Paul Briggs was reared in New York’s Hudson Valley, beginning ceramics in 9th grade. Ceramics was the one place where his attention was not disturbed. His thinking about art objects as material shapes began as an undergraduate at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University. Briggs has studied and taught education, ceramics, and theology, earning his PhD at Penn State and his MFA at MassArt. He teaches Ceramic Art at Alfred University.

Briggs shares "My interest in clay began as a means to fulfill a class requirement, but the ceramics studio quickly became my sanctuary. It was the place I would go to hide from my other classes and ponder my life and future while elbows deep in mud. In college, I majored in ceramics and minored in entrepreneurship while building my business on the side. I had the opportunity to sell hundreds of pieces internationally and decided to take a real stab at making this a sustainable career after graduation. After graduation I attended a residency in upstate New York to hone my skills, and in 2020 leased a beautiful pottery studio in Berkley, Michigan, and have been happily playing in mud in my very first personal studio ever since!"

He goes on to explain the motivation for his work as follows: "My relationship to creativity is central to my work. Where do I connect to clay and other media? What kind of aptitudes give me access to the energy and curiosity needed to make bodies of inquiries in clay, drawing, fiber, and music? I use pottery as a way to observe the principles of these questions. My sculptural and more conceptual works put these principles to use in more dynamic ways."