Earthenware Sculptures

faience boxer covered with cotton crochet in orange and white

Title : meditation bowl inspired by a conch shell Materials : white earthenware, terra sigillata, oxides, glaze liner Date : 2016 Dimensions : 5 x 5 x 6 inches Description : Pinched for with pinkish beige terra sig outside and purple glaze on the inside with pooling due to multiple firings, layered glazes Alice Ballard - Artist Statement My art is a reflection of my relationship with natural forms. These forms come to me on walks, while I work in my garden, or appear as gifts from friends who share my fascination with the beauty inherent in Nature’s abundant variety of forms. It is often the metamorphosis of nature’s forms, as they change from season to season, that attracts me. I am endlessly drawn to that universal world in which differing life forms share similar qualities. I spend countless hours contemplating a particular form in order to feel its energy. It becomes a Zen-like connection not unlike a meditation. As an artist, I hope that those who choose to connect with my work can share some of the harmony and tranquility I feel through the creative process. Perhaps, at the very least, the viewer will give those small, often unnoticed forms in Nature a second glance. Alice R. Ballard. (born June 16, 1945, Florence, South Carolina) is an American ceramicist based in Greenville, South Carolina. Much of her work is characterized by the organic earthenware forms of closed containers...