CSFC Application Statement
I’m learning a medium that’s new to me - ceramics - so that I can manifest some ideas for larger, mixed media (wood and ceramics) pieces and I expect figurative themes - which I sense just below the surface in my current work - will emerge.
I struggle with the limitations of the traditional glazes available at the studio I belong to, and have long admired the textures and finishes Cristina achieves in her work. My hope is to develop my knowledge and skills and experimentation with surface treatment during this time.
In my work in wood I produced fictional evidence of the past - human bones, animal bones, Native American artifacts - made from material sourced from personally meaningful locations and objects. In my exploration of clay so far, I’ve taken a similar approach – the clay I use is often mixed with clay I forage from locations that are personally meaningful to me.
I now hope to combine the two mediums in larger scale works that I cannot achieve in my home studio or the small community studio I belong to. At this larger scale and wider array for surface treatment I intended to explore freely with figurative themes. I've very hopeful about this development.
My technical skills and experience in clay are limited, but my passion and commitment to my art is lifelong and currently at an inflection point. My hope is that the studio resources, the guidance, and the inspiration of this residency at CSFC will allow me to reach a new level in this work that previously has not been possible for me.
Experimentation with Clay
My first experiments in clay began on an old farm where I experimented with processing clay on site - a beautiful red clay in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia - which was used 200 years ago to make the bricks used in the construction of the old farmhouse. I fired the first experimental pieces in small, hand made kilns.
Exploration with Ceramics
I began to explore the use of the red clay from the Shenandoah Valley in organic pieces inspired from my time living in New England where forest and sea have inspired organic, life-like forms for vessels I’ve produced. This work was fired in studio kilns at a small community clay studio I belong to.
Exploration in Wood
Fictional evidence of the past - human bones, animal bones, Native American artifacts - carved in cedar, oak, and walnut sourced over the years from locations with personal meaning to me (for example, in that work I used walnut from a family farm in West Virginia, cedar from a late friend’s ranch in Texas, oak from an old church pew reclaimed in Texas).
Misc Experimentation in Natural Forms
Mixed media
