The Slip Trail Blog

C L A Y   S P E A K S   O F   H O M E

COC 26 Artist 35-word Statements

... to go with online gallery viewing, and reading the 2 reviews here on Slip Trail.

Part Two. 

• 41.  Alex Kurtz, El Prado. Celestial Home. 13x13x4

• I am a ceramic artist whose process is informed by my time spent outdoors observing wild things in their environments. I am interested in exploring the concept of home at its' intersection with the human and animal worlds.   

• 42.  Morgen and Mike Loven, Albuquerque. Bosque Night. 10x7x7 

• Mimolo is husband and wife team Mike and Morgan Loven. Mike formed this piece out of warm speckle buff clay to reflect the desert landscape. Morgan decorated it with a sleeping porcupine in a cottonwood tree.

• 43.  Jennifer A. Lowell, Lakewood, CO. Climbing to Soar. 6.5x12.4 

• I am so grateful to explore this journey with clay! Common images in my work are natural beings in the sky and on the ground. I love dinosaurs too, especially pterodactyls imagining our planet with them here!

• 44.  Janeen Maas, Santa Fe. Home is a Bowl. 9.5x13x13

• My recent inspiration for sculpture work is the invertebrate world as it is colorful, rich in texture and shape and inspires adaptability in all of us.

• 45.  Susan Mach, Arenas Valley. Triplex. 7x5x5

• My work, Triplex, shows three "homes" not far from my Silver City, NM home. There is spirit evident in each through resilience, creativity and connection to nature. (Images on piece from: Gila Cliff Dwellings, Fort Bayard, Mimbres Valley.)

• 46.  Diane MacInnes, Santa Fe. El Camino Interior 1.  17x13x3.5 

• Diane’s work is a joyful, challenging exploration of materials and techniques to accentuate texture, create intriguing color variation and utilize the particular qualities of different clay bodies. Please view more of her work at: www.dianemacinnes.com

• 47.  Ellen Mancini, Santa Fe. Nesting. 11x6x6 

• My hand built ceramic sculpture is inspired by nature and spirit. I create pieces to serve as guardians yet exhibit a bit of whimsey.

• 48.  Patty Martin, Santa Fe. Desert Home. 28x17x11

• Having grown up in Arizona, my heart sings when I spot the first Saguaro as I head south and west. Home for a Saguaro is the Sonoran Desert, a relatively small part of Arizona and Mexico. While they are given refuge in this area, they also provide refuge from predators for the Arizona state bird, the Cactus Wren.

• 49.  Harmony Martinez, Albuquerque.  Fisheye.  2.25x6.5x1.5 

• Fisheye is based on the eye of a great blue heron, with underglaze feathers. The highlight of the eye is a fishbone, showing despair in the inky pupil of this majestic bird.

• 50.  Cate McClain, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque. Embers Beneath the Surface. 6x7x11 

• 51.  Lisa McEneaney, Santa Fe. Emperor Penguin Jar. 9x4 

• With climate change, the ice pack of Antarctica is melting and forcing Emperor Penguins to travel much farther to their feeding grounds. They are losing their home and many are no longer breeding.

• 52.  Nicole Merkens, Santa Fe. Where Am I Going, Where Have I Been? Home is Where the Heart is. 29 x11x6.5 

• Home is a reliquary you carry: memories, losses, many selves. Moving teaches you to shapeshift, to question roots and belonging, to wake remembering where you are, reaching for purpose, place, and the gravity of home.

• 53.  Karina Naumer, Glorieta. Salt Fired Vessel.  7x5.2.5x5.25 

• Home is the essence of our internal, creative lives, the physical spaces where we abide, as well as, our astounding, natural world. This vessel shows a calm earth looking up to a snowy, winter sky.

• 54.  Judy Nelson-Moore, Santa Fe. Holding Place.  10x16x5.5 

• I am a sculptor working in Santa Fe with saggar-fired paperclay. Shaped by fire, chance, and time, this work explores home as refuge, endurance, and the quiet strength of forms that turn inward and remain protective.

• 55.  Judy Nelson-Moore, Santa Fe. The Long Road Home.  10x18x7

• Working in Santa Fe with paper clay and saggar firing, here I shape layered forms suggesting struggle and shelter during travel. Rough outer surfaces protect a softer interior, expressing resilience, memory, and the pull of home toward belonging.

• 56.  Richard Orlando, Albuquerque. Porcelain Coffee Bean Jar.  9x5.5x5.5 

• I have studied the making of porcelain vessels using the Arita Method under the instruction of Prof. Kathryne Cyman.

• 57.  Charlotte Ownby, Albuquerque. Footprints in the Snow. 14x7x1.5 

• This decorative piece employs one of my preferred geometric forms to abstractly depict a childhood memory of playing in the snow. I integrated the carving and colors into clay through handbuilding, specialized tools and glazes.

• 58.  Charlotte Ownby, Albuquerque. Colors of My Dad’s Dream Car. 13.5X1.5X7 

• I am a scientist turned potter. I enjoy experimenting with different textures, carving and firing methods. This piece reminds me of my Dad and fits the theme of "Clay Speaks of Home" better than anything I have made.

• 59.  Andrea Pichaida, Santa Fe. Can I Give You a Squeeze. 12X12X12.5 

• With my sculptural vessels I always aim to convey a feeling of warmth and good feeling. Having moved many times, what I can take with me are my core feelings. This I call home.

• 60.  Stacie Pope Hein, Albuquerque. Jestersaurus. 6x4x6 

• My pieces are called Bony Claytures clay pieces are made to fir the bone, decorated using oxides and pit- fired in a wood stove using wood and cow dung. Copper pieces are handmade and the bones are found objects.

• 61.  Stacie Pope Hein, Albuquerque. Spiked Turtledon.  6x10x3 

• My sculptures are called Bony Claytures. Each one is unique. Clay pieces are pit-fired in a wood stove using wood and cow dung. The pieces are decorated with oxides. The copper pieces are handmade to fit the piece. The bones are found objects.

• 62.  Lois Olcott Price, Santa Fe. Haven. 18x19x12  

• New Mexico’s landscape, wildlife, and clay traditions are an ongoing inspiration. Using micaceous clay, Haven speaks to the precarious survival of our endangered wildlife and habitat.

• 63.  Lois Olcott Price, Santa Fe. Scent of Decay. 14x 8.5x6 

• I hand build and sculpt to tell a story or make a point; inspired by NM landscape and the human form.

• 64.  Judith Richey, Sandia Park. Rooster Plate. 8” round 

• In Kathy Cyman’s class in The Arita Method of Porcelain, I was fortunate to meet Sensei Manji Inouye, National Living Treasure in Porcelain from Arita Japan. Using the Arita method, I created this plate to celebrate my experience.

