Who We Are

Robbie Lobell and Maryon Attwood, co-founders and co-owners of Cook on Clay, are proud of our woman-owned artisan manufacturing endeavor and how that dovetails with sustainable communities and collaborative values-based businesses. We are passionate about handmade objects in everyday life, believing that design for utility, rugged elegance, and beauty brings meaning to each day. We are dedicated to educating and mentoring younger women in studio arts, artisan-based manufacturing, and sustainable small business practices. We care deeply about local and sustainable food systems, the return of families and neighbors to the table, and a renewed and burgeoning tabletop culture. We love knowing our pots are well used in kitchens and on tables across America.

Robbie Lobell, the principal designer at Cook on Clay, is also responsible for quality and technical control of Cook on Clay products. She works in her studio developing new cookware forms for the home cook and collaborating with professional chefs on pots for the culinary arts.

Robbie, primarily self-taught, met Mikhail Zakin in 1992 who quickly became her much loved teacher. She completed two years intensive study with Mikhail Zakin in 1994 and a six-week residency with Karen Karnes in 2001 where she was given the flameware clay body recipe. The mentorship of Mikhail Zakin and Karen Karnes has had a profound impact on Robbie's life and career.

Robbie Lobell’s work is exhibited in group and solo shows, and sold in galleries and gourmet food shops nationwide. Her pots reside in kitchens, on tables, and in cupboards across the nation.  Lobell’s work has been featured in Ceramics Monthly magazines, the Lark Books publication 500 Vases, the Krause Publications, The Art of Contemporary American Pottery, the Chronicle Books  publication, Ceramics Bible, and The Studio Potter magazine. She is a member of NCECA, The Artist Trust, The Studio Potter, The American Ceramic Society, Potter's Council, and Washington Potter’s Association. Lobell was on the faculty at the Worcester Center for Crafts in Massachusetts for 10 years and serves on the Studio Potter Board of Directors. Robbie teaches classes and workshops in her studio on Whidbey Island, around the country, and beyond. See resumé.

Maryon Attwood brings over 30 years of experience as a non-profit executive to the business of Cook on Clay, combining her values and passions into this one venture. Maryon has managed community arts and cultural organizations with all of their unique complexities. She has created and established major state and regional environmental preservation, farmer training, and arts education programs across the country. Cook on Clay is her first private venture as she continues to develop business and products that serve a community vision.

Maryon’s formal art training includes a classical fine arts education and a B.A. from Monmouth College.  She studied at the Art Institute in Chicago, Illinois and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C.

Maryon Attwood’s interest in clay began when she was the Executive Director of the Worcester Center for Craft in the mid-1990’s.  Her interest in producing oven-to-table and grill-to-table platters comes from her concern for healthy foods prepared safely without the use of Teflon, aluminum pans, or aluminum foil. 

Maryon is an agricultural and community activist working on sustainable communities and food system issues that encourage healthy environments and farmland preservation.