I make ceramic vessels. Vessels are objects which have the potential to hold things. To hold something is to care for it. To not hold something is to be empty. Emptiness is not a bad thing.
My vessels resemble caves, vases, goddess figures, or some combination of the three, with forms inspired by ocean-weathered stones, ocean waves, and other earthy shapes. I am deeply inspired by the four elements. I am from California, from the Pacific Ocean. The ocean is a never ending well of magic and inspiration, especially the shore, because it is where earth and water meet to interact. This is what the practice of working with clay is, too. In my practice, I often bring the elements to mind, and think of how they push each other into different ways of existing.
Writing is an integral part of my practice. I am a diarist. In my diary, I find patterns of words, and cling to certain ones. I begin to notice them everywhere. Some of these words are:
Beauty
Honesty
(These are connected.)
Vessels
Emptiness
(These are connected.)
Making
Caretaking
(These are connected.)
With these words in mind, I go to the studio and play with clay. If I am not having fun, I am doing something wrong. The forms of my vessels are often influenced by the question of how to best make a space for a specific object or objects. I work in communication with the clay, and with the Elsewhere, the subconscious or unconscious, and intuitively build. I love that clay is connected to pottery, such an ancient craft–that crafting is a traditionally feminine endeavor.
I am interested in the collective unconscious, as described in Jungian Psychology. I am also interested in Carl Jung’s archetypes, and the divine feminine and masculine energies which exist in every person. Our divine feminine energy, the energy that emphasizes relatedness, feeling, caring, attending to nature, passion, desire, and the intersection between sexuality and spirituality is falling further and further away from us. We need to reconnect with this energy in order to return to a society which values care toward one another and Earth.
Objects can act as powerful reminders. The home is a vessel that I want my art to exist in. I want people to live with the objects I create and be reminded (consciously or unconsciously) of the divine feminine energy within us, to reach into it and be reminded of all that we have to offer to Earth and others, and all that we have the capacity to receive.