Elizabeth Kendall

Elizabeth was one of the charming artists I met last Saturday at Red Dirt Studios we are hoping to exhibit her lovely functional work at NIH in 2008. More dirt to come...

Artist Statement
My past is present in my work. The old family photos that entertained me as a child are rich with textured fabrics, puffy sleeves, and even floppy hair bows that offer myriad ideas about form and shape. But, when I look at a photograph I see so much more than ideas for pattern and shape, much more than the event portrayed. Remembered stories and phases blend to become unintentional poetry that must be expressed.

With these images as a starting point and using both the tools and techniques of the sewing room and the clay studio I can create forms that are objects in their own right or building blocks for other constructions. As both bricks and windows the work can obscure or reveal.

Half-finished pieces, and broken bits, even the play of light and shadow within the work draw my ideas through unexpected doorways. A change in material or scale offers a different perspective, influencing the conversation between my hand and the clay. Elizabeth's web site here