The Catfish Bottom Dweller
Contributed by Mary Kate Nicely and Joey Ellis
From the potters, to the painters, to the people who blow glass, out of all of these artisans in southwest Virginia, Rick Radman stood out the most. Radman attended Michigan State where he majored in Physical Education and Health. After graduating, Radman read a book that inspired him to ‘pay as you go.’ As a result, he used the money he saved to move to SWVA, where he built his own house in a secluded wooded area just 9 miles outside of Wytheville, free of debt.
The first art medium that Radman aspired to was pottery. He learned this craft from workshops in North Carolina. This creative side of Radman inspired him to build his own studio out of the excess wood he used to build his home. Radman had been working with pottery for fifteen years before he started working with his new art medium, metal. It took Radman five years to master welding and collect enough metal parts he needed to start his newfound hobby. Presently, Radman has been working with metals for ten years and continues to create pottery on a limited basis.
Our class at Wytheville Community College’s Appalachian Governor’s School recently visited Radman’s studio, The Stoney Fork Workshop. Radman gave us an incredible insight into his line of work. It is shocking how much work goes into one of his metal sculptures. First, he goes to scrap yards and farms to find rustic metal found objects to incorporate into his artwork. Radman goes to scrap yards so often, that his friends gave him the nickname, ‘Catfish Bottom Feeder.’ Then, he brings the parts back to his workshop to clean up the more antiquated pieces. Afterwards, Radman welds the random pieces together to make intricate moving sculptures. His most known moving artwork are the gas-nozzle beaked birds, car spring dogs, and horseshoe wind chimes. He showcases all of these works at art shows in Blacksburg, Floyd, Roanoke, at Heartwood, Southwest Virginia’s Artisan Gateway in Abingdon, and other galleries in the area. To find out more about Radman’s work, visit www.roundthemountain.org.
Radman said, “Every piece of art is different and unique. You can’t make the same piece twice.” This statement is true about his works and many other artisans’ works in SWVA. He is a passionate artisan, who never gives up. Rick Radman is a perfect candidate to introduce you to the creative culture in SWVA.
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The Soap Lady
Contributed by Emily Dix and Tanner Jackson
Way back 15 miles in the country, near Wytheville, Virginia, there is a small, green, block building that will take you back in time 50 years. This is where Crystal Gillian makes her craft at Mule Hell Trading Company.
Our class at Wytheville Community College’s Appalachian Governor’s School took a trip there one crisp summer morning, to a place called Cripple Creek, Virginia. As we pulled up, as soon as we got off the bus, we could smell the strong scent of the soaps. As we walked through the door, we saw a small black-haired lady, standing on a stool stirring soap.
We could look around and see that she is very dedicated to her craft. She has over 60 products ranging from soaps to lip balms and everything in between. As we walked through the store we could easily smell the variety of soaps . . . my favorite was Milk and Honey.
We were wondering where the name Mule Hell came from. It is the name of the road where her grandmother’s house stands, which is where she lives now, and the road about two miles away from her Company. Her grandmother made soaps when Crystal was younger, but Crystal never tried to make it herself until she was 22.
When Crystal moved away from southwest Virginia, she transferred into the modern world of London, and the city-life. She married and had a child. She had many jobs but none of them ever worked out. When she moved back to Virginia, she moved into her grandmother’s 140 year old house and found the tools her grandmother used to make her soap. She also found bars of soap that were 50 years old and were still useable.
The soap interested her so that she decided she would learn how to make it. She had no help, only books and her small memories of her grandmother. When Crystal first tried to make a bar of soap, it did not work out for her. It took her three tries to finally get it right. In 2010, she started making soap to sell, but she didn’t know if that would be enough to make a living so she did other things such as work at a greenhouse and a community garden.
Her soap business took off faster than anything else and she couldn’t supply enough for the demand. She stopped doing the garden and the greenhouse and spent her time solely making soap in her house. The inventory was overwhelming and she didn’t have enough space. In 2011, she took out a loan and bought an old store, restored it and established her own company. Within three years, she has grossed over $120,000 dollars and her company continues to grow.
She has her products in many local stores and sales her soaps at festivals in southwest Virginia. If you would like to visit her, then take a trip around a curvy road surrounded by farm lands and experience the culture and the true heritage of her lifestyle. Her shop is located at 134 Francis Mill Road in Cripple Creek, VA. If you would like to contact Ms. Gillian you can email her at crystalgillian@embraqmail.com, visit her Facebook page at Mule Hell Trading Co. or you can ‘give her a holler’ at 276-621-4741. 
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Unexpected Art from an Unexpected Artist
Contributed by Brock Burnette, Dakotya Douglas and Jubilee Melton
The humming of a wheel spinning, the pounding thud of a slab of fresh clay against a round “bat”, and the splatter of a spinning wet creation. These are all noises Chris Lively hears every day. For twelve years, this young potter has been developing and perfecting his own pottery company in Radford, Virginia. As a member of Round the Mountain, the Southwest Virginia Artisan Network, he has his own unique style of creating his craft.
In his younger years at East Montgomery High School, he enjoyed working with clay and 3-D art. After graduating he enrolled at Radford University, in Radford, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in ceramic art.
While attending college he got a job working in a ceramics studio. That ceramics studio was home to a gas fired kiln (although he prefers electric kilns) that inspired his creative design. He applies glaze to his art by spray glazing rather than the traditional way of dipping or applying it with a brush. This gives it a unique design and appearance. His work is heavily influenced by the area he and his wife (who is also his business partner) live and work in. His runny, light and dark blue glazes are influenced by local waterfalls and creeks.
Chris went back to Radford and obtained his Master of Fine Arts degree in ceramics. In college, he aspired to become a teacher of the arts. In addition to his business, Chris currently teaches a sculpting class at Radford University.
His wife, Jordan, is in charge of determining the quality of the product, at what price to sell it, and how and where to sell his pieces. The quality of his work is considered very high due to the fine porcelain clay he uses and his own formula of glazes.
Currently, his studio is at the YMCA in Blacksburg, Virginia, where he also teaches classes on how to throw clay and form pottery on the wheel. He sells most of his pottery at street fairs or at craft shows. Some of his best works are shipped and displayed at national art shows and contests, many of which either win or place highly. His work can be seen at Heartwood, Southwest Virginia’s Artisan Gateway in Abingdon, Virginia. His craft can also be found on his website www.chrislivelyceramics.com.
His art is as unexpected to him as it is to his buyers. As Chris Lively said “To put it simply, the art is in the unexpected.” 
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