My approach is led by intuition. I started by using traditional smoke firing methods where surface decoration is achieved by burning the work along with wood shavings and sometimes other materials such as leaves or moss. The smoke firing artist collaborates with the fire to influence the amount of oxygen drawn from the work. Each vessel's surface bears the spontaneous marks and scars made by the fire and is completely unique. Every smoke firing artist has a different approach, but it is essential to work in harmony with the elements and there must be a desire to embrace the unknown. My adventures as a sailor all over the world's oceans have taught me to be secure in change, to observe subtle signs, to trust my intuition and to accept that I am not completely in charge of the outcome. My textured work, resembling rock or lichen or rust, uses layers of clay and oxides applied randomly to create similarly complex surfaces, as if built up over time.
My methods of working with the clay and the elements are not just functional. Using techniques which cannot be precisely controlled mirrors nature's slow and quiet progression, whether that is the movement of the tides, the erosion of rock or the slow growth of lichen. Within these themes, each piece puts in context our finite existence and how nature can thrive if we leave it alone.
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