about
Artist Statement
Each pot seeks its own place. The place found where a cup sits on a saucer, within a family of bowls, the horizon and visual landscape created by a group of bottles, or on one’s own kitchen table. The boundaries of such places are both defined by and crossed by familiarity. We find comfort in what we understand and are intrigued by what we do not. Function plays roles in creating a sense of familiar that works to invite use and understanding. Coffee finds its way easily into a cup that is simple and comfortable. Within the relationships of the pots to one another a dynamic is built that clearly describes a map for where one pot should go; on the saucer, next to the similar form, in your hand. Familiarity can also be found in the landscapes that these series or sets of pots create that is similar to a group of buildings on a horizon.
I am inspired by the landscapes and structures that have surrounded me during my life. I grew up in the mountains of southwest Virginia and have lived in the middle of a city. The silos, corncribs, wooden barns and rural structures that time has weathered and pulled influence my forms, spaces and the relationships of the pots to one another. I am fascinated by the water towers perched atop tall city buildings and the limited space that has forced the buildings to be more vertical. The glazing and patterns are derived from old tools, the bold lines of a plowed field or a weathering wall. Color brings each piece to life, beginning with the color of grass in the winter or the earth I remember playing with as a child and adding to it a cardinal or a redbud in bloom.
I hope to direct the pots to find an intimacy with a moment; the moment of touch, frozen in time by the heat of the kiln or the moment of use. I would like to make pots to enter into a person’s life and to heighten an awareness of time and elevate an experience of place. Functional pots have the ability to be a part of a home in an intimate way, adding a sense of character and individuality to the daily habits of eating and drinking. Pots can participate in and affect their environment, transforming the act of buttering toast into a ritual or remembered experience. It is my hope that each pot brings its own unique experience to the user and offers a moment of reflection and joy.
Resume
EDUCATION:
Master of Fine Arts The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, 1998.
Special Student, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri, 1996.
Bachelor of Fine Arts, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, 1994.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS:
The Cup Show, Worcester Center for Crafts, Worcester, Massachusetts, November 22-December 31, 2014.
Let There be Light, Lillstreet Art Center Gallery, Chicago, Illinois, November 21- December 31, 2014.
30×5: The Sushi Service, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City, Iowa, November 21-December 12, 2014.
Zacharia, Snyder & To, Cross Mackenzie Gallery, Washington, DC, October 8-October 29, 2014.
The Bowl Show, Worcester Center for Crafts, Worcester, Massachusetts, September 12-October 31, 2014.
Cedar Creek Gallery National Teapot Show IX, Cedar Creek Gallery, Creedmor, North Carolina, June 6-September 7, 2014.
Solo Show, Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, Montana. May 2-May 30, 2014.
Art and the Urban Garden, , Lillstreet Art Center Gallery, Chicago, Illinois, April 25- June 1, 2014.
2014 Yunomi Invitational, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City, Iowa. April 14-May 14, 2014
La Mesa, Santa Fe Clay at NCECA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, March 19-March 22, 2014.
Cheers!, Baltimore Clayworks, Baltimore, Maryland, March 1- April 12, 2014.
39th Annual Pottery Show and Sale, The Art School at Old Church, Demarest, New Jersey, December 6,7 and 8, 2013.
Let There be Light, Lillstreet Art Center Gallery, Chicago, Illinois, November 30-December 31, 2013.
30×5: Sushi and Me, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City, Iowa, November 22-December 5, 2013.
Pottery on the Hill, The Hill Center, Washington, D.C., November 1,2, and 3, 2013.
Yumoni Invitational, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City, Iowa, April-May 2013.
La Mesa, Santa Fe Clay at NCECA, Houston, Texas, March 20-23, 2013.
Pottery on the Hill, Hill Center, Washington, D.C., October 26th-28th, 2012.
Handle with Care, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, New Mexico, November-December 2012.
30 x 5, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City Iowa, November-December 2012.
La Mesa, Santa Fe Clay at NCECA, Seattle, Washington, March 2012.
Yumoni Invitational, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City, Iowa, March-July 2012.
