Jil Franke received a BS in Art Education from Mankato State University and has taught art at Breck School in Minneapolis since 1984. Her work is shown in galleries across the country and has been included in exhibitions in Taipei, Taiwan and Australia. She has been featured in “Ceramics Monthly," “Clay Times,” and the books “500 Cups” and “Tableware In Clay From Studio And Workshop.” She wood fires with Linda Christianson and Kirk Lyttle in the St. Croix River Valley.

I grew up on a farm in Minnesota and I am influenced by oil cans, funnels, grain bins, farm implements and objects found in this rural environment. I like chopping wood, wadding the pots, bricking up the door and stoking the fire. Wood firing can be full of surprises. I enjoy the unpredictability and the unexpected when firing my work in a wood fired kiln.