It's Just Dirt
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Lilly Kolbrener at work in the art studio at Miller School.
Lilly Kolbrener was born into a family of artists— daughter of an art school graduate, granddaughter of a potter, and niece of UVA art professors. As a child she loved nothing more than leisurely wandering through her grandmother's house and picking up the different pieces of pottery her grandmother had made over the years— holding them and turning them over in her own, small hands. As the years progressed, she keenly noted the details in style and technique and also how the style changed over the years, changing with her grandmother as she grew as an artist. Lilly took all of this in, knowing that one day she too would have pieces of her own to share with the world and tell the story of her own growth and style.
Lilly became a Maverick in the fall of 2020, prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic to find a school better suited for the unique needs of that unique time. Deep within the mission of the Miller School is the encouragement of students to use their minds, their hands, and their hearts to find their own paths in life. Lilly embodies this mission inside and out. In her years at Miller, she has challenged her mind with multiple AP classes, she has opened her heart to new adventures and cultures participating in spring break international travel opportunities, and perhaps most importantly, Lilly has learned to work with her hands, in her second home on campus, the art studio.
In her sophomore year, Lilly learned the art of throwing pottery on a wheel with art teacher Liz Herlevzen, learning not just pottery but how pottery connects people to the world. Pottery itself is a one-of-a-kind medium. It’s our oldest art form and simultaneously, durability and fragility intertwined in one piece. It is the lessons from pottery that will stay with her long after her days as a Maverick on the hill are past. Lilly often brings to mind one lesson in particular from Ms. Herlevsen: “Pottery is about being human. It’s just dirt; we create with mud and then life happens. Our work can warp or crack, get knocked off the shelf and shattered into pieces. We begin again, being present to this fickle medium, enjoying the clay while we can.”
Miller School, Ms. Herlevsen, and pottery have taught Lilly to find beauty in those unpredicted moments where anything can happen. She must accept her mistakes and failures to the same degree she accepts her triumphs. In her own words, she muses, “Before coming to Miller I was a lump of clay with a story to tell, a pot yet to be trimmed, and a glaze yet to be fired. When I come out of the kiln of the Miller School of Albemarle, I won’t look the same. I’ll still be imperfect – perfectly so.”
Wise beyond her years, Lilly puts this into practice almost daily in her advanced art classes. In fact, one of her favorite moments in art class is the act of glazing her pottery. She relishes in the fact that the glaze she applies to the unfired piece will not be the same glaze that appears when she removes it from the kiln. There is an expectation, of course, of the colors and the result, but there is an element of the unknown— what the finished result will look like is always a bit of a mystery, and it is in those surprises that she finds some of her happiest moments with her pottery. She might find the color exceeds her expectations and the pot is a masterpiece, or it could turn out to be nothing like she wanted and she has to begin again. But she has come to realize: each piece is perfect in its perfection.
Just as Lilly has learned and benefited from Miller; Miller has grown and benefitted from her being a part of the student body. Recently in her senior speech to the school community, she shared her story, her love of pottery, and her understanding of perfection, mistakes, and growth. Graduating Miller with this attitude, the world is wide open and waiting for Lilly Kolbrener to make her mark. When asked what role art might play in her future, once again she is embracing the element of the unknown because her future plans are still undecided. But a few things are certain: art will remain a part of her life forever, her style will change and grow along with her, and just as Miller was lucky enough to know Lilly these past five years, the rest of the world is about to meet one of Miller’s finest.
Written by Becca LaVoie, MSA English Teacher
