I’m never tired of watching people pick up a handmade mug, pause, observe and feel the surface before they take a sip from it.
Clay gives me the opportunity to create my own canvas, and yes, sometimes that canvas is a cup, or a plate.
In my recent work I focus on abstract painting on wood panel first. I look for the spontaneous, the unplanned drip of paint, the scratch revealing an unexpected colour. That unforced energy brings me an aliveness that I try to reflect onto my vessels thrown on the wheel. The rich black clay body gives depth to the layers of terra sigillata, slips and underglazes. While I explore the directness of colour on paper, clay gives me the possibility to carve and expose the different layers of coloured slip.
I fire in an electric kiln and find richness mostly with a darker clay body. I switch back and forth between different clays and porcelains to keep me curious and engaged.
