About me
I am, among other things, an artist, a mother, and person in the world attempting to walk the line between desire for living a whole, passionate, connected life while also navigating the current necessary system of capitalism. Making pottery is the closest I have come to a happy medium of these seemingly at odds realities.
I love processes, creating anything, appreciating art in all its forms, and the thrill of experimentation. I believe this is what makes us human.
I've been working with clay for over 15 years- in school, using community studios, participating is a work study program a at traditional crafts school. Finally after years of accumulating equipment, materials, and trudging through some steep learning curves, I now have my own studio.
My time is a constant balance between parenting, pottery, small business ownership and a myriad of part-time seasonal jobs. Studio time is precious.
Other time is spent tending to my family's homestead in the
northeastern corner of Vermont, being outside as much as possible, dirt road running in the summers, Nordic skiing in the winters.
My Work
Design and decoration
I do my best to stay loose while making pots for a relaxed, authentic and engaging visual experience. This gives a peek into the making process that connects maker and user, while also gives an appearance that is undoubtedly hand-made. With this ascetic, I hope to bring a little extra joy, comfort and human-ness into people's homes.
My pots are wheel-thrown and slab built, decorated with terra sigillata, producing a backdrop containing engaging inconsistencies. I use a variety of techniques and materials to create image, color, pattern and texture on my pots including sgrafitto, carving, mishima, applying colored sigs, wax resist glazing, underglazes, and washes.
I love pottery and art because it is an infinite learning process that requires asking continual questions and begs for constant evolution in an endless quest of genuine expression. With each kiln load I identify things to be improved upon and also recognize improvements from the last make cycle. It rewards hard work and persistence and every once in while I pull that perfect combination of form, color, and surface design out of the kiln.
While all of my work is dishwasher safe, I recommend hand-washing your handmade items. Ceramics deserve the reverence of hand-washing. Not only will hand-washing prolong the life of your item, but it will give you a moment to appreciate the beauty of a handmade object. Marks of the maker will be revealed and enjoyed.
I choose to make my work with red earthenware clay. Earthenware contains a high amount of iron oxide and other mineral 'impurities', giving it a deep red color that I find so rich and pleasing. It also fires to a lower temperature giving it a slightly lower energy input.
Aside from these reasons, I choose to use earthenware because of its compelling history. It is the oldest clay that was used by humans, used independently for 26,000 years before the introduction of porcelain and stoneware about 5,000 years ago. After their introduction, porcelain and stoneware were luxuries that only the upper class could afford. Earthenware has a historic reputation as being 'the people's' clay, used by and made by peasants. While this context may not hold true today, it adds a historical and political dimension to my work that I agree with and love.
'Redware' refers to utilitarian earthenware pottery made in early America.