Almost all of the work that I do in clay is decorated with “slip” or liquid clay with colourants in it and a durable clear glaze over top. Over the last number of years I have been using a transfer technique to apply imagery to my pieces. The transfers can be achieved a number of ways. Mono-printing, block printing, silk screen printing, and stencilling with paper resists all contribute to bring depth to the surface. While there are many ways of applying imagery to clay work, this particular method allows for the overlapping of images, and brushwork, helping to contribute to the collage like nature of the work.
I strive to create a sense of harmony in each piece by the use of various devices, colour, line, and repetition chiefly among them. The female figure, could be a comment on our perceptions of beauty, mother nature at her most vulnerable, a mermaid awash in a sea of emotion, or some other archetype. The tapering swell of the figure’s torso, certainly alludes to the rounded tapering form of some pieces and potters often refer to the human body to reference different sections of their work; the lip; the shoulder; the belly; the foot.
Often, the imagery I use is inspired by beauty in nature and the inner relationships brought to bear in the world around us. I firmly believe that whatever walk of life a person may tread, there is an innate human desire to bring our inner life in harmony and expression in our outer life. It may express itself in the passions we pursue, the fashions we wear, or something as simple as the mug we choose to drink our morning coffee in. A vessel is an apt metaphor for these relationships and the play between the inside and outside, the conscious use of formal principles and elements of design, and the spontaneous interrelationship between them, is a study that excites me to the point where I am still burning my fingers pulling hot pots out of the kiln because I can’t wait to see the next result!