I was born in Chicago and grew up in the South. My dad was always sketching, often on cocktail napkins. He was an artist at heart, and I take after him. Eventually my family settled in Bennington, Vermont. Across the street from my high school was Bennington Pottery. One Spring day a potter from across the street came to demonstrate wheel work in the school’s courtyard. I remember that day well because it was the beginning of my love affair with clay. I began lessons with another potter whose studio was in a freezing cold basement. Ugh! I left with a frozen nose and fingertips, but I was not deterred. A few years later, I had the opportunity to study ceramics at the International School of Ceramics Arts in Faenza, Italy, known for its ancient ceramic tradition and preservation of the art form. I was very fortunate to attend that school where I learned wheel work. It was practice, practice, practice. Everything we made got recycled at the end of the day. We didn’t keep our clunky vases; that wasn’t even an option. I must have thrown out 500 of them. It was a very challenging year. The class was in Italian! 

When I returned from Italy, I studied Ceramics with Roger Sweet at University of New Mexico. Several years later, we married. His love and support have made all the difference in my career. 

Around 2005, I began to explore figurative sculpture. It required a major leap in practice, and I threw out much of that early work, too. In 2014, I studied with the master Italian sculptor Bruno Lucchesi. I learned so much from his books, videos, and workshop. In time, I had some figures cast in bronze at a foundry. That was a new and exciting step. Here’s a photo of my very first sculpture. Not bad! Beginner’s luck, I’d say. 

My other love is writing. I have a B.A. from University of New Mexico and an MFA in Creative Writing from Goddard College in Plainfield, Vermont. I paid for graduate school tuition with sales from my ceramic work. My early writing teachers at the University of New Mexico were Leslie Marmon Silko, Rudolf Anaya, Lois Duncan, and others. Since then, I’ve written for many publications including Ceramics Monthly, Fiberarts, New Mexico Magazine, Young Miss, The Writing Self, North American Review, The Sun, Tiferet, Onion River Review to mention a few. Early in my writing career, I worked in journalism and as an editor at Fiberarts Magazine during its inception. I went on to teach Creative Writing at UNM-Los Alamos, as well as Ceramics and English at ENMU-Ruidoso, New Mexico, and South Mountain Community College in Phoenix. I offer a 4-week writing class through the Jemez Springs Public Library during summer months. All my pursuits have increased my skills in the written word and in clay. How are they alike? Both art forms require a ton of revisions. Eventually, you must put down the tools or close the laptop and say, “Finito!”

Please stop in my gallery/studio to see what’s new the next time you’re in the Jemez area. My work changes as I discover new ways to express myself in clay, bronze, and the written word. Thank you!