Julie Solberg Berntsen is a woman of many talents. She is an art director by day and a ceramicist by night. She creates beautiful and practical pieces of art that are meant to be used and loved daily. She has a passion for ceramics that started when she visited Tallinn with her mother and saw the amazing creations of a local artist.

Julie has a background in art direction, which she studied at Westerdals School of Art in Oslo. She learned a lot from her education, but she also felt the need to express herself in a more hands-on way. That’s why she decided to try ceramics in 2018, without any formal training. She rented a space in a shared workshop and learned from other artists as she went along.

“It was hard at first, but I was determined to make it work,” she says.

Julie soon discovered that people loved her pieces and wanted to buy them. She started selling her ceramics online, mainly through Instagram, and got orders from friends and strangers alike. She is currently working on a new website that will launch in November.

Julie’s style is inspired by other ceramicists on Instagram, but also by her own intuition and creativity. She likes to mix different materials and surfaces, such as polished and unpolished gold, to create unique pieces. She also likes to make decorative items that have a practical purpose, such as plates, cups, and saucers.

“I want my ceramics to be something that people use every day, not just keep for special occasions,” she says.
Julie also enjoys redesigning old jewellery pieces and melting them into something new. She thinks that this way, she can preserve the history and value of the old pieces while giving them a new life. She always listens to what the customer wants and tries to accommodate their wishes.

“I think it’s important to respect the story behind the old jewellery,” she says.

Julie works from her own garage, where she has all the equipment she needs to turn her designs into functional jewellery. She loves the short commute and the flexibility of working from home. She also sources her materials locally and nationally, to support Norwegian producers.

Julie is happy with her current situation and doesn’t have any big plans for the future. She thinks that her job as an art director complements her work as a ceramicist well. She sometimes feels pressure to produce orders quickly, but she knows that people are patient and appreciate her craftsmanship.

“It’s very rewarding when people look at my ceramics and can’t decide which one they like the most,” she says. “That’s when I know I’ve done a good job.”