37th Annual Pottery Show and Sale, The Art School at Old Church, Demarest, New Jersey, December 2,3,4 2011.
Clay as Canvas, Blue Spiral Gallery, Asheville, North Carolina, October-December 2011.
Lore Degenstein Gallery Contemporary Ceramics Exhibition, Lore Degenstein Gallery, Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, September-October 2011.
Continuance: Work of Former and Current 16 Hands Apprentices, LUX Center for the Arts, Lincoln, Nebraska, August 2011.
Yunomi 2011, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City, Iowa, March-July 2011.
36th Annual Pottery Show and Sale, The Art School at Old Church, Demarest, New Jersey, December 3,4,5, 2010.
La Mesa, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, New Mexico, December 2010-January 2011.
Liquid Measure, Main Street Art Gallery, Edwardsville, Illinois, November 2010.
30th Annual Art Auction, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass Village, Colorado, August 2010.
Flora, Shaller Gallery, Red Lodge, Montana, August 2010.
Decalomania, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, New Mexico, May-June 2010.
Small Favors V, The Clay Stdio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, April-May 2010
La Mesa, Santa Fe Clay at NCECA, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, March 2010.
Yunomi Invitational, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City, Iowa, January 2010.
All I Want for Christmas, Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, Montana, December 2009.
Cups, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, New Mexico, December 2009.
Think Outside the Box, Cedar Creek Gallery, Creedmoor, North Carolina, October- November 2009.
Clay Ball, Baltimore Clayworks,, Baltimore, M aryland, July 2009.
Solo Exhibition, Akar Gallery, Iowa City, Iowa, April-May 2009.
Small Favors, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, May 2009.
KCAI: Then and Now, Red Stat Studios, Kansas City, Missouri, April-May 2009.
New Work: 16 Hands Potters, Lux Center for the Arts, Lincoln, Nebraska, March 2009.
Cups of Comfort and Joy, Meredith Gallery, Baltimore, Maryland, December 2008-January 2009.
Solo Exhibition, Blue Spiral 1 Gallery, Asheville, North Carolina, September 2008.
Cut, Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, Montana, September 2008.
Members of Sixteen Hands, Carbondale Clay Center, Carbondale, Colorado, August 2008.
Sixteen Hands, Lynchburg Academy of Fine Arts, Lynchburg, Virginia, August 2008.
Contemporary Clay: The Collections of 16 Hands, The Elanor D. Wilson Museum, Hollins College, Roanoke, Virginia, July- September 2008.
Cups, Red Star Studios, Kansas City, Missouri, June 2008.
16 Hands, Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, Montana, March-April 2008.
La Mesa, Santa Fe Clay, NCECA 2008, March, 2008.
Salt & Pepper, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, New Mexico, April-May 2007.
16 Hands: A Decade Later, The Andrews Gallery, The College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia, February-March 2007.
Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November- December 2006.
Teapot Exhibition, CAS Gallery, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, October-November 2006.
Potluck, The Design Gallery, Burnsville, North Carolina, October 2006.
Down to Earth, The Arts Scene, West Chester, Pennsylvania, October 2006.
Anderson Ranch Annual Art Auction, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass Village, Colorado, August 2006.
Solo Exhibition, M.T. Burton Gallery, Surf City, New Jersey, July 2006.
Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November- December 2005.
Mastery in Clay, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, October 2005.
Anderson Ranch Annual Art Auction, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass Village, Colorado, July 2005.
Echoes, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, Maryland, March-April 2005.
Mid-Atlantic Potters, Whitehall Gallery, NCECA Exhibit, Annapolis, Maryland, March 2005.
Gas It Up: Salt, Soda and Slip, Baltimore Clayworks, Columbia, Maryland, March 2005.
Bowled Over, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, February-March 2005.
New x 3, Blue Spiral 1, Asheville, North Carolina, January-February 2005.
Clay and Glass, Atrium Gallery, Corning Community College, Corning, New York, December 2004-January 2005.
Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November- December 2004.
