Donna Ferrara received her BFA in painting from School of Visual Arts in 1976. Relocating to Massachusetts in 1978 led her to Clay Art Center in Brighton where she became a student of Makota Yabe. While working during the day in textile and graphic design she continued work with Makoto at the Radcliffe Pottery Center. In 1985 she moved to Westchester, NY and took time off from clay to concentrate on her young family and career in Visual Display for Conrans Store.

After moving to Long Island, NY in 1994, and the discovery of Andy Quient's Pottery studio, the allure of clay called her back. In 2000 she opened a small teaching studio in Sea Cliff, NY where she holds classes and sells her pottery.