“i use a pure white high-fire porcelain made with english kaolin. the clay is mixed in small 20 lb. batches, starting with a