The Ranch is at UM!, University of Miami Gallery, Coral Gables, Florida, November 2004.
The Potters of 16 Hands, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, New Mexico, September-October 2004.
Thirtieth Anniversary Auction, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, October 2004.
Anderson Ranch Annual Art Auction, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass Village, Colorado, July 2004.
The Work of 16 Hands, Danville Museum, Danville, Virginia, March-April 2004.
For the Table, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, New Mexico, May 2003.
Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November- December 2003.
Ceramics USA, University of North Texas Art Gallery, Denton, Texas, October 2003.
Hundreds of Cups, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, New Mexico, May 2003.
16 Hands and Visiting Artists, Perspective Gallery, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, February-March 2003.
Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November- December 2002.
Cup: The Intimate Object, Charlie Cummings Clay Studio, Fort Wayne, Indiana, November 2002.
16 Hands Exhibition, Artisans Center of Virginia, Waynesboro, Virginia, September, 2002.
Tenth Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National, Market House Craft Center, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, May 2002.
Fourteenth San Angelo National Ceramic Competition, San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, San Angelo, Texas, April 2002.
Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November- December 2001.
The Hand Held Cup Show, Odyssey Gallery, Asheville, North Carolina, November 2001.
Le Grande Buffet, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November 2001.
Chester Springs Studio Days, Chester Springs Studio, Chester Springs, Pennsylvania, October 2001.
Clay Cup VIII, University Museum at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, April 2001.
Ceramic Works, Solo Exhibition, XYZ Gallery, Blacksburg, Virginia, May-August 2001.
Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November- December 2000.
SMOVA Auction, Santa Rosa, California, February 2000.
Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, December 1999.
Contemporary Pottery of Appalachia, Pickens County Museum, Pickens, South Carolina, May 1999.
Clay Cup VII, University Museum at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, April 1999.
Resident Show, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass Village, Colorado, April 1999.
Colorado Clay 1999 Exhibition, Foothills Art Center, Golden Colorado, April 1999.
Recent Works From Spain, Solo Exhibition, Delaware Center of Contemporary Art, Wilmington, Delaware, September-October 1998.
New Generation Graduate Exhibition, Shaw Guido Gallery, Pontiac, Michigan, June 1998.
MFA Thesis Exhibition, Zoller Gallery, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, April 1998.
16th Annual Women’s Juried Art Exhibition, Fayetteville, Arkansas, March 1998.
Ceramics: Viewpoints ’98, Grossmont College, Hyde Gallery, El Cajon, California, March 1998.
Craft Forms ’97, Wayne Art Center, Wayne, Pennsylvania, December 1997.
Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November- December 1997.
Chester Springs Studio Show, Chester Springs Studio, Chester Springs, Pennsylvania, June 1997.
Clay Cup VI, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, March 1997.
RELATED PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
Member 16 Hands, Artist Collective, Studio Tours and Sales, Montgomery County and Floyd County, Virginia, July 2001 to May 2012.
Adjunct Faculty, Department of Art and Art History, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia. Courses taught included: Beginning Ceramics, Intermediate Wheel-Thrown Ceramics, Intermediate Hand Built Ceramics, Foundations of Art and Design. July 1999-August 2002.
Resident Studio Artist, Fundacio Josep Llorens Artigas, Gallifa, Spain, May 2000.
Adjunct Faculty, Roanoke College, Salem, Virginia. Course Taught: Intermediate Ceramics. Spring 2000.
Artist in Residence, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass Village, Colorado. October 1998-April 1999.
Resident Studio Artist, Fundacio Josep Llorens Artigas, Gallifa, Spain, July-August 1998.
Studio Assistant, for artist, Ken Ferguson, Shawnee Mission, Kansas, May- August 1996.
Resident Studio Assistant, Penland School for Arts and Crafts, Spring Concentration taught by Silvie Granatelli. March-May 1995.
Studio Assistant , for artist, Silvie Granatelli, Floyd, Virginia, September- December 1994.
Studio Assistant, for artist, Donna Polseno, Floyd, Virginia, Summers of 1992 and 1993.