Inverted Oval Landscape, 6x3.5 inches, glazed stoneware clay
Artist Statement
As a multidisciplinary artist, my exploration of ceramics, drawing, and painting engages in world-building around themes of mortality and impermanence balanced against the persistence of nature and geological time. I do this by experimenting with the boundaries between domestic interiors, gardens, and wilderness, repurposing the language of landscape depiction and decorative motifs like wallpaper patterns, picture frames, or Shaker furniture as tools to excavate themes of ecology and humanity. My practice frequently transitions between two-dimensional painting and three-dimensional ceramic work. Clay/ceramic is a painterly and unsettling material–in all its material states–that highlights life’s temporary and fragile qualities. By creating and combining individual pieces that alter their meanings, I can tell stories and establish a dialogue between the viewer's personal history with home interiors and the work, inviting them to explore their connections with objects, place, history, and ecosystems.
Functional and Decorative Pottery at Fossil Farm
As an artist and a painter who works in clay, making vessels and semi-functional objects is irresistible. The objects I make for gardens and homes are handmade, usually slab-built, and one-of-a-kind. Current types include tulipieres, lanterns, planters, and candle holders.
I also make heartfelt dog portraits and will occasionally do so on commission. Contact me.
Fossil Farm is the unofficial name of my piece of historic farmland and c.1826 farmhouse. The Elk Creek runs through the property, primarily wooded with wetlands except for about 20 acres of organic hayfields and about 5 acres of home and garden area. Almost every stone in this area contains ancient Devonian fossils exposed by the action of the last ice age.
Flower bowls and clay paintings at the Art Garage, with painting by Elizabeth Schula
Departure, 5 x 7 inches, encaustic on panel, 2012