Ceramics is a profoundly meaningful medium to me because it has been inextricably linked to human expression throughout all of history. As long as people have existed, they have been making vessels and sculptures out of clay. I am fascinated with the vastness of its capabilities, and I feel grateful to be able to connect so closely with this longstanding tradition that thousands of generations have engaged with before me. 

I most enjoy making mugs, plant holders, drinking and pouring vessels, incense burners, and small sculptures. I enjoy both handbuilding and throwing, only occasionally choosing to leave a thrown piece completely free from handbuilt elements. Drinking vessels are the foundation of my wheel-throwing experience, and I see myself making mugs and yunomi for as long as I am practicing ceramics. I find them to be naturally intuitive in marrying form and function. On the other hand, I have always resonated deeply with abstraction and I dedicate much of my time to exploring non-representational forms in clay as well. 

I find the potter’s wheel to be a useful tool that compels me to make new work time and time again. There is something alluring and hypnotic about the centrifugal precision of the wheel, and its capacity for articulating form. I have thrown hundreds of bowls, cups and vases over the past two years, and my desire to keep throwing has only grown. In most cases, I prefer to alter pieces after they are thrown, typically by trimming them and adding attachments or other artwork. 

I have a deep appreciation for the Mingei tradition, a prominent folk art movement in Japan in the early twentieth century where pieces are created without ego, intended for everyday use. There is such beauty in the intimacy of a handcrafted daily-use object that someone may raise to their lips each morning, or gaze lovingly at every day. I see it as a great honor for my work to be a part of someone’s life in that way. I feel that this sort of relationship is what makes vessel-making and small-scale sculpture so appealing to me.

I love the transformative process of firing clay, especially when there are elements of unpredictability. I find that I am drawn to surfaces that are achieved through either body reduction, raku, or pit firing methods. The interaction between clay and glaze and/or other atmospheric elements results in glazeware with an explosive, volcanic quality of surface that I am absolutely entranced by. The objects produced with these methods become entirely different entities as they undergo a sort of metamorphosis in the kiln. I feel as though it makes them come to life.

I am a sculptural artist outside of ceramics, working primarily with metal and fiber. I have a tendency to work large-scale in sculpture and small-scale in ceramics, often using sculptures as a means of interactive display for ceramic works.

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