(Private classes...more about materials used by the artist
The porcelain/cellulose clay mix that I use is a departure from the norm. My sculpted pieces are air dried rather than being kiln fired at high heat. The environmental benefit to this method over the other are multiple. Naturally there is the energy savings, but unlike kiln-fired ceramics whose glazes release chemicals toxic enough to kill birds perched near a vent, my work is hand-painted with water soluble acrylics which have no negative impact on the environment. I'm proud of this green footprint.
My work becomes a permanent paintable canvas to be contemplated at my leisure. (And indeed, there always seem to be a dozen unfinished pieces ready for paint.) When completed, the sculptures have the appearance of glass and the sturdy properties of wood. If one should accidentally fall (Ask me to relate the horrifying tale of how I discovered this first hand.) they are virtually unbreakable. At worst a piece might sustain a ding at the point of impact, and easily fixed without a trace. In contrast -as we all know- kiln fired work shatters like glass.
In practice, my mix of wet clay can be added to an already dried clay body. This latter virtue elevates the material beyond the ordinary and allows me immense flexibility. I can leisurely take weeks or years to finish a sculpture, unlike those artists' working with earthen-body ceramic clays who are bound by narrow wet-to-wet windows (counted in hours) of workability.
It's safe to say that cellulose clay has given me the sort of flexibility that allows me to imagine my wildest fantasies and bring them to life. If I can think of a thing, I can make it happen on my terms and not be rushed by the working limitations of materials.
Novice-friendly properties and a growing public interest in this sublimely clean-to-use material and its relaxed process have encouraged me to reach out and share the journey. Join me for "Cupcakes 101" classes sometime in 2016. (Private classes shelved temporarily.)
The porcelain/cellulose clay mix that I use is a departure from the norm. My sculpted pieces are air dried rather than being kiln fired at high heat. The environmental benefit to this method over the other are multiple. Naturally there is the energy savings, but unlike kiln-fired ceramics whose glazes release chemicals toxic enough to kill birds perched near a vent, my work is hand-painted with water soluble acrylics which have no negative impact on the environment. I'm proud of this green footprint.
My work becomes a permanent paintable canvas to be contemplated at my leisure. (And indeed, there always seem to be a dozen unfinished pieces ready for paint.) When completed, the sculptures have the appearance of glass and the sturdy properties of wood. If one should accidentally fall (Ask me to relate the horrifying tale of how I discovered this first hand.) they are virtually unbreakable. At worst a piece might sustain a ding at the point of impact, and easily fixed without a trace. In contrast -as we all know- kiln fired work shatters like glass.
In practice, my mix of wet clay can be added to an already dried clay body. This latter virtue elevates the material beyond the ordinary and allows me immense flexibility. I can leisurely take weeks or years to finish a sculpture, unlike those artists' working with earthen-body ceramic clays who are bound by narrow wet-to-wet windows (counted in hours) of workability.
It's safe to say that cellulose clay has given me the sort of flexibility that allows me to imagine my wildest fantasies and bring them to life. If I can think of a thing, I can make it happen on my terms and not be rushed by the working limitations of materials.
Novice-friendly properties and a growing public interest in this sublimely clean-to-use material and its relaxed process have encouraged me to reach out and share the journey. Join me for "Cupcakes 101" classes sometime in 2016. (Private classes shelved temporarily.)
Current Affiliations
AAWR Artist Archives of the Western Reserve, current NOIS Northern Ohio Illustrators Society, current Previous Affiliations ASA Akron Society of Artists, past CAN Journal, past CWAL Cleveland West Art League, past Morgan Paper Conservatory, past Ohio Collage Society, past Waterloo Arts, past At Home
Born, raised and educated here in Cleveland, Ohio I spent many years in the publishing biz managing newsstand circulation in the Midwest by crunching huge numbers and yearning for the freedom of expression I have today. (There's that affinity for paper again.) I've have a son Matt who many of you may already know from Cleveland Botanic Garden, and the best voluntary relatives ever! (My son is the guy on the left in this CBG video.) My husband and I -the author and silversmith Nick Humez- collaborate and live in modest digs on the shoulders of the Grand River in Lake County, Ohio. We used to bend over backwards to humor crabby cats Bob and Fez, our rescues, but today they are blessed memories. Now it's Billy and Missy who rule our lives. Most days we brainstorm before breakfast and collectively share no delusions about the scarcity of rational thought. In a Nutshell
I'm a suburban pop-surrealist sculptor who loves language. Maybe that's part of the reason I'm married to a polymath who writes books about language and works in the publishing trades. Language is everywhere I look. We awake punning. No wonder it spills over into my work which makes use of metaphor, word play, wild imaginings and the like. I thrive on experimentation. You will see found items incorporated in the sculpture like marbles and mementos. Hang around and eventually you'll see diversions from the usual in materials and form. Rustbelt Fabric uses rusty iron on canvas fabric to create exciting patters. I'm intrigued by the properties of paper (Btw, there's cellulose mixed into my clay.) so now and then you'll find small books and various experimental works that combine paper and light, for example, Shoji Lights. And what pulls it all together are a love of hand work, compulsive attention to detail, obsession with color and pattern, and an appetite for the intellectually offbeat. |
