This group of work explores the two roles that the ceramic plate can play.
In the plate’s first role on the wall, it is primarily a carrier for an image. The trees, fields and roads of the Southern Minnesota landscape are filtered through the materials and process. They are at times abstracted, and at other times clearly represented. Some may seem isolated, yet resilient, others interconnected and complex. It is my hope that I am able to communicate some of the sense of wonder and love I have for this landscape.
The second role for the plate doesn’t happen in the gallery, but rather in the home. When taken down from the wall the plate transforms into an object of utility that is an active participant in our meals and can help to create a context for fellowship. The form, weight, texture and volume of the plate all become much more relevant and the image dissolves.
It is these multiple roles that first attracted me to working with functional pottery and it remains an integral part of my practice today.