• 65.  Jenna Ritter, Santa Fe. sanctum. 8x7x6

• It begins on bended knee. Then, the rhythm of my working: gather, wash, coil, pinch, polish, fire. Shaping the earth with my hands and heart I am both holding and being held — I am Home.

• 66.  Jenna Ritter, Santa Fe. Rock Steady. 5x6x3

• It begins on bended knee. Then, the rhythm of my working: gather, wash, coil, pinch, polish, fire. Shaping the earth with my hands and heart I am both holding and being held — I am Home.

• 67.  Jim Romberg, Santa Fe. Bateau. 14x13x7

• Raku fired shaped wheel form.

• 68.  Greta Ruiz, Santa Fe. Terra Star.  2.5x9x9

• I am in awe of both the juicy flower and the weathered seed pod. I bring intact female imagery from nature into our lives. My pieces reveal themselves over time and evolve along with the observers’ creative life.

• 69.  Joey Serim, Santa Fe. Cocoon. 10x9x9

• I often create a cocoon for myself, filled with fun, randomness, bright moments. Sometimes I need the soothing darkness.

• 70.  Mary Simmons, Albuquerque.  Shadowlands.  10x10x3 

• My formal education is in Geology, whose forms, fossils, bones, and patterns inform my highly-textured Clayworks. Low-fire clays, and the very colorful glazes that are possible add beauty and dimension. 

• 71.  Claude W. Smith III, Silver City. Winter’s First Thaw. 4.25 x 4.25 x 4.25 

• As a retired clay professor, I continue to explore and experiment with the saggar firing process to evoke visions of an ethereal landscape.

• 72.  Debi Smith, Santa Fe. Birth from the Sipapu. 9x12x9 

• Clay creator, sculptor native to New Mexico. I am drawn to treatments that use natural and raw processes such as Saggar and Raku.  I am inspired by the multi-cultural aspects and land of New Mexico. Primarily a sculptor, I love telling narratives of my experiences and connections to earth and life itself.  

• 73.  Cirrelda Snider-Bryan, Albuquerque. Song: ABQ Main Canal. 16x20 

• Sky bright autumn day / high leaves mark my way / I walk on the road / prayer ode from my home / steps rhyme with this song / think time and right now

• 74.  Cirrelda Snider-Bryan, Albuquerque. Clouds, Rain, Path Around the House. 12x20

• This piece shows symbols on our Hopi wedding rings: clouds, rain, path of life, the combination shows harmony to the Hopi. Created before Daughter was born, it lasts as homage to the place where we live. 

• 75.  Darla Graff Thompson, Los Alamos. incompatibility.  10x6x6 

• Glaze-fired twice, first with colors, then with black. “Incompatibility” is thought-provoking in the context of “Clay Speaks of Home,” since where one’s soul is born and raised is entirely luck of the draw.

• 76.  Sheryl Zacharia, Santa Fe. Blushing Dawn. 18x17.5x5  Sheryl Zacharia is primarily a self-taught artist. Her pieces have been published in magazines and books, and are in various Museum and private collections. She moved to Santa Fe 11years ago from NYC.

Honoree piece

•Kathryne Cyman, Albuquerque. Contemporary Ceramic Honoree, 2026. natilus. 6.5x2.5

Jurors

•Elizabeth Hunt, Santa Fe. Juror. Harry Virus. 20x18x18

•Serit deLopaz Kotowski, Taos. Juror. Transfixed. 12x8x8 

trans alludes to passage and fixed alludes to stationary. This could describe how I relate to “Home.”

•Mary Sharp Davis, Albuquerque. Juror. Going Home. 10x12  Upon visiting Nara Japan in the Buddhist compound’s gallery, I was inspired by the ancient bronze vessels displayed. They were like old friends and brought me tears of joy!

C L A Y   S P E A K S   O F   H O M E

COC 26 Artist 35-word Statements

... to go with online gallery viewing, and reading the 2 reviews here on Slip Trail.

• 1.    Melissa Alexander, Albuquerque. La vida en un tronco. 16x8x4

• This piece is my love of nature reflected in my hand building of ceramic creations.

• 2.    Leonard Baca, Albuquerque. Mountains Shout for Joy. 10x8x8

• Being a ceramic artist is part of life, raising you to a higher plain. It Opens your heart to what is all around you. You see the needs of others and the Joy; it brings you to help them.

• 3.    Luisa Baldinger, Santa Fe. Bowl. 5x14x13

• A maker of containers all of my life in clay, I am intrigued by the vessel as a metaphor for peace, plenty, a sense of well-being, but also emptiness, hollowness and expectation.

• 4.    Luisa Baldinger, Santa Fe. Jar. 13.5x9x8

• A maker of containers all of my life in clay, I am intrigued by the vessel as a metaphor for peace, plenty, a sense of well-being, but also emptiness, hollowness and expectation.

• 5.    Kathy Bartlett, Santa Fe. Untitled 1. .5x6x6 

• 6.    Kathy Bartlett, Santa Fe. Untitled 2. 5.5x6x6 

• 7.    Dorothy Bassett, Austin, TX. Fiesta Blooms. 8x5x5 

• The vibrant colors on this porcelain vase remind me of the warm breezes and sunlit gardens of summer in central Texas where i have spent most of my adult life.

• 8.    Jorge Luis Bernal, Santa Fe. Los Apostoles. 17x17x1.5 

• Clay offers me 3-D opportunities to express through texture and color many special stories.

• 9.    Jorge Luis Bernal, Santa Fe. Claret Cup Cactus – Trio. 12x13x11 

• Clay offers me 3-D opportunities to express through texture and color many special stories.

• 10.  Steve Blakely, Rio Rancho. Tempest. 7.75x6

• My work is influenced by the late 1800’s “Arts & Crafts Movement” sometimes called “Craftsman” or “Mission”. Potters from that era that inspired me are Adelaide Alsop Robineau, George Ohr, Artus Van Briggle and others.

• 11.  Steve Blakely, Rio Rancho. Chalcolithic Echo. 9x4.75 

• My work is influenced by the late 1800’s “Arts & Crafts Movement” sometimes called “Craftsman” or “Mission”. Potters from that era that inspired me are Adelaide Alsop Robineau, George Ohr, Artus Van Briggle and others.

• 12.  Karin Bloom, Albuquerque. US Democracy 2025. 13.25x6.5x8.5 

• US Democracy 2025 

  The United States of America. 

  Home. 

  A Place I Thought I Knew. 

  Is Unrecognizable.

  Twisted. Declining. Unjust. 

