My finished product is a bowl: a basic shape of tremendous power. Bowls of all materials have been a personal interest for most of my life. The bowl is the archetypal shape of fertility, the goddess, and the womb. It is the bearer of creative energy. The curve of its profile is a visual portion of an infinite curve of energy connecting us with the cosmos. And the circle formed by the bowl’s edge represents unity and infinity. When I create a closed, womb-like shape I feel I am conjuring a nurturing energy, while an open, flatter vessel supports a release of this life giving, creative force. Combining this spiritual form with the complex nature of wood is magical.
As much as I love what I do, I’m well aware that nothing I could ever create would equal the importance of a living tree. Therefore I use only local wood salvaged from previously downed trees, primarily walnut, cherry, and maple. I do not embellish the surface of the wood but prefer to let the form and materials stand on their own. After working the surface to a velvety finish, I treat the wood with sustainable, non-toxic materials. The majority of my pieces are treated with walnut oil, carnauba wax (made from palm fronds), and beeswax. For pieces made of spalted wood, I occasionally use tung oil (a nut oil) thinned with orange oil.
I’ve found guidance and inspiration for my work from the organic design principles set forth in Lovelock’s Gaia Charter, the simplicity of design espoused by the Bauhaus movement, the instruction and philosophy of woodturner Roger Jacobs, and the work of woodturners Rude Osolnik and James Prestini. My training and practice in figure drawing and ceramics has been surprisingly relevant to this medium because of my emphasis on the use of a simple curve to build a solid form.
Gallery Affiliations
Appalachian Fireside Gallery, Berea, KY; 2003-present | Related Education and Workshops
Ohio Valley Symposium, October 2003
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Juried Exhibits
“2006 Bluegrass Biennial” Clay-Poole Young Gallery, Morehead, KY
"A Southern Presence” 2006, Loudoun House, Lexington, KY | Other Exhibits
KY Museum of Art and Craft; Hollidazzle, Invitational, Dec. 2007
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Other Education
University of KY, Lexington, graduate work Gerontology, 1998-2000 Central Florida University, art courses, 1975
| Other Job Experience
UK Medical Arts and Photography, multi-media programmer, 1997-98 |