Lucien Koonce is a ceramist from eastern North Carolina. He graduated from East Carolina University and received his masters from University of Iowa in 1981. He then moved back to North Carolina where he started Horsepen Kiln Studio. Eventually, he began teaching hand building classes at UNCC in Charlotte, North Carolina and reestablished his kiln in the Asheville-Buncombe County area. In 2008, he left the North Carolina area and moved to Western Massachusetts. His ceramic work consists of wood-fired hand-build functional and sculptural forms. The composition of his pieces are spontaneous and process based. His work is exhibited nationally and internationally.