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Tad Hill Directions: From Downtown Greenville, take Church Street to Wade Hampton. Continue on Wade Hampton past the Wal-Mart.Turn left on Edwards Mill Road. Turn first left at Indian Trail. Brick house on the left: #429. Title: Spiral Vase Artist Statement: My first love is to make a form, small or large, that has volume, nice lines, caresses the eye and that one would want to hold. I create forms that lift like a balloon or that pull downwards with tension at the neck like a raindrop ready to release from a branch. Continually trying to improve my technique, I slow down; squeeze the clay with a little more confidence, rhythm, harmonic speed, movement, and timing. Firm then soft. Sometimes the hum of the wheel resonates inside a large form like a mantra. I feel as though I have an intimate relationship with my media. Clay requires me to be very physical, not necessarily forceful, but I need to have a sensitive feel in order to wedge to the right consistency, center on the wheel, plunge, open, pull, shape, and stretch the clay. I trim at the right point and with the right amount of pressure. I weigh, mix, and apply glazes. I fire in gas kilns that I researched, designed and constructed. Throughout a firing, I adjust the mixture of gas and oxygen. I time the rise and fall of the kiln's temperature. The atmosphere changes from dull red, to orange, yellow, and then to white like the sun. Green flames from the stack tell me that the kiln is in reduction. I spend hours around the kiln in all types of weather. All of the time and variables involved would surprise most. I try to create ceramic art that unifies both two and three dimensional elements and principles. Whether my approach is loose and fluid or more controlled and detailed, my glazing techniques enhance the forms that I create. I find inspiration from relationships, personal photographs, imagination, music and direct observation of my environment. I then apply glazes, stains, and oxides, in a variety of methods: Dipping, pouring, brushing, spraying, squeezing from a bottle, and experimenting with different combinations. The imagery that I create on my pottery reflects my work in two-dimensional drawings and paintings. Some representational, others abstract. I'm interested in gesture and figure drawing. I try to produce a flowing line quality thick to thin. Fast and spontaneous movements and drawing from the shoulder with a minimal number of lines, these things are challenging on a round surface. I'm also interested in abstract and landscape painting. I try to show depth, perspective, layers, and painterly brush strokes. By developing my skills, awareness, and exploring the possibilities of working with process and material, my clay creations are like souvenirs of my life where I rediscover who I was, who I am, and how I would like to change. |
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