Focus 2021
Things sure have changed. I retired from the Gallery in March of 2020 after six wonderful years just before the first wave of the pandemic hit. Essentially, I quit while I was ahead in the middle of a wave of growing popularity for the little monsters I'd been knocking out, some with the input of a like-minded, amazingly clever collaborator who was the catalyst for a career turn. Parting -as it has been said- is not always sweet sorrow. Artists vanished. Some died. A blessed lot recovered. Others revealed themselves to be someone alien: so much so that I can no longer say we are more alike than different. Everyone has changed. Leaving things en masse in 2020-21 created a vacuum that sucked the wind from my lungs I miss things as they were. I hunger for interaction with the public. Most of all I yearn to watch the lights come on in people's eyes...those human light bulbs shining on my hidden surprises. I miss being the self-styled magician who could turn clay into dreams and the circumspect into wonder-eyed children. The visitors are gone. How do I replace that? Focus 2017 Each year improves on the previous and provides unforeseen and wonderful surprises. Give up the idea that you need a younger body. Think about Stephen Hawking. Humility not hubris. To that, add gratitude and reciprocity. Don't ever be a doormat again. Offer the help you could have used and didn't get: be generous. Be scrupulous. Be honest. Be available. Build rapport. Run away from nepotism. Shun croneyism and anything that smack of self-serving. Expect nothing. Be the juror you want others to be. Hold myself to a high, non-political, secular standard. (2021 note: give up being non-political.) Continue making at Maker Space. Make time for doing nothing at all. Hog-tie distraction. Experiment more. Teach. Smooze and brainstorm with friends more. Find new gallery space. Gain collaborators. Tight shoes, no wall space, inability to teach, no voice and no flexibility are cramping my style and the growth of my business. (2021: no luck yet.) Find an understudy, and a younger person to help make a go of a new venture, upon whom the business can devolve. Get the cleaning person, dammit, and forget finding that younger body. Assessment 2016 Nothing succeeds like...well, you know what. Looks as if I set the bar just high enough in 2016, except of course, I was unable to find a younger body. I've pulled away from the juried show scene and made several new associations who exhibited my work in spectacular ways, notably the Maria Neil Project and River Gallery. Promised not to make a $$$ contest of the live AFA auction. Had fun, was creative and promoted the process. Removed work from a second gallery that represented me because the business downsized and displays became cramped. Self-promotion and experimental work including the introduction of PS..Preservation Silk Scarves met my expectations. Had I managed my distraction tendencies better, I'd have had more time for creative experimentation. (2020: Put the silk biz on the shelf...I was spread too thin.) Humility not hubris. Yes. Just want to be certain to differentiate between being humble and allowing someone to walk all over me. New friends and face time delivered an unexpected curating offer: my desire to put on a foodie show was fulfilled by my neighbors at e11even2 in 2017. I'm curating. Did my public art benefit bit with Art Fur Animals and had a live auction dog sell for thousands. Gonna be a hard figure to beat in '17. (What a coups!) Many await cupcake classes. Succeeded in laying out the class format with the help of Tracey Shamray. Need to budget more time and find a better venue to fulfill this. Partnered with the Maker Space at CPL and the creative process is ongoing. Still looking for time to do the sculpture for the kids book. And still need an understudy, cleaning person and younger body. (Killed the book project.) Focus 2016 I will make an effort to stay on track by continuing to provide work to my galleries, as well as to those who seek me out because they love my work. That always amazes me. I hope to broaden my reach; this will of necessity, cause me to place my work more selectively. Time to experiment with new work is very important to me. I'll have to carve out time to promote it and find new venues. Promotion. More of it. Less time being distracted. 3D reproduction. More time digitally cataloging and reproducing work. Public art. Collaboration and face time. New friends. Gratitude. Humility not hubris. Children's books. Sculpture and photography for same. (Lost track of books.) (2021: Books are suggested by a pal again.) Classes. I promised them to many and will do it in 2016. (Not enough time!) Curating a foodie show is still lurking in the shadows. I need an understudy, a cleaning person and a younger body. Ha! Highlights 2015 Providing work to both home galleries dramatically reduced the number of outside local exhibits in which I participated. However, repeated call backs from a new outside venue with high traffic are a benefit of consistency. The upside of not being a moving target has been that my work has received a great deal of attention from valued sources and better positioning in the market. I hoped to test teaching classes in the studio by early 2016 and am behind schedule due to setbacks in my studio remodel. I also hoped to increase the number of demos (as Random Acts of Art) I did during the year, but the number remained steady. (Since shelved.) Lastly, I wanted to take more time to explore and develop the experimental projects. Rustbelt Fibers got underway with two exhibits scheduled in early '16. Other projects still in queue. (Shelved.) Highlights 2014
Gallery + and The Art Gallery now carry my sculpture. Artist's books PINK and the collaboration An Utterbet of Alpharences (with N. Humez) are being exhibited across the U.S. and Canada as well as in Europe, Asia and South America under the auspices of Myers School of Art. I conceptualized and curated Syzygy, a six artist exhibit in which I also participated; this show was well received by 600 visitors in January '14 at CWAL in 78th St. Studios. |