About The Artist

Creating work from clay is a challenge that excites and frustrates me every day. Manipulating form, surface, and color is what I love; maintaining a traditional focus on detail is what I strive for. My goal is to replicate surfaces found in nature using chemicals and fire to give them a very primal sensibility. Most pieces take multiple trips to the kiln to achieve this. I’m not one to fuss over a single piece. Rather, I push forward, using the last piece as a template to improve the next. No single piece is so precious that it can’t be chucked into the reclaim bucket to clear the way for the next one. My tools are simple; methods uncomplicated. I throw as well as use a slabroller with a groggy stoneware body that is usually agreeable to both methods. I do a lot of texturing on my work that is influenced by my attraction to the tribal art and architecture of West Africa. I find these often-ancient designs to be spare and complex, functional and beautiful. I feel the work, although quiet, adds a curious and peaceful presence in someone’s home.