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Artist Of The Month - March 2010
What do you love about Art Clay?
When I discovered Art Clay, I immediately loved the directness of the material and its similarity to hand built clay objects. As I worked with it more over time and incorporated metal clays into my other metalwork, I loved the freedom it gave me to design in 3-D, and to use it in conjunction with other metals in such an incredible variety. I have yet to run out of ideas to make new combinations, shapes and textures. |
What are your favorite Art Clay projects/creations?
Hollowformed objects are my favorite pieces, I create a series I call Wayfinders, which are hollowforms with windows that contain a little story about a place or time, relaying personal messages about what I love in the natural world. I create my forms without supporting structures, which is a challenge and a delight to engineer. My other favorite pieces are a combination of fabricated sterling or gold with metal clay accents. I am especially drawn to keum boo and enameled objects. |
What other media do you work and/or teach in?
I work with sterling silver, gold and copper fabrication, forged work, and handmade chain. I do a lot of fabricated work with keum boo and gemstones. I teach all levels of metal clay, certification classes, basic fabrication techniques, soldering, chainmaking, enamelling and mixed media jewelry. My latest passion is teaching metal clay combined with fabrication and cold connection techniques. I teach in my studio in Portland, Oregon, at the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology on the Oregon coast, and at the Multnomah Arts Center in Portland, Oregon, as well as guest teaching at various high schools in the region. |
Biography:
I created art primarily as a hobby while pursuing a 30+ year career in business and education. I launched a full time arts career in 2005, where I now experience the joy of creating art every day, and living the exhilarating and terrifying "starving artist" life. I split my time between making and selling my work and teaching metal arts, which allows me to draw others into exploring their creativity and creating their own works of art. |
Philosophy:
My jewelry and art reflect my love of my nordic heritage, and of the wild spaces in the world. I try to capture small moments in time that capture the essential basic elements of the earth, so I try to tell a story in the jewelry or mixed media art pieces I create. |
Awards / Recognition:
I have bachelors degrees in business management, anthropology and certifications to teach business, organizational development and human resources. I taught at university level for several years before devoting myself fulltime to my arts career. I was awarded the Best in Show award at the Corvallis Fall Arts Festival in Oregon for 2008. I am a participating metal artist in the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire "Finger rings: true adornment for the hand" February 25 - March 17, 2010. |
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