Ceramics
Ceramics work keeps an artist humble. This section could also be referred to as 'The Great Teacher' or 'Growing Pains.' It has taken me about 10 years to set up a wee pottery studio in my home so that experimentation and curiosity can flow freely in my own space and with friends who also enjoy getting down and dirty with clay. The majority of my work is handbuilt rather than being created on the wheel. I am slowly rebuilding my rusty wheel-throwing skills alongside my beloved hand-building skills and glazing experimentation. Through trial and error, I am looking forward to developing more creative, custom works that will come closer and closer to my visualizations and predictions as I hone my skills.
Under the Sea
Natures' CAll
Let me create your family or friends' portrait in the vision of your favourite creature. The following bat families are of my own families, representing each figure differently depending on their character.
bat families
garden delights
This item can be customized to order.
Share what sort of garden feature you are looking for: a water feature, bird bath, bee feeders, insect homes, bird feeders, sculptural features, totem poles, etc., and I can come up with a proposal we can develop into your own special garden delight.
Chickadees & Cherry Blossoms
Porcelain bowl and figures painted with underglazes and cone 6 glazes.
Carolinian Wren & Wilson's Warbler on a Branch.
A trickling water feature is included inside the branch.
Earthenware bowl and figures painted with underglazes and cone 6 glazes.
Also comes with female bird figures on a separate stump. A small water pump inside the branch.
Eastern Bluebirds & Waterlilies
Porcelain bowl and figures painted with underglazes and cone 6 glazes.
Toad Home (top and side views)
A great way to provide some cool shelter from summer's heat for our little friends of all kinds.
Terracotta clay with underglazes and cone 6 glazes.
Botanicals
Using leaves carefully selected from my area, each piece is unique to the plant type and the time of year the leaves are picked, pressed, moulded, and glazed into these versatile pieces. In the spring, burdock leaves are chosen. As the summer moves in, paw paw, milkweed maple, oak, and hosta leaves are chosen. Near the end of the summer season, leaves from a neighbourhood ginko tree and a favourite 80-year-old magnolia tree are selected and carefully pressed into the clay to preserve their intricate designs.
Burdock Leaf (Large)
Mixed Magnolia and Pawpaw leaves (small)
Dandilion Leaf
Princess Wuu Hosta Leaf (XL)
Pawpaw leaves (medium)
Oak Leaves
Pawpaw leaves
Ginko leaves
Magnolia Leaves
Tulip Tree Leaves
Fused Maple Leaves Bowl
Poplar and Pawpaw Leaves
Magnolia & Tulip Tree Leaves
Pawpaw Leaves
Pawpaw Leaves
Paw Paw Leaf
Rhubarb Leaf Medium
Burdock Leaf Medium
Paw Paw Leaf
Rhubarb Leaf large
Burdock Leaves large
mugs & stuffs
Ornaments, bits & bobs
It is always fun to give gifts that are personalized and I try to do this for my family every year. To follow are a few examples. All I need is a photo and an idea of what a persons favourite 'things' are.
This bell depicting the beach scene on PEI where a family member grew up and has a cottage was a thank you gift for letting us stay with them for a couple of weeks in their wee Kepick paradise.
The shells at the bottom were collected on their beach.
Ornaments for my partner and his daughter, inspired by what they enjoyed. Unfortunately, there was glare in the photos, so the details are not clear and the colours are not true in these images.
An ornament for my nephew who loves football but had just experienced 3 concussions in a season. This was a warning to protect his head and his heart.
An ornament created for my niece, who is currently studying Neuroscience at the University of Toronto.
Christmas tree tea light decorations.
A 'surfboard on a wave' incense holder