My work combines clay and textiles by weaving fibers into the walls of perforated ceramic vessels. I explore imperfection and evidence of the hand through repetitive actions while referencing grid-based weaving and embroidery patterns. The grid provides structure and an environment for geometric patterns to emerge and evolve. Its rigid nature also acts as a tool to abstract and warp the organic subjects being transposed onto the 3D forms through small holes. Threads and fibers engulf some holes while others remain unthreaded, providing glimpses of the inside and a reminder of the labor in creating and stitching each one. Each piece tells a cyclical story, and no two sides are the same. 

I construct the vessels with a combination of wheel throwing and hand-building techniques. Each vessel is started on the wheel, and then coils are added on. After a piece is constructed, I mark and drill small holes to weave threads through later. Once fired, I hand-stitch and embroider into the vessels with fibers and a needle, interrupting and altering the smooth, cold clay with soft threads. The many holes also draw attention to the typically unseen and unpolished back sides of my stitching. The process of creating these works is very rigorous and time-consuming yet also rhythmic and meditative. I find comfort in the physical and tactile nature of working with clay and fibers.

In the past, I have created primarily functional and utilitarian pots. I wanted to push myself with this body of work to create something not only nonfunctional but also to combine two materials I love in an unconventional way. I found a lot of creative freedom in doing so. I was inspired by the feminist reclamation of traditionally undervalued female-dominated crafts like weaving and embroidery. This work not only steps away from these practices’ utilitarian roots but uses the fibers to interrupt the functionality of what otherwise would be a usable pot. In a time of overconsumption and mass production, I hope that when people see my art, they consider not only the work that went into creating each piece but also the materials and labor that go into making the objects we use every day.