Red Lodge Clay Center – Short-Term Resident 2024
I grew up in Black Mountain, North Carolina, immersed in the family business, Farmer Florist, where I developed a love for working in the garden and a strong connection to the land. I first discovered my interest in ceramics after taking an intro class at Warren Wilson College. At the beginning of the global pandemic, in the middle of my college career, my father passed unexpectedly from a heart attack. During the following months of the COVID lockdown, I purchased a potter wheel and honed my throwing skills. I now make pottery in my dad’s old workshop. In my own experience, crafting is a therapeutic activity and has become a pillar of pride for me.
Pottery is an ancient craft with an extensive global lineage. My participation in this process is loaded with human evolution, history, geography, and countless innovations that tether me to the rich traditions of past makers. Potters have long been led to similar results addressing concerns of function. I make functional pottery, made to be used, held in the hands, and perhaps eventually broken. The design is influenced or limited by the function of the piece. My work is often wheel thrown and altered; with vertical lines and facets, their bellies pushed out from the inside to add volume while preserving surface decoration on the outside. I appreciate curvilinear and natural shapes and strive to create fluidity and movement in my work. Clay is my creative outlet, it keeps me working and learning.