Travis Owens, a junior in art and design, is making a name for himself by creating art and pottery with clay.

On Saturday and Sunday, Owens will be demonstrating his talents with pottery at the Museum of History.

“Whatever people want to know, I will be there to answer,” Owens said.

This is not the first time Owens has been asked to create art in front of a public audience.

George Holt, the director of performing arts at the North Carolina Museum of Art, said he remembers when Owens churned clay for a public crowd in November for a special exhibition being held at the museum.

“Even though Travis is a fairly young man, I still consider him very accomplished and talented,” Holt said. “Even as a young child, [Owens] had a knack for learning pottery and technique for molding clay and had a great interest for the entire business.”

The business — a pottery shop named Jugtown in Owens’ hometown of Seagrove — has been a part of the Owens family ever since the 1920s.

“My great-grandfather made the first pots for Jugtown in the 1920s, however it was started and owned at that time by Jacques and Juliana Busbee,” Owens said. “Jugtown didn’t come to be in the Owens family until 1983 when my father bought it, although he went to work there in 1960, at the age of 19.”

Jugtown boasts a staff of award-winning potters — Owens’ parents.

“The family is a very important cultural part of North Carolina,” Holt said. “Vernon Owens is considered to be one of the greatest potters.”

Holt said Owens’ father received his degree from NCSU.

With Owens currently earning his degree, Pam Owens, Owens’ mother, said she thinks her son has a “very good opportunity for him to study in the College of Design.”

Owens said COD is a good experience.

“Every student and faculty member is top rate,” Owens said. “I am honored to be going here.”

Owens said he plans on returning to his parents’ shop to work after graduation.

“We are thrilled Travis wants to be part of it,” Pam Owens said.

She said Owens will be bringing in “fresh elements” from what he has learned at COD and will continue to “add to his skill, ability, eye and knowledge” as an artist.

Through working with various materials such as wood and metal, Owens said clay is still his favorite to work with.

“[Being at college] assured me that’s what I wanted to do,” Owens said.

The director of the Gallery of Art and Design, Charlotte Brown, commented on the difficulty of becoming good with pottery.

“He [Owens] knows from experience that to make good pottery takes a long time to learn,” she said. “You must work very hard.”

Holt added that Owens will become “an important influence in the pottery tradition for the years to come.”

Pottery has been a tradition in the Owens family since the 1850s. Starting with Owens’ great-grandfather, the family’s first pot was created at Jugtown. Since then, the family has continued the process of developing art with clay.

“[Pottery] is difficult to make,” Pam Owen said. “The process is a constant cycle of work going on.”

The family uses an involved hands-on process for making the pottery.

“From the digging of the clay to the turning on the wheel to glazing and firing, Travis has learned every aspect of pottery,” Holt said.

He also added that Travis lived at Jugtown.

“It is a unique lifestyle for anybody,” Holt said. “It was a special privilege for Travis to have grown up in this environment.”

The Jugtown site also includes a shop and museum.

Pam Owens said Travis has an “interesting story because he has grown up being a part of it.”

The shop attracts various kinds of people ranging from tourists to repeat customers, Owens said.

Pam Owens indicated that the art created at Jugtown differs from other forms of art by making creations stemming from every day life.

“Some people call it art. Some people call it a craft,” Pam Owens said. “When they come back and tell you they enjoyed it, that’s what is satisfying.”

Owens said being able to make pottery is “a challenge, but also fun.”

The Owens’ work hasn’t gone unnoticed.

“Travis has a strong sense of self, who he is and what he is doing and why,” Brown said.

Pam Owens said her son has a great understanding of pottery.

“He [Owens] is very well balanced to his approach to art and design and his pottery,” Pam Owens said. “He’s had a deep respect for the roots of pottery.”

Outside of pottery, Owens continues to develop his creativity by restoring a 1941 Lincoln Roadster.

“[The restoration] is difficult and challenging, but he can do it,” Brown said. “It reflects his personality.”

Holt emphasized his admiration for Owens.

“I admire Travis’ maturity and ability and it bodes well for North Carolina with his commitment and work,” he said.

Owens indicated that pottery will be a mainstay in his future.

“I wouldn’t change it,” Owens said. “I’ll always be designing through my life.”