  And 

  Falling Like Waves of Grief

• 13.  JB Bryan, Albuquerque. birds amongst themselves. 14x14x1 

• I work primarily with wild clay. This piece is clay dug near Placitas. White slip from Galisteo dam.  

• 14.  Amy Burnham, Cotopaxi, CO. Gaia Calls the Universe for Support. 14x9x9 

• Gaia calls the universe for support, Amy Burnham's entry in NMPCA's exhibit, Clay Speaks of Home is wheel thrown of ironstone clay, altered with additions of coils, leaves, flowers, mushrooms and stamps.

• 15.  Sheena Cameron, Rinconada. Equine Doll House. 9x16x5 

• I am best known for my ceramic and mixed media Messenger Horses. They open to reveal symbolic elements inside. They have miniature books with them to identify the gemstones and to set the theme for the piece.

• 16.  Sheena Cameron, Rinconada. Home of Celtic Fairies. 8X11X6 

• I make sculpture in clay and clay with mixed media.

• 17.  Barbara Campbell, El Rito. Egypt Story. 18x12x5

• I spent my life as a professional potter and my retirement doing fun sculptural work and teaching various types of clay artistry.                        

• 18.  Christiane Couvert, Placitas. Echoes in Blue and Ochre. 13x5.5

• Ceramic Artist from Belgium specializing in functional and artistically hand thrown ceramics, Combining the delicately formed clay with found and naturally weathered or hand carved wood, creating unique pieces. BelgianCeramics.com

• 19.  Kathryne Cyman, Albuquerque. Life Force. 2x2x2   x3 

• I sense a life force that exists in all things that perhaps, is home. This is especially when I'm at the potter's wheel and when I first hold the works from the kiln. I feel this even continues on and resides in the vessel.

• 20.  Monica Devine, Abiquiu/Eagle River, AK. Body as Border. 17x8x6 

• I work in figurative ceramics and mixed media incorporating women/animals/natural world. @monicadevine.art; monicadevine.com and animals

• 21.  Jaymes Dudding, Rio Rancho. Heading Home. 9x9x9 

• I am a clay artist living in Rio Rancho NM.  My work always begins as a thrown form on the potter’s wheel.  Then I push, paddle and stretch the clay to render the form.

• 22.  Jennifer Dunn, Santa Fe. Bogue Sound Oyster. 4.5x18x12.5 

• Growing up on an island, I foraged oysters from my backyard. Here in my desert home, I see the ocean reflected within its sandy arroyos, golden dune grasses, seaweed-like cactus, and watery monsoon waves.

• 23.  Adam Emery, Santa Fe. Bem. 13x12x6

• Bem is a monster I designed.

• 24.  Michele English, Santa Fe. Pig inn a Poke, or Up the Creek Without a Paddle 4.5x13.5x7 

• I began drawing, moved to print making and paper arts.  Since moving to Santa Fe, I found my newest love. Clay allows me to utilize skills I learned over my lifetime.

• 25.  Jasper Eyrich-Bingham, Silver City/Asheville. Restless Headspace. footprint 12” square

• “Restless Headspace” reflects a location many of us retreat to feel at home, the mind. This “home” is not always welcoming, comforting, or safe but it is a place where many live.

• 26.  Hebé Garcia, Abiquiu. Sisters of the Earth. 22.75x13.5x6 

• Three women stride together in New Mexico’s earth tones—ochre, terracotta, sage—their forms echoing ancient clay vessels. They embody spirits of earth and hearth, carrying ancestral wisdom and community bonds forward through timeless movement.

• 27.  Aurelia Gomez, Santa Fe. New Mexico Home: Homage to the Calf Canyon, Hermit’s Peak Fire. 7x5x4.5 

• Created during the Calf Canyon, Hermit's Peak forest fire. It was a really strange feeling to make house forms from clay and put the heated forms into combustible materials while the fire was raging nearby.

• 28.  Gail Goodwin, Taos. Pools of Exploration. 7x9.5x9.5 

• I have been working in the Raku tradition for about 15 years. The experience and finished work always seem to amaze and delight me.

• 29.  Sue Halpern, Santa Fe. Chemical Explosion. 5.5x5x5 + 2.5x2.5 + 2.5x2.5 

• I am a hand builder exploring alternative methods of finishing my pieces. This is a slab saggar piece.

• 30.  Doug Hein, Albuquerque. Arden. 7.5x6x3.5

• Doug is a ceramicist and visual artist focused on abstraction, color and refined forms. 'Arden' is a vessel about his concept of home before he moved to New Mexico, after decades in the Northeast, a green landscape oriented towards Europe and the ancient forests of England. You can see more of his work at blackriverclay.com and @blackriverclay on Instagram.

• 31.  Cheryl Hoagland, Santa Fe. Sheltered Home. 9x12x12 

• 32.  Madeline Hwang, Albuquerque. To Be Stone I.  3.5x1.3x3.5 

• These two functional vessels explore the delicate and temporary nature of flowers and the durability and grace reflected in porcelain, inviting mindfulness in daily rituals through consideration of humanity’s connection to nature.

• 33.  Madeline Hwang, Albuquerque. To Be Stone II.  4.1x1.4x4.3 

• These two functional vessels explore the delicate and temporary nature of flowers and the durability and grace reflected in porcelain, inviting mindfulness in daily rituals through consideration of humanity’s connection to nature.

• 34.  Lindsay Iliff, Santa Fe. Dire Beauty. 16x8x7

• I use coil and slab building methods to grow my ironstone pieces. I work from a body-centered space, calling in our collective memory and our essential kinship with living forms; to honor that integral relationship.

• 35.  Lindsay Iliff, Santa Fe. Birch Vessel. 14x5x4.5

• I use coil and slab building methods to grow my ironstone pieces. I work from a body-centered space, calling in our collective memory and our essential kinship with living forms; to honor that integral relationship.

• 36.  Lin Johnson, Albuquerque. Teapot. 5.75x7x5.25

• The teapot is a quintessential form and speaks of home in so many ways. Because of its many parts, it’s a challenging form to make.  I love teapots. I don’t think I’ll ever stop making them.

• 37.  Lin Johnson, Albuquerque. Sad….oh my country. 14x6x4 

• I made this piece in response to our current political and cultural climate. My work can be seen at Mariposa Gallery in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

• 38.  Elaine Kidd, Santa Fe. Incense Burner. 19x9.5x9.5 

• Crafted from micaceous clay, my incense burner is inspired by adobe homes. The house is adorned with organic shaped windows and decorated with pattern and shells echoing the universal creative spirit expressed in our homes.

• 39. Timothy Knight, Placitas. SlabCube 9x9x6 

• Although I enjoy working on the wheel, the slower process of building with slabs allows me to take a step back and focus on one piece at a time.

