After years in the medical industry, Joseph Immethun and his wife Jill decided it was time to combine his business knowledge with a long-standing love for all things creative. 

The result is Splatter, a new art studio in Waterloo set to open July 24. 

Splatter’s main focus will be paint-your-own pottery, where the pottery is pre-sculpted and patrons just have to paint it. Splatter finishes it all up by firing the art in a kiln, and then patrons can take their one-of-a-kind pieces home. 

While the studio will boast a variety of other offerings, Immethun said he decided to put paint-your-own pottery at center stage intentionally. 

“It makes it more inclusive,” Immethun explained. “Not everybody is a sculptor, but everybody can paint something. You can make it as easy or as advanced as you’d like. We have tons of different items to choose from as far as piggy banks or plates or cups. You can paint a very detailed design on something or you can simply paint it one color and be done. The options are endless.” 

Each pottery painter will pay a base fee of $6 that covers the cost of all of the supplies they will use, including brushes, paints and stencils. The price of the pottery itself will range between $8 and $24 depending on the piece. After a few days, patrons can return to pick up their glazed and fired creations. 

Aside from pottery, Splatter will offer canvas painting classes where an instructor guides students step-by-step in making a particular painting. They will also offer take-and-paint parties, where customers can take their pottery home to paint and later return to have it finished in the kiln, and eventually birthday parties.

Immethun said he wanted to offer multiple creative outlets for customers, as Waterloo does not have many options. 

“We moved to Waterloo about 10 years ago and noticed there was not a whole lot of activity-based entertainment in the area, so we thought this would be a perfect place for an art (studio),” Immethun said, adding that “some people may not be interested in pottery, they may be more interested in learning how to paint or in doing certain other crafting things, so we’re trying to go for all of that in one spot.” 

In some ways, the creation of Splatter can be seen as a natural evolution of Immethun’s interest in creative art. 

“I’ve always had an interest in art,” Immethun recounted. “Ever since kindergarten, art was my favorite subject in school. That continued in grade school and in high school and all through college. I had a lot of college art classes that I participated in, so it’s always been interesting to me to create something out of nothing.” 

Whether one is a professional artist or has never even touched a canvas, Immethun encourages them to stop by Splatter and give it a try. 

“We have something for everyone,” Immethun said. “Don’t feel like you can’t do it. Some of the best pieces (are when) people just splatter paint on it and be done with it. If you can hold a paintbrush, you can cre