Meet the Artist and Her Dragonflies

Artist Statement

I delight in making decorative and functional artwork in ceramic. I draw from natural forms and patterns as well as data. These inputs are translated into form, color and pattern to express ideas about sustainability and to draw attention to the beauty of our world, our planet and the ecosystems we share with all other living things. I am inspired by simple things such as the delicate patterns of dragonfly wings, the areas delineated by land use maps, graphic representations of data,  and repetitive, layered patterns. I revel in the connections that can be made between these seemingly disparate stimuli. Being an artist is as much about the process and quiet peace I find in the studio as it is about the final product. Many of my favorite pieces are commissions for friends and others because they provide the opportunity to combine knowledge of an individual personality and my own personal aesthetic to fill the needs or desires of another.  In addition to working with clay as a material, I delight in opportunities to share my love of art through instruction and demonstrations.  

 

Artist Process

I use many different painting and printing techniques to apply patterns to the surfaces of simple forms.  I have worked in glass since 1998 and found and fell in love with ceramics in 2014.  I see these as sister materials.  Both are feminine and lend themselves to rounded and curved forms.  Working with them requires finding a delicate balance between water and fire.  Of the sisters, clay is the softer more forgiving.  This quality brings peace to the techniques employed and a sense of child-like exploration and playfulness to the working process.  

 

The Business:  42 Dragonflies Workshop

The number 42 is particularly special to me because, as many science fiction fans will know, it is the answer to life the universe and everything according to Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, 1979).  I was raised by an astrophysicist who shared her love of sci-fi with the whole family.  42 became a family theme and, as the answer to life, the universe and everything seemed a good component for such an important endeavor.  The dragonfly is a symbol of meaningful self-reflective change and growth.  This idea is key to making and exploring my world of art with truth.  Creating artwork also requires vulnerability and a willingness to share ones truth that is central to metamorphosis of the spirit.