Artist's Statement
MEDIUM: Clay Sculpture
I have traveled throughout much of the United States, spent time in Europe, and have experienced life on both the east and west coasts. I have found that no matter where I go I feel the "inner-connectedness" of all things.
This feeling of "inner-connectedness" has greatly influenced my art, and it is this element which gives my work its soulful quality. Many of my facial sculptures depict women of wisdom ~ healers and protectors as well as entities in varying stages of transformation. My vessels and wall hangings allow me to explore contrasts and compliments of texture, color, and form while maintaining a soulful quality.
Part of the soulfulness of my work comes from the desire to create images that speak to the duality of our nature. For me, glass is the air element representing spirit and majick, whereas, clay is the earth element representing the human experience and grounding. In combining clay with glass, the beauty of the flow between the spiritual and the physical is revealed.
I use a variety of glazing and firing techniques but one of the things that all of my techniques have in common is their lack of predictability. Whether it is the uncontrollable Raku fires, the melting of glass crystals, or the growing of mineral crystals the final outcome is uniquely creative.
My art pieces are hand-sculpted and slab constructed in a variety of clay bodies depending on the glazing technique. During the sculpting process, the sculptures seem to assert their individual personalities. As the artist, I feel it is my responsibility to recognize the innate nature of a piece and help it to express its nature in physical form.
Some images flow easily from start to finish, while others struggle to be born and they do not reach maturity for years. It has been suggested that works of art do not reach fruition until they pass from the hands of the artist into the hands of the world. So it seems with these sculptures…the inner play between the individual and the art brings the art closer to its own wholeness.
It is my hope that these art pieces bring the lightness of spirit and the richness of soul into the lives of others just as they have brought these elements into my life.
