Bonnie's Blog: Artist Statement, revised

Our assignment this week is to revise our artist statement based on instructor feedback and the examination of other artist statements. One thing I realized was that I did not speak to the playfulness or inner child aspect of my motivation so I've added that in this new version, as well as removed some overly philosophical stuff. I'm pretty sure I'll revise this again. Here goes:

As a ceramic artist I shape clay, and it brings me a spiritual connection to the earth. My earliest recollections of making art were modeling Play Doh, and the oldest piece of my art that survives is my pre-school handprint in clay. I’ve always loved creating dimensional, textural, and playful art. My favorite art themes are related to youthful pleasures with purposeful references to patterns and growth. The process of working with clay embodies nature and makes me feel I am a part of it. I am an idealist and choose to reflect on growth, spirit, and relationships by modeling shapes that reflect patterns, society, and the expectations of others. Societies tend to create a group-think and impose repeating patterns of behavior. These patterns may not appear problematic at first, but as they multiply they become rigid, take over, and I feel controlled by them. I purposefully juxtapose patterns with interruptions that make a contrast. I like interrupting, emerging from, or displacing patterns to break free and create a new focal point.

My technique is to sculpt and hand-build my ceramic art pieces using rolled slabs, stacked coils, or pinched chunks of clay. I create patterns by molding the clay into shapes (sometimes with an extruding device), pressing it with stamps, or applying a combination of dark and light colored stoneware. Sometimes I emphasize a texture or translucent effect by constructing my artwork with porcelain. I highlight and apply visual importance with colored slips and glazes.