to laugh at yourself. And when you make a mistake, you got to find the humor in that too. You can't just be all mulligrubs about it. No, it's like, okay, so I learned something that might have been painful. But that's what I tell my son to

the most difficult things are the things you're going to learn the most from.

It's just what I know.

Shannon Grissom (32:57)
I remember them when they're painful. And then I, and then I worked a shift to get out of there. So yeah, it's, it's good. So where can people find your work? Where can they find you online?

Hal Raines (33:11)
⁓ I do post a lot of stuff on Hal Raines Pottery That's on Facebook. ⁓

Shannon Grissom (33:20)
Well, you've been incredibly insightful and inspiring. And thank you for being here, Hal.

Hal Raines (33:28)
Also Joy, I'm so glad to see you. Ed Rocklin doesn't even have a clue how much of a you are.

Shannon Grissom (33:36)
Thank you. You know, have not been involved in the art community. My caregiving duties have led me to be house, housebound pretty much for a while, but things are starting to get out now. So I will start to meet other artists and that's going to be good. So, you know, but that's, that's the beauty of this show. I get to talk to people in depth about their work and, I get inspired and I get to share what they're doing. So it's really cool.

Hal Raines (33:52)
Yeah.

Thanks.

Shannon Grissom (34:04)
So that's a wrap. ⁓ Thank you for watching Painterly Life. Please be sure to like, subscribe and share so that I can make more of these. We'll see you next time.