“Your work is very different.” This is a comment I hear frequently from visitors to my studio. I’m always pleased to hear this. As I work with the clay I try to listen to my inner voice and go wherever it leads me - trying always to discover something new.

“One of my first childhood memories is of sitting on the kitchen floor playing with a blue and white stoneware crock. I just loved the way it felt - smooth and mysterious - and it was so pretty.” Today that crock sits in my kitchen and I still enjoy it. I respect its simple elegant beauty and I love that it has lasted so long.” It’s probably over 100 years old. These are qualities that keep me intrigued with the medium of clay. I love that handmade pottery is strong and durable and I am drawn to elegant simple lines.

The focus of my current work is figurative pieces, heavily textured tiles and sculptural vessels.

Each piece is handmade using traditional hand building methods of slab, coil or pinch pottery. Occasionally I’ll use my potters wheel. No two pieces are exactly alike - that’s part of the allure of handmade ceramics.

I like to “play” with the clay and enjoy creating whimsical animals. Cats, dogs, flying pigs, manatee, moose, frogs, cows, horses, kangaroos, crabs and pelicans are but a few of the animals I have made for my customers. The animals are often playing musical instruments, reading or like some of the cats, just relaxing in their cathouse. Other pieces are more serious in nature, often inspired by our beautiful little corner of the world as I hope to convey a message or evoke an emotional response.

I’ve studied at the Penland School in North Carolina and Arrowmont in Tennessee. I hope to take many more classes and workshops - they’re always artistically stimulating. I’ve enjoyed teaching many different age groups through the years. These days I offer workshops for the young and young at heart several times a year. I always enjoy the creative energy in these classes.

It’s a joy to be a Resident Artist at the Arts Depot. In 1990, I was the President of the Non- Profit Depot Artists Association when we voted to renovate the Old Freight Depot and transform it into gallery space and art studios. It’s been a pleasure to watch our project grow from a fledgling organization of 20 artists to a membership of over 200.