THE WINNER

When I finished firing my series, only one stood out as fully embodying my concept of "Voyager" She moves into the ethereal plane fearlessly and wins the name for herself alone.

KILN FULL

I have just finished my first series. I usually create singles...or at most 2 versions of one idea. This time I followed my concept drawings to explore one idea. Each piece borrowed ideas from it's predecessor. the result is a kiln full of work has the same upward looking form, they make me laugh.

THE LAST PIT FIRE

I took down a show this past week that has been up for a year. It consisted of my biggest (2 feet tall) pit fire pieces. At that time I was just beginning to put heads on my figures, so some of them are headless. I still love the effects of the pit, but I was reminded of the reason I had to abandon it when I picked up a piece and it crumbled in my hands. (not shown here)

Garden Wisdom

It is a good thing to stop and smell the roses. Working in clay creates these intervals. Periodically I must step away and let my work dry out a little before I can push it further. Sometimes I take the pieces out to the garden so hurry the drying process. This is an important component because sitting among the perfection of growing things, I get a sense of organic order. I see that the energy of the plant moves ever upward in logical paths of balance and counter-balance. I can have no better template for art.

And the Kitchen Sink

When I am building a new piece, it's always a little breathless in the early stages. I assemble barely leather-hard slabs with no visible means of support and when the whole thing threatens to come crashing down, I start searching for what ever is within arm's reach to prop up the clay. This time it was a coffee cup and a kitchen knife.

OVERCROWDING

When I started sculpting, I was in love with pit fire and I have a large number of pieces from that stage of my development. The surface is spectacular! Every nuance of the open flame is captured. As my pieces got larger, I had to leave pit fire behind and because I no longer show them, I want to find good homes for them. They deserve better than gathering dust on the shelves of my studio. this Saturday, June 20th, I am having an adoption party. I will be giving away these exciting pieces to those who are interested in my work. Email me for details if you want to participate.

on the surface

I just picked up my show at Quicksilver Mining in Forestville, when I put these ladies next to each other, I was struck with the degree to which I have experimented with surfaces over this past 6 months. I have used stains, oxides, underglazes, wax and even oil paint. I had the argument with myself about "pure ceramic art" and then I threw that concept out the window. For me it is all about the form and I will shamelessly use anything that gives me an exciting surface.