Symmes Valley grad making name for herself

Huntington, W.Va. — Noelle Horsfield grew up in the Tri-state, graduating from Symmes Valley High School and attending Marshall University as a painting major. For as long as she can remember, she’s been interested in art, but it wasn’t until 2006 when she put her hands on a fresh batch of damp clay that she discovered her true love.

“I was really drawn to clay as a new medium, because it allows you to go in so many different directions,” Horsfield said. “It has so many variables that you can’t get bored with it, and I love the fact that I can make art that people actually use.”

Horsfield has refined her craft over the years, now building with porcelain, a much purer form of clay, and focusing mostly on serveware and vases. She begins her three-firing process by hand building each piece. Next, using rice paper and incising techniques, she decorates the item with intricate, usually Asian-inspired designs and applies underglaze to add color. Lastly, she finishes many pieces with gold accents.

“I feel like I wouldn’t be able to live without making things, but this particular medium lets me connect with people,” Horsfield said. “My pieces go into homes where friends and family gather around the table and bond over dinner. It’s gratifying to know that people connect with my work so much so that they spend their hard-earned money on it.”

Leaving the Tri-State for a while, Horsfield and her husband ventured north, temporarily calling Indiana, Maine and Massachusetts home. While there, she seized opportunities to display and sell her work in galleries and stores throughout the Northeast. After returning home to the Tri-State, Horsfield had hopes of opening a studio, but she never found the right space. Upon touring the Visual Arts Center and learning of MacKenzie-Dow Fine Furniture’s plans to open a retail location, a seed was planted.

“Until now, I’ve struggled to find the right outlet in the area to display my art,” said Horsfield. “The classic nature of my pottery paired with its modern edge works really well with the aesthetic at MacKenzie-Dow. The furniture they produce, like my work, is an art that people can use; it’s a perfect fit.”

Likewise, Bonner Adams, controller for MacKenzie-Dow, is excited to incorporate Horsfield’s work into the showroom.

“We intentionally seek out American-made home accents to pair with our handmade furniture in the store,” said Adams. “We’re fortunate to discover someone like Noelle creating high-caliber, unique artwork that complements what we do so well.”

Horsfield’s work has been featured in Terrain, a home and garden sister store of Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters. She’s also been featured on Martha Stewart’s website, among other recognitions.

MacKenzie-Dow Fine Furniture is a manufacturer, distributor and retailer of fine furniture headquartered in Huntington, West Virginia. The company is a limited liability corporation formed in 2002. Specializing in the production of fine quality, solid black cherry residential furnishings, the company distributes its products nationally in retail home furnishings stores and design centers.

The company operates a showroom at the International Home Furnishings Market in High Point, North Carolina, as well as two retail operations located at The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, and in the Marshall University Visual Arts Center in downtown Huntington, West Virginia.

For more information, please visit www.mackenziedow.com.