My fascination with pottery goes back to my student days when I took classes as a distraction from the rigours of my university studies. It was many years before I resumed my work with clay in 1980.

 

Since that time I have been largely self-taught and I have found great satisfaction in striving to create pots that aesthetically pleasing while being functional and practical for daily use and enjoyment. Raku firing is a great interest and the aesthetics of Japanese pottery are a constant influence.

 

My desire in spending time at C.R.E.T.A. has been to break away from the constraints of functional pottery and rediscover the joy of clay and its ability to take on a multitude of forms. Although the influence of Rome on one’s work seems like a cliché, I have discovered that it is very real and pervasive. I have also found myself influenced by the proximity of the ghetto which has reawakened an awareness of my Jewish heritage, its history and its traditions. The pots in this exhibition are the starting point for a new direction in my journey with ceramics and I am excited by the prospect of where this journey will take me.