A Bit Of History
As an avid collector of handmade ceramics for use in his catering business, he finally accepted the challenge of creating his own pots. A beginner’s throwing class started it all. In 2004, he opened The Speckled Dog Pottery.
In 2012, the Pottery relocated to Bakersville, North Carolina. Here Robbie directs his time in his studio. In 2017, he was invited to become a member of Mica Gallery, a co-op gallery of some of the leading potters in the country.
And he continues to study ceramic production with world-class potters. In addition to his work with Marshall, he has worked with Fong Choo (miniature teapots) and Mark Shapiro (surface design and decoration). Hard work and dedication to the art form have led to media recognition—twice on NBC6 South Florida Today and more recently on nationally broadcast American Dream TV. And he has been featured in the Miami Herald, Palm Beach Design, Broward Design, Miami Design, and The Laurel of Asheville. His work has been juried into Art Beth-el, St. Petersburg, Florida, Big Fish, Small Pot: The Third Annual International Teapot Exhibition, Mission Viejo, California, and top honors for 3-D artwork at Art Bravo in Broward County, Florida.
He continues at the Episcopal Church as organist and choirmaster for Trinity Church, in Spruce Pine. And when not in his studio, can usually be found in his kitchen working a uniquely Robbie recipe to put in one of his equally one-of-a-kind porcelain serving clayware.
Robbie has always had a passion for being in the kitchen. He enjoys creating new dishes and recreating classic Southern fare. For him, presentation is everything, centering on creating service ware vessels. Lee Marshall, a Lebanon, Tennessee friend and potter, encouraged Robbie’s studio work and his first of several studies at the Penland School of Craft in the mountains of Western North Carolina. Those classes sparked The Speckled Dog Pottery.
A native of South Carolina, Robbie attended The University of South Carolina, majoring in Music Education with an emphasis on choral conducting and church music with a concentration on Episcopalian music. While there, he studied under internationally famed choral conductor Dr. Arpad Darzas. During his classical career, he has held church positions in the Carolinas, Wellington, Coconut Grove, and Hollywood, Florida.
In 1998, Robbie moved to Fort Lauderdale and opened The Eighteenth Street Inn, an award-winning Bed & Breakfast, known for its luscious meals and attentive staff. Over the years, his reputation grew as a respected caterer, partly because of his book, The Poolside Banquet: Sharing Recipes Between a Mother and a Son. Included in the experience was The Inn’s trademark— Inn Art— an evening that featured a showcase of fine crafters of the southeast with an emphasis on ceramics. The craft resonated. He expanded his interests in music and food to include the study of ceramic arts—a focus from which he has since never veered.