• 40.  Timothy Knight, Placitas. Basket. 9x5x6

• Altered thrown form with texture.

  
  

  See Part Two (pieces 41-80) here. 

By Darla Graff Thompson (ceramic sculptor and member of NMPCA since 2010)

With photos by Leonard Baca (ceramic artist and member of NMPCA since 2011)

Part Two

The exquisite (funerary?) urn of Mary Sharp Davis was inspired by a visit to a Japanese Buddhist compound.  Janeen Maas’ “Home is a Bowl” dazzles us with a large, life-like octopus reclining in a bowl with its tentacles looped every which way.  Form, color, texture and realism--- people surround it, taking it in and talking about it, and this piece seems to be a group favorite (as well as mine).  Nearby, in Hebe Garcia’s “Sisters of the Earth,” three elongated women in wide skirts walk in tight formation front-to-back (or the same woman walking in freeze-frame time?) and each in sequence turns her head further to the side--- the piece evolves and is spectacular to view as you walk around it, see it from all perspectives.  

"Going Home" by Mary Sharp-Davis.        

 "Bateau" by Jim Romberg. "Triplex" by Susan Mach. "Sisters of the Earth" by Hebé Garcia. "Home is a Bowl." by Janeen Maas.

On the wall, Alex Kurtz’ “Celestial Home” portrays swallows in and around their porcelain “mud” nests and demands a close-up viewing to appreciate the perfection of the birds against the harsh-graveled texture surrounding the nests.  Mounted in its wooden frame, really a loving portrait of nature.  Ellen Mancini’s “Nesting” is similar in topic, the nest as home, but with a simple beauty, more abstract and austere.  Nearby, another wall-hanging, “Shadowlands” by Mary Simmons, made me immediately think of a distilled representation of the colorful cliffs found around northern New Mexico and southern Utah, and I smiled when I read that Mary is formally trained as a geologist.  We can see that connection.  Really nice.

"Song: ABQ Main Canal" by Cirrelda SniderB. "Shadowlands" by Mary Simmons. "Celestial Home" by Alex Kurtz.                

 Several pieces of the show uniquely capture aspects of plant life, including the flowering “Claret Cups Cactus” of Jorge Luis Bernal, and the rusted, iron-spiked needles of Patty Martin’s large “Desert Home” cactus.  Greta Ruiz’ “Terra Star” presents us with an antique-looking, intricately-textured five-armed “juicy flower and weathered seed pod.”  In Cheryl Hoagland’s “Sheltered Home,” we can almost see the water currents swaying the branches of the sea anemone that provides home to a small fish.            

"Arden" by Doug Hein. "Can I Give You A Squeeze" by Andrea Pichaida. "Desert Home" by Patty Martin. "Claret Cup Cactus" by Jorge Luis Bernal. 

  "Terra Star" by Greta Ruiz.

"Sheltered Home" by Cheryl Hoagland.

 Next, I enjoy the discovery of Timothy Knight’s two pieces, “Basket” and “Slabcube” that are not displayed in the same vicinity--- because they are so different!  The former piece is exquisitely hand-crafted, organic, its textured recesses softly producing light and shadows alongside the shine of the glazed tiger-eye rim.  In contrast, his “Slabcube” is a harsh white box, an abandoned building, desolate and lonely with black windows for eyes, begging to be explored. 

"Slabcube" by Tim Knight. 

"Basket" by Tim Knight. Photo by the artist.

The originality of “Fisheye” by Harmony Martinez is refreshing, a porcelain eyeball of a great blue heron with a fish skeleton reflected in its pupil.  The piece feels deeply philosophical and one can only guess at the exact nature of the “despair” conveyed on behalf of this majestic bird.  Elizabeth Hunt’s large, fuzzy-textured “Harry Virus” tells us the COVID pandemic is far enough in our past that we can (mostly) safely smile about it, with just a hint of a shiver.   The shimmering and frosty-blue arms of a Dr. Seuss creature (or maybe the primordial sporangia of a slime mold’s reproductive cycle?) in Lindsay Iliff’s “Dire Beauty” are captivating, whatever they are--- tendrils growing, defying the gravity of some other world.  

   

"Fisheye" by Harmony Martinez. Photo by the artist.

"Harry Virus" by Elizabeth "Liz"Hunt. Photo by the artist.

"Dire Beauty" by Lindsay Iliff. Photo by the artist. 

         I love the petroglyphic fowl that adorn JB Bryan’s plate titled “birds amongst themselves” that was made of locally dug clay (Placitas) and slip (Galisteo).  Also, Steve Blakely’s “Tempest” impresses me with its industrial and forged structural elements smothered in an intricately-speckled contrast of intense cobalt and white glazing.  “Blushing Dawn” by Sheryl Zacharia is a large abstract study of architecture, geometry and color, impeccable in design and fabrication.  Sheena Cameron’s “Home of the Celtic Fairies” combines raku, glass and sculpted elements to create an otherworldly feel.  Charlotte Ownby’s sister pieces “Footprints in the Snow” and “Colors of my Dad’s Dream Car” convey a playful, cheerful element of childhood memory that I really enjoy.  The delicate and exquisite crystals of Christiane Couvert’s “Echoes in Blue and Ochre” are layered in a myriad of subtle and dreamlike textures with fields of fog and sea and sand.  These are the kinds of pieces I can look at for hours, admiring every nuance from the whole to the localized details.

  

"birds amongst themselves" by JB Bryan. Photo by the artist. 

 

 "Tempest" by Steve Blakely. Photo by the artist. 

 "Blushing Dawn"by Sheryl Zacharia. Photo by the artist. 

"Home of the Celtic Fairies" by Sheena Cameron.

"Footprints in the Snow" and "My Dad's Dream Car" by Charlotte Ownby. 

"Echoes in Blue and Ochre" by Christiane Couvert. Photo by the artist. 

In short, the exhibit is fantastic and not to be missed!  There are many more exciting and inspiring pieces than what I have had space to mention here.  The exhibit will run until 08 April 2026, and according to the SFCC website, gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday thru Friday. Closed for Spring Break March 30-April 3. 

---

Editor's note:

Ceramic sculptor and writer Darla Graff-Thompson entered her piece, "incompatibility" this year. 

Photographer, ceramic artist, graphic designer, webmaster for NMPCA, Leonard Baca entered his duo, "Mountains Shout for Joy" in this year's show. 

