art residency

La Ragazza con Gelato, stoneware, stains, 2018

To say I got inspired by Rome during my art residency in 2018 is an understatement. I treasure every moment of my month there, and the memories will definitely last for a lifetime! Every day, as I worked in the studio, my work was infused with the spirit of ancient Roman archetypes, Renaissance and Baroque museum masterpieces and local contemporary energy. Everything is so interconnected, layered and mixed in this ancient city. Living this deep in history, the boundary between the distant past and the commonplace daily life dissolves.

The collection of pieces I’ll be presenting is inspired by the antique history and mythology of Rome intertwined with everyday contemporary activities. A lion wanders around with someone who used to be Cybele in a bygone age, but now the lion has his freedom and no longer has to pull her carriage, while she tries on sunglasses and dreams of mediterranean excursions. Another pair, a poodle and a patrician, no longer interested in machiavellian schemes, now delight in taking selfies and showing off their power curls. A Pegasus finally arrives to visit a poet who had been waiting for millenia to be reunited with his swiftly traveling brother. The arc of the poet’s thoughts and dreams finally reached the Pegasus and provided a bridge to our world.

Join me for the artist talk and virtual studio visit on June 28th. Along with the fruits of my labor from Rome, I’ll be showing images of and telling stories about the masterpieces I was inspired by. Looking forward to sharing this amazing experience with you!

June 28th, 3-4pm PT

zoom link: https://sfsu.zoom.us/j/97954144431?pwd=aVNheFZIbGZncVY4ZVg0cGR3YXBPdz09

Colossus of Constantine in the Courtyard of the Palazzo dei Conservatori

Pegasus Visit, stoneware, stains, 2018

I am also pleased to announce that I will be featured by Pence Gallery in Davis, CA at the Rare Birds exhibition. Two pieces were selected for this show by the art director and curator Natalie Nelson.
Exhibition runs: Jun. 2-Jul. 2, 2020
As of June 2nd, Pence Gallery is open for appointments from Monday to Friday, 10 AM – 5 PM.
Please call 530-758-3370 to make an appointment.

https://www.pencegallery.org/Exhibits_2020/06_jun/rare_birds.html

Here is also a link to the video I made for this exhibition: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Si-zZcwWJ8&t=29s

Early Bird Brings Lucid Dreams
7x7x4 inches
glass, porcelain, china paint

2020

The Mediterranean sea is beautiful in September! I have returned from my travels and projects in the south of France and am excited to share some of my new work and inspirations with San Francisco. I met Lauren Kearns during our residency together at Valauris in 2016, where we became great friends. She invited me to San Raphael, where she brings ceramic artists from all over the world to work and teach. We had our two-person exhibition called “Elements” on the 21st of September. The opening reception went well, with many of the local people in attendance and I got to practice my French. I was also invited to show my works at Faune Galleria in Antibes right next to the Picasso museum! I am happy my Aquatics are living in the French Riviera now.

My two-week residency in the south of France culminated in a series of sculptures which meditate on merging the smooth, polished and manicured aspects of civilized architecture with the rough, overgrown and wild elements of unpopulated forests and beaches. Translating my daily experience of socializing with the Mediterranean water creatures like corals and medusas, or the beautiful pine trees with their intricate cones, then walking back into the meticulously clean and organized town of San Raphael, my sculptures take on similarly multi-layered aspects and reveal rough, spontaneous textures beneath smooth and shiny skins.

After the bisque firing