Explaining myself to others, on deadline, helps me clarify why I do what I do, usually after I do it.
My imagination takes me under the sea, where ancient shipwrecks deposited ceramic vessels on the ocean bed, and prehistoric creatures floated on the currents overhead. Created using age-old potters’ techniques, textured by hand, and finished with earth pigments, sand, and simple mineral glazes, decorated with enamel, wire, and textiles, my clay pieces evoke the appearance of artifacts unearthed from an archaeological site
I am in the process of creating a significant body of new ceramic work for this show based on real and mythical sea creatures, some incorporating brass & copper wire and textiles. These would complement the existing collection of Sea Bed Artifacts. Sea Creatures would be suspended from a hand-knit copper net suspended from the gallery ceiling.
I first thought about knitting or crocheting copper when thinking about my exhibition of large vessels at the Manship show last summer—a sort of long-lasting flower sculptures to give meaning to my vessels. Didn't happen. Then I tried crocheting and knitting various gauges of copper wire, which was hell on my hands until I located the right gauge (26). It will be interesting to see what will happen as the copper wire oxidizes, and how I can internalize and extrapolate the influence of Ruth Asawa.