By Darla Graff Thompson (ceramic sculptor and member of NMPCA since 2010) 

With photos by Leonard Baca (ceramic artist and member of NMPCA since 2011)

Part One

The opening reception for the New Mexico Potters and Clay Artists’ annual Celebration of Clay show was held Thursday, 05 March, from 4:00 to 6:00 pm, at the Visual Arts Gallery at the Santa Fe Community College.  The event was very well attended and you could hear the joyful buzz of the crowd as you approached from the hallway.  I have been participating in Celebration of Clay exhibits for well over a decade, and in my opinion, the 80 pieces of this show are among the best I have seen.  Almost every piece is singularly captivating and begs to be explored and enjoyed in person--- such talent and diversity of expression, taken collectively, the show is a real joy to experience.  From the comments I overheard, many attendees felt this way.  The show is a real honor to the contributors and organizers. 

"Haven" by Lois Olcott Price. "Untitled I" by Kathy Bartlett. "El Camino Interior 1" by Diane MacInnes. "birch vessel" by Lindsay Iliff. "Body as Border" by Monica Devine. "Sad Oh My Country" by Lin Johnson. "Birth from the Sipapu" by Debi Smith. "Scent of Decay" by Lois Olcott Price.  "Cocoon" by Joey Serim. "Chemical Explosion" by Sue Halpern. "La Vida en un Tronco" by Melissa Alexander. "Climbing to Soar" by Jennifer Lowell.  "Untitled II" by Kathy Bartlett.  "Where Am I Going, Where Have I Been, Home is Where the Heart Is" by Nicole Merkens.

This year’s theme is “Clay Speaks of Home” --- not a requirement, but definitely evident in many of the ceramic pieces and titles.  The gallery space is beautiful--- large, open and welcoming, with pools of light directed down onto the scattered pedestals and showcases from the ceiling, inviting the viewer to traverse the room and focus individually on each piece or grouping of pieces.  In the entryway, a large display case holds a variety of pieces and wall hangings and gives a first glimpse of the variety and quality of artwork waiting in the main gallery.  The first piece in this case to catch my eye (and also one of my favorites of the entire show) is Nicole Merkens’ thoughtful and colorful sculptural portrait of a woman revealing her boxed heart and wearing a bright floral crown, titled “Where Am I Going, Where Have I Been? Home is Where the Heart Is.”  For me, this piece set the stage for all to come.  I like the conception of home in Debi Smith’s “Birth from the Sipapu,” where she brilliantly uses a saggar-fired vessel to convey an ancient stone kiva, complete with a wooden ladder leading down inside.  Lin Johnson won an award of merit with her wall-hanging caricature of a man titled “Sad…oh, my country,” which was made “in response to our current political and cultural climate,” and I couldn’t help but note the contrast with Karin Bloom’s similarly political-motivated piece in the main gallery, titled “US Democracy 2025.”  Lin’s sad and whimsical man and Karin’s unglazed ironstone monstrosity (which may be a nightmarish hint of a human head?) are two approaches to a thought-provoking and timely consideration of our national home and identity.

 

"US Democracy 2025" by Karin Bloom. 

 

"Arden" by Doug Hein. "Can I Give You A Squeeze" by Andrea Pichaida. 

Still in the display case, I find Sue Halpern’s “Chemical Explosion” fascinating, where an outer layer of the pot has apparently shattered and detached in large fragments, revealing a complex mesh of internal colors and textures.  It is reminiscent of a seed pod, something captivating you might come across in nature, and in this sense similar to Kathy Bartlett’s nearby raku-fired pieces “Untitled I and II.”  In the main gallery, Jenna Ritter’s “Sanctum,” a mysterious pit-fired shape of locally-dug clay, gives me a similar feeling of finding some strange and intriguing artifact of nature.  Andrea Pichaida’s “Can I Give You A Squeeze” strikes me as abstractly organic and seed-like but whimsical in color and texture, the intimate halves producing a curious little tear in the internal fabric of the hole.  The imperfection seems meaningful.

"Footprints in the Snow" and "My Dad's Dream Car" by Charlotte Ownby. "Sanctum" by Jenna Ritter.

Background clockwise to foreground: "Jestersaurus" and "Spiked Turtledon" by Stacy Pope Hein. "Nesting" by Ellen Mancini. "New Mexico Home" by Aurelia Gomez. "Gaia Calls in the Universe for Support" by Amy Burnham. "Teapot" by Lin Johnson. "Egypt" by Barbara Campbell. "rocksteady" by Jenna Ritter. "Terra Star" by Greta Ruiz. 

In the main gallery, several enclosures house some of the smaller or more delicate entries such as Stacy Pope Hein’s playful and imaginative bone-and-clay constructs titled “Jestersaurus” and “Spiked Turtledon,” as well as Amy Burnham’s intricate “Gaia Calls in the Universe For Support” with its outstretched tree-like branches and roots.

Doug Hein’s “Arden” is an impeccably-constructed vessel in which I envision a man’s torso dressed in a button-up silk shirt for a night on the town.  Jennifer Dunn’s “Bogue Sound Oyster” somehow combines an essence of sea and desert, frozen sand that has been rippled by waves and holds a few scattered barnacles.  Nearby, Judy Nelson-Moore’s large seashell construct titled “The Long Road Home” reminds me of a queen conch-shell with a hardened outer layer protecting a delicate and tender internal foot that hints of soft, internally-layered depths.  This sculpture is made of paper clay, and Judy tells me the remarkable texture of the rough outer shell is a direct imprint she made of the asphalt driveway that leads to her home.  Made me have to look at it all over again!  

"Bogue Sound Oyster" by Jennifer Dunn.

"The Long Road Home" by Judy Nelson-Moore. 

Luisa Baldinger’s saggar-fired “Bowl” was made all the more interesting to me by her existential statement about a life-long fascination with vessels “as a metaphor for peace, plenty, a sense of well-being, but also emptiness, hollowness and expectation.”  This piece could be displayed on a mirror so that the textures/colors on the undersurface could be fully appreciated alongside those on the top!  Other saggar-fired pieces with their intricate color/texture included Baldinger’s “Jar” (winning Best of Show) and Leonard Baca’s “Mountains Shout for Joy”--- the latter of which made me think of pointed-tip Moorish minarets or Russian onion domes, solemnly directed heavenwards.   

 

"Bowl" by Luisa Baldinger. "The Long Road Home" by Judy Nelson-Moore. "Ben" by Adam Emery.            

"Jar" by Luisa Baldinger.

"To Be Stone II" by Madeline Hwang. "To Be Stone I" by Madeline Hwang.  "Fisheye"by Harmony Martinez.  "Restless Headspace" by Jasper Eyrich-Bingham. "Emperor Penguin Jar" by Lisa McEneaney. "Rooster Plate 2" by Judith Richey.  "Mountains Shout For Joy" by Leonard Baca.

--- Part Two will continue this review. 

