I make themed responses that give form to my thoughts. Social, political, and spiritual threads intertwine to understand and order my existence. Something overheard, or read, a chance meeting, a shape, a movement or a gesture, all trigger ideas for finding form and texture. I’m interested in the notion of human endeavour, especially that which defies adversity. In this process, like a dancer, I am touching ground to energise and elevate, connect and place myself on a multitude of terrains. It is in the process of listening to a multiplicity of rhythms and sounds that I find my voice as an artist.
Clay is my primary material, and it provides an ever-versatile vehicle for expressing my ideas. I use clay because it parallels my own existence as a base material that can be transformed. Many of the pieces I make are imbued with the tensions that exist between the urban and the natural world. I juxtapose the raw with the refined often trying to connect elements within one form itself or, between groups of pieces. My work frequently references rite and ritual in the forms of vessels and containers. I use additives in clay to create texture. My process is to stack shards and scraps in large containers with water before slicing into it with a saw and building with it once dried out. I include London clay collected from skips which creates bloating and toppling. I make my own grog from discarded work and my propensity for experimenting means that I push my materials to the limit, purposely incorporating risk in the process. I prefer to use a minimum of glazes, preferring to use the clay itself as my palette.