Author: La Mano

Sacha Jones is the potter of the month for April.

Artist's Statement
Pottery for me is like a resting place, a place to get out of my head and breathe.  It's corny to say it's about getting centered, but there is such a truth to that cliche for me.  It is at the pottery studio, much like in yoga, where I find a sense of personal peace.

Part of my pleasure with pottery is creating something with a person in mind, I love to imagine that person as I work, putting positive energy into their piece.  I like to wedge my clay 108 times, and when I stir the glazes I do so in multiples of nine, always trying to think good thoughts. It's a bit magical to me I suppose.

I have been very drawn to the spiral, the symbol of the Wise Woman, and so prolific in nature, and when working on the wheel, the spiral organically appears.  I like to exaggerate that and make it very visible, using it as my signature and sometimes inside a piece, as its statement.  The spiral is a reminder of life ever evolving.  My work outside of pottery is in the healing arts and I love to work with herbs.  The earth and her well-being is always at the forefront of my thoughts, and again it is this image of the spiral that to me serves as a reminder to take care, to tread gently.   It's such an honour to have this opportunity to celebrate my work as a potter.

Diane Hardy Waller is the current potter of the month. Her work, shown below, will be on display at the studio through the end of February.

Artist's Statement

Creativity is a driving force. It flows through me like magic. Everything is an opportunity to think and feel differently about materials, people, myself, nature and God. The search for the divine in my surroundings inspires and motivates me.

When I look inside me or around me for an idea to make from clay, I notice the basic shape first and then the graphic elements; these satisfy my need for order and godliness. Then I wait for the clay to tell me what it wants to be to make the object unique and personal. I enjoy finding the irony, humor and tenderness in the form. Most exciting is when the whole process is spontaneous: Divine Inspiration expressing through me.

Peggy Clarke is our featured artist this month. In the window of the studio and in our gallery, you can see an array of Peggy's recent work which includes a study of small porcelain teapots and a series of large hand-coiled vessels that Peggy calls her "yoga bodies".

Here is how she describes these pieces and what they mean to her:

"I discovered ceramics quite by accident about 10 years ago and I was immediately hooked on the technical challenges, the creative outlet and the mental focus that clay offers to its students. In a very different way, studying clay has taught me some of the same lessons that practicing yoga has.

"These two disciplines, while physically demanding at times, are as much about finding balance and listening to yourself as they are about achieving a particular outcome. Yoga and ceramics have helped me to 'get centered'.....to 'be flexible'.....and to 'accept change'.....in such delightful and unexpected ways.

"This past year, I combined my two passions and created a series of 25 hand-made ceramic vessels that represent the bodies of my yoga students. In constructing these pieces, I pay tribute to the beauty, grace and strength of my students whose influence on my life has been profound. Each piece was constructed of coils or slabs and lovingly formed -- to reflect the energy and spirit that I witness in every class I teach."

Peggy is one of La Mano's owners and also teaches pottery classes in our studio. She teaches 9 yoga classes a week, ranging from advanced vinyasa classes to basic classes in yoga and meditation. Peggy is a member of the faculty of FIT.