In short, the exhibit is fantastic and not to be missed!  There are many more exciting and inspiring pieces than what I have had space to mention here.  The exhibit will run until 08 April 2026, and according to the SFCC website, gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday thru Friday. Closed for Spring Break March 30-April 3.

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Editor's note:

Writer and ceramic sculptor Darla Graff Thompson says she joined NMPCA for opportunities "...[to] meet others with similar interests in clay and learn new things she might be interested to use" ... also had a piece in the show, entitled "incompatibility."

"incompatibility" by Darla Graff Thompson. 

By Nicole Merkens

I slipped in early to see Celebration of Clay 2026 Clay Speaks of Home at Santa Fe Community College. The opening reception was set for March 5 from 4 to 6 pm at the Visual Arts Gallery, 6401 Richards Avenue in Santa Fe. I wanted the quiet before the crowd. I wanted to hear the work breathe.

The Visual Arts Gallery at the Santa Fe Community College, with the show, Clay Speaks of Home. Photo by Nicole Merkens. 

This year the show was blind juried by Elizabeth Hunt, Santa Fe, Serit deLopaz Kotowski, Taos, and Mary Sharp Davis, Albuquerque.  Seventy-six artists as well as the jurors stepped forward to wrestle with the notion “Clay Speaks of Home.”

That topic is not simple. It is loaded. It carries dust, memory, grief, safety and longing.

The gallery was full. Pieces lined the space in every shape and size. There were more than I could count. A display case greeted you at the entrance, like a small prologue before the main story unfolded.

The "Black Box" display. Photo by Nicole Merkens.

What struck me first was how personal and how vast the idea of home really is. Artists came from every corner of the Land of Enchantment. Their work did not whisper. It held its ground.

This kind of show asks something of you. It asks you to slow down. To stand in front of a piece longer than feels normal. To consider the hands that shaped it and the life behind those hands.

Pieces shown: Judy Nelson-Moore's "Long Road Home," Jennifer Dunn's "Bogue Sound Oyster." Photo by Nicole Merkens. 

There is a thick book of artist statements in the gallery. Do not skip it. Inside, you find the pulse behind the clay.

Jasper Eyrich Bingham writes, “This is my clay that speaks of a rugged home, a dark home, an authentic home. It is my place of retreat, where I go when there is nowhere else to go. The best place, or worst, is that it’s never far away.”

That line stayed with me. “Never far away”.

This is why we make art. Not to decorate a room, but to give form to the things we cannot say out loud. To purge what sits heavy in the chest. To build a place of retreat out of mud and fire.

Opening night carried its own charge. Artists stood near their pieces. Students moved in clusters. Collectors leaned in close. The room felt alive.

Pieces shown: Christiane Couvert's "Echoes in Blue and Ochre," Dorothy Bassett's "Vase 2," Lindsay Iliff's "Dire Beauty," Elaine Kidd's "Incense Burner," Michele English's "Pig in a Poke," and Steve Blakely's "Tempest" in foreground. Photo by Nicole Merkens. 

Congratulations to the winners of the night; Best in show: Luisa Baldinger. Coyote Color in Clay Award: Adam Emery. Arita Porcelain Award: Kathryne Cyman. Merit Award: Jasper Eyrich-Bingham. Merit Award: Greta Ruiz. Merit Award: Lin Johnson.

From vessels to animals, figures to creatures, from function to abstraction, the show stretches wide. It refuses to define home in one way.

I left thinking about my own.

Where am I going.
Where have I been.

The clay keeps asking.

Best of Show: Luisa Baldinger, "Jar." Photo by Leonard Baca. 

Coyote Color in Clay Award: Adam Emery, "Bem." Photo by Leonard Baca. 

Arita Porcelain Award for Quality, Beauty, Functionality:  Kathryne Cyman, "Life Force." Photo by Kathryne Cyman. 

Award of Merit: Jasper Eyrich-Bingham, "Restless Headspace." Photo by Leonard Baca. 

Award of Merit:  Lin Johnson, "Sad ... Oh My Country." Photo by Leonard Baca. 

Award of Merit: Greta Ruiz, "Terra Star." Photo by Leonard Baca. 

"Terra Star." By Greta Ruiz. Photo by Leonard Baca. 

Editor's note:

Nicole Merkens, NMPCA member, entered piece entitled, “Where Am I Going Where Have I Been Home Is Where The Heart Is," shown below. She describes her interests as “making clay relationships, and workshops.”

With the 2026 Annual Meeting less than two weeks away, here's a big reason to attend - vote for and welcome Jessica Archibeque and Rachel Palley. Already advocates in the clay community, members now can thank them for stepping up for our statewide organization. 

Looking forward to seeing you Saturday, February 21 at 11:30 at South Valley Multipurpose Senior Center. Please register here so we can make you a name tag. Directions a map will also be found at registration page.

Without further ado, let's hear from our two new candidates!

NMPCA Board Candidate Jessica Archibeque

What do you think you would like to contribute as a member of the board of NMPCA? I would love to help with events, workshops, philanthropy, and building the community.

What in your background makes you interested in NMPCA? My interest is in being part of the clay community and the devotion to add and enrich by sharing this interest.

What would you hope to gain personally by being a part of NMPCA board? I hope to gain the experience of working on a board and collaborating with other artists. 

Jessica Archibeque is a sculptural ceramic artist and potter from Albuquerque, New Mexico. She studied ceramics and sculpture at the University of New Mexico, where she built a strong foundation in both handbuilding and wheel thrown work. Her practice is rooted in storytelling, craftsmanship, and curiosity about the natural world, often drawing inspiration from botanicals, insects, and organic forms. Jessica is also the owner of Cerámica, a community-centered pottery studio in Albuquerque, created as a welcoming space for creativity, connection, and continued learning. 

NMPCA Board Candidate Rachel Palley 

What do you think you would like to contribute as a member of the board of NMPCA? I would like to contribute my recruiting abilities to find more members. I have 10 years of recruiting experience across multiple industries.

What in your background makes you interested in NMPCA? I recently became the owner of New Mexico Clay and I think by joining the Board I can be an asset by connecting with other potters on a daily basis. 

What would you hope to gain personally by being a part of NMPCA board? I would like to meet more members and build lasting relationships with potters in New Mexico. I would also like New Mexico Clay to become a place where members can meet or host workshops.

I grew up quite literally surrounded by clay. New Mexico Clay has been part of my life for as long as I can remember, and is where I learned how to listen, how to problem-solve, and how creativity and hard work live side by side. It shaped not only my understanding of pottery, but my values as a person. Now that my dad is retired and I stepped into his role, it is not lost on me how important it is that New Mexico Clay not only continues on, but thrives, so that it can serve the community of artists that have supported the store all these years.

Prior to working at New Mexico Clay, I obtained my associates degree in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) with a concentration in Cartography. It allowed my love for maps to blend with art, as mapmaking is a creative outlet not known to many. I also spent over a decade recruiting for multiple industries which allowed me to create meaningful relationships with people. I intend on using the skills I’ve perfected throughout my life to encourage more creatives to join the NMPCA. 

I am where I’m meant to be, at New Mexico Clay, to continue making clay for everyone who is inspired to create.

 A new feature of our Annual Member Show, Celebration of Clay, begins this year. From now on, each year at Celebration of Clay we will be honoring a contemporary ceramic artist whose contributions to the New Mexico clay community are exceptional. We begin this year with ceramic artist, teacher and program director, Kathryne Cyman. In addition to her being a Professor of Practice in Arita Porcelain method at UNM, she also has been an active member of NMPCA and has served as both president and vp on the board. 

Lin Johnson on the Celebration of Clay committee this year came up with the idea, and has penned this article about Kathy. It will be framed to hang in the show, next to a bowl Kathy selected to especially represent her vision. 

Kathryne Cyman bowl: "natilus"

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The New Mexico Potters and Clay Artists would like to honor Kathryne Cyman for her outstanding achievements in contemporary ceramics in New Mexico. Kathryne has devoted herself to practicing and teaching the art of Arita porcelain vessels, a 400 year Japanese pottery tradition, since 1991. She began her advocation studying at the University of New Mexico with Dr. James Srubek and Japanese National Treasure, Sensei Manji Inoue in 1987. In 1997 she received an Artist-in-Residence award to study for three months in Takeo on the Island of Kyushu, Japan. When Dr. Srubek retired, she was selected by Sensei Inoue and Dr. Srubek to continue the art of Arita Porcelain Vessels at UNM where she teaches today. Kathy has traveled to Japan six times often accompanied by her students to share in the rare, cultural experience of Japan and and art of Arita porcelain. Many New Mexico potters have benefited from studying with Kathy and give back to the community as a result.

As an expert in her field she has given numerous public lectures including “A Shared Journey of International Influence” 2016 Hakome, Japan and with the UNM International Task Force Art & Culture Group of Dr. Brian Foster, 2004. Kathy was a USA sponsor of selected Pueblo and Navajo children’s ceramic artwork for “The World’s Children’s Festival” in Takeo Japan, 1997.

Kathy has received recognition for her own exquisite work. In 2003 she was recognized by Congresswoman Heather Wilson during Women’s History Month and as a Local Treasure by the AABA 2008. Her work has been exhibited in local Albuquerque galleries, the Weyrich Gallery, the Santa Fe Museum of Fine Arts 2000, and in Takeo, Japan at the International Invited Artists Exhibition l & II. She currently exhibits her work online and at the annual NMPCA "Celebration of Clay.”

We are proud and honored to count Kathryne Cyman as part of our clay community and today we honor her significant contributions.

“I find Sensei’s philosophy of ‘art is a way not a thing’ at the center of my creative process. There is a mystical element that connects me to the past and present at the same time within the practice of this art. I hope that essence is felt in my works when they are used.”  K. Cyman

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Submitted by Lin Johnson, January 2026.

Kathy's bowl also appears on the logo for the show. 

If you have experienced the wonderful Silver City CLAY Festival in the past two years, perhaps you have met our member of the month. Susan Mach's ceramic oeuvres may also have been visible in a storefront window, too. It's great to hear from another Silver City clay artist. 

How did you first get interested in clay? 

As an art student at UC Santa Barbara, my emphasis was in printmaking, specifically screen printing, but I also admired work coming out of the ceramics studio. I was curious about how the two media might overlap. I took one semester of ceramics while at UCSB, caught the bug and studied more after graduation through junior colleges and workshops since I knew I wanted to add ceramics to my high school teaching repertoire.  A stint in the Peace Corps (Kenya) working with women’s income generating projects, one of which was a group working in clay, also gave me experience in local clay gathering, building and firing methods.   

 

"Squash Blossom" wall piece.  By Susan Mach, photo by the artist. 

Describe your studio.  

My retirement gift to myself, after 30 years of teaching, was to have a studio built next to my home in Silver City. It’s a very simple, rectangular space that’s filled with all my curiosities for working in clay: bits of textured this-n-that’s, forms collected for hand building, decorating tools and colorants, resource books, sketchbooks filled with ideas from recent days to years gone by. It’s a very eclectic mix of precious goods that inspire me and help me create the diverse work I do, which is also on display in the studio. 

 

"Wren Dish." By Susan Mach. Photo from the artist. 

Describe your “work”.   

My work is very diverse. People often walk into my studio, look around and ask if this is all MY work. I display pieces that I created as examples while teaching along with my current work. Many of the older works show examples of various building and decorating techniques and I find I still love that diversity. I wanted my students, especially advanced students in both Art and Ceramics, to be introduced to as much as they could absorb. Along the way I realized how much I was teaching myself as I searched for what I wanted to offer them. The mixing of ideas from other media often shows up in my clay work.

Describe any work you do that promotes “clay community."

I’ve been organizing the Silver City CLAY Festival market for the past two years and will continue in 2026. It’s been a great way to meet ceramic artists from around the Southwest and share in their experiences. (Shameless promo: Don’t hesitate to contact me if you’re interested in vending this year!)

The clay community in Silver City is small enough that we all know each other and can be in touch as a group very quickly. That group was very generous when asked last year to donate towards a silent auction to benefit CLAY Festival’s market. 

Being represented by Diana Ingalls Leyba Gallery in Silver City has also introduced me to the Youth Mural Project that Diana has run for years. I’ve only been in her gallery for a year, but look forward to being introduced to more “community” through her work.

"Tack Ware Vase. Yucca Platter. Herring Vase." By Susan Mach. Photo from the artist. 

When you are not working in your studio, what do you enjoy?

When not in my studio, I enjoy walking the open land around my home, cycling (tame trails!), reading, visiting with local friends/artists, foreign travel and just relaxing at home with my partner and pets.

Do you play music in your studio? If yes, what do you listen to?

I often work without music playing in my studio. One door is usually open to listen for birds, deer and other visitors, and to keep an eye on my dog, Nelson, who often supervises me. I do, however, have a good friend living in Washington who, monthly, sends me CD’s of any and every type of music imaginable. It’s always educating to listen to what he sends!

What other pottery do you have in your home?

My pottery collection includes mostly functional pieces from workshop instructors, NCECA trips, foreign travel and local ceramic artists. I’m also the savior of old family dish collections!

What caused you to join NMPCA? Describe involvement with NMPCA, and how many years you have been involved. 

I joined NMPCA after meeting Jenna Ritter, who was a vendor in the CLAY Festival market two years ago and also took part in the annual festival exhibition. She’s a great promoter and a kind, interesting person. This is my second year as a member and was excited to participate in last year’s Celebration of Clay exhibit at Light Art Space in Silver City. I look forward to participating in more NMPCA events.

Working in studio, Blankets at Night. Photo from the artist, Susan Mach. 

With great pleasure we announce our jurors for Celebration of Clay 2026: Liz Hunt of Santa Fe,  Serít deLopaz Kotowski of Taos, Mary Sharp Davis of Albuquerque. 

Elizabeth Hunt

A rolling stone might gather no moss but I think it gathers a much more interesting patina. I have lived in many places in my life from London, England to Kingston, Jamaica to Detroit, Michigan to Long Beach, California to Chicago, Illinois and now Santa Fe, New Mexico. This restless nature directly affects my work and I can move from one series to the next in the blink of an eye. This might not be comfortable for people to figure out what my work is about but it has kept me interested in clay for about 30 years. Clay has the potential to become anything and it is that potential which is at once both daunting and electrifying.

Liz is the Head of Ceramics at Santa Fe Community College where this year's exhibit will be held. 

Liz Hunt. 

Serít Inez deLopaz Kotowski 

Born: In a vacuum

Named: Sherrie Inez Kotowski

Re-Named: Serít Inez deLopaz Kotowski

Serit del Bosque Studio

Currently: Still breathing. Still curious, still outspoken and unbearably shy in a bold way; in other words, unpredictable and many times contrarily fickle.

Past lives: Cat X 9 including a scaredy cat.  Student, teacher, caretaker, gardener, dabbler, dancer, lover, nurse, mother, maker, sailor, voyeur, child, adult, rebel, fool, creator, destroyer, loner, hermit, daredevil, heartbreaker, earth shaker, firebrand, warrior, idiot, chicken shit… to name a few in no particular order.

Intention: Live life to the fullest and ultimately leave only beauty in my wake.

The Thread: Artist and Participant.

For decades now I have taken many chances, challenges and dares that have been offered up. My experience lies in the things I leave behind.

Serít deLopaz Kotowski.

Mary Sharp Davis  

Some history:

After moving from Las Vegas in 1971 I returned to Albuquerque Where I had previously earned a BFA in painting and drawing from UNM. Being a new mother at the time and working as a sign printer I wanted to get back into the arts and when I first experienced someone throw a tall vase from a lump of clay I was enchanted. I had no wheel or kiln but took a community college class through UNM where I learned to handbuild. A couple of years later I joined a wheel throwing class and learned the basics about throwing and glazing and made friends with women who owned a studio and allowed me to fire there. Except for a few Ghost Ranch (when I could afford them) workshops with the newly formed NMPCA, I created my own studio workspace in the South Valley of Albuquerque. I loved the fact that clay offered such 3-dimensional versatility and was so tactile. It is truly an alchemical experience!  At first, I used a pit fire and sand blasted method to give my pots a sense of age and wear. that the dessert inspires. My new husband and I built our first kiln from bricks salvaged at an old brick yard that when fired, bellowed fire from every crack and cranny.  That was a disaster waiting to happen!  Several months later we built our first soft brick kiln with help from someone that knew what they were doing and it was a cone 10 dream come true. Years later I transitioned to an electric kiln and cone 6 firings. At age 80 I broke down my studio as I could no longer deal with the heaviness and work involved. I am now focused on painting once again but am still a lover of all that is clay!

Mary Sharp Davis.

Taos artist Serit deLopaz Kotowski shares with us this month. Long associated with NMPCA in many capacities, she is an active participant in the vibrant ceramic community where she lives. 

How did you first get interested in clay?

Let me think, I grew up in the Mojave Desert so there wasn't much mud but I definitely loved sand and dirt. And the way the wind could fill the sky with it.

 

"Home." Serit's piece that won Best of Show at the 2025 Celebration of Clay: Of Mind and Matter in Silver City at the Light Art Space. 

Describe your studio. 

I have two studios. One in home I call “my studio”. It literally occupies about 1/3 of my residence including the gallery. The work space is very cluttered with things covering all the horizontal surfaces. I clear out portions to make work. I have lots of clay; wet and waiting to be recycled. I have a friend, Jaques du Potier, who is a Pug Meister. The clay part of the studio is a general wreck.

The other is the Taos UNM studio. I love being around other people who are interested in learning. Lee Akins has been fantastic as a professor and an inspiration in helping me to make sense of how 1 + 1 can equal 4. It's hard to describe in words; kind of like the quantum physics of clay working.

 

Photo of the artist and kiln. Provided by the artist. 

 Soda Goddess. By Serit.  

Describe your “work.”

My work is a reference to spurious antiquities. Earth forms are a great reference as well as entropy. Robert Smithson continues be a great inspiration as well as the “earth workers” of the 70's and 80's. Also, I traveled extensively in Southeast Asia and how people manipulated new materials  to look very old. I have brought that into the clay work. My work looks as if it has been weathered by the elements and formed by forces of nature. I build large sculptural vessels and name many of them after cross cultural Goddesses. 

"Cocoon." Serit's piece that she entered in the 2025 Sunport Ceramic Showcase at the Albuquerque Sunport.

"Ashera." By Serit deLopaz Kotowski. 

Describe any work you do that promotes “clay community."

I don't know so much about the “clay community” promotion but I have focused many works on “globalization of nuclear energy and nuclear weapons” in New Mexico and the overwhelming negative effects on all living beings.

 

When you are not working in your studio, what do you enjoy?

My friends and Flamenco. I also have a job; I am not retired.

 

"Full Moon Over Mora 2022."  By Serit deLopaz Kotowski. 

Do you play music in your studio? If yes, what do you listen to?

No music for me, I listen to podcasts. Trevor Noah because he is young and from the continent of Africa. Through Lines because young people connect the past with the present. This is Love because “love” is such a basic instinct and comes in so many ways. Nuclear Hotseat because it is the pulse of nuclear activism and Time Zero because it is artists and activism on the edge.  All of them keep me informed.

What other pottery do you have in your home?

I collect. I buy and trade and I have been for years.

"Ma'at."  By Serit deLopaz Kotowski. 

What caused you to join NMPCA? Describe involvement with NMPCA, and how many years you have been involved.

I wanted to be more involved with other people who saw clay as an inspiration and a home coming. I have been on the board off and on and have been a part of many projects including Celebration of Clay in Taos, the Sunport Show three times, and as chair of the Bill Armstrong Grant; giving away money is great!

Photo of the artist, supplied by the artist.