30 years of clay in my life

As I celebrated my 50th this month, I kept thinking how clay (gleena in Russian) has been a companion, muse, and guide for 30 of my years on this lovely planet. From the very first shapes that emerged back in 1988 while I took a hand-building elective at University of Cincinnati:

to building large pinchpots on the kitchen table during my time in NYC:

to throwing 100 pots, each a different form, for an independent study:

to RISD grad school installation of slip-cast pieces that hooked me on the process I still use today:

to an independent studio and shop owner:

Having lived in 5 big cities, 12 homes, and 5 studios, gleena has been a stabilizing constant in my life. I feel fortunate, and grateful.