16 Hands Virtual Spring Tour

May 1st & 2nd

With Guest Artist Jerilyn Virden

Using the vernacular of the vessel, I use earthenware clay to create utilitarian and sculptural pieces. While the sculptural and utilitarian objects come from different inspirations, they are united by formal aspects and considerations, inhabiting the same space and enriching it equally. Looking to seemingly unrelated objects that have a contemporary relevance, I pare down forms and exaggerate proportions accentuating their sense of generosity and strength. Functional work and double walled bowls are formed through repeated pinching and scraping, building up and finally excavating the appropriate curve, each piece retaining the history of its making. Layers of glaze soften these individual marks, bringing more clarity to the form.  Hollow construction allows for exaggeration of features, contributing a visual weight that floats above the table.  The surface becomes a way to manipulate scale, moving from intimacy to expansion, in the way one understands a landscape by knowing both the small stone at one’s feet and the bulk of the mountain far away.