Janet Greer ~ Artist Statement

Predictable, unpredictable, exhilarating, profound, safe, carefree, familiar, untried, are words that describe characteristics I find captivating and fresh about working with clay.  Interestingly, they also describe some of the things that draw me time and time again to the areas of our country set aside as our National Parks.  Working in clay and visiting the parks takes me back in time, to moments that profoundly impacted my life. My current body of ceramic art consists of vertical containers, platters and serving bowls, reflective of  immense park vistas and minute details, for nourishing and feeding the soul. Surface applications and materials give each piece features that distinguish it as representative of a particular park.

After reviewing images from each park, I make sketches and indicate whether the piece will be a serving bowl or platter, and decide which particular clay body will best reflect the geology of the park.  Will it be porcelain, red brick, or stoneware clay bodies, and will it be colored by reduction, wood, electric or soda firing methods?  Various foot and rim statements and surface finishes are explored.  Test tiles are made.  Final decisions are made and the process of actually creating the piece begins.

Consider these words: home, nourishment, memories, all basic to the human experience. Nature, elements, fire and water, are also basic and representational of the human experience. My work joins these concepts and tells some of my story.