Artist Statement

My entry into the world of professional ceramics began in 2010, wood firing with a group of wild women in Tolland, Mass. It was like a gateway drug. My friend Nancy Magnusson said, “Here, just try this…just one firing.” Before I knew it, I was driving out there at 4 a.m. to take the dawn stoking shift.

Wood firing is rigorous, unpredictable, and a little bit crazy. When Nancy moved to New Mexico, I wanted to bring those qualities to the work I was making in my own studio, along with the added element that I was missing so badly from wood firing — color.

I came to ceramics at the age of 45, following a long career as a professional modern dancer. I'm largely self-taught, and have taken workshops with a half dozen amazing crafts people. One of them was the late Malcolm Davis whose loose, easy throwing style and joie de vivre continue to imbue my work.

I cannot stop experimenting. My decorating process is long, and when successful, results in surfaces that are layered and complex. I'm fascinated by the psychedelic experience, and especially love it when people comment that they see something new each time they look at one of my pots. 

My teaching practice has become as gratifying as making pots. I love witnessing a student’s “what if” moments and the liberation that comes with not knowing the “rules.” Clay is anti-intellectual, non-verbal, pure proprioception. I believe we all need less talk and more mud.

I currently teach private and group lessons at Berkshire Art Center in Stockbridge, where I also manage the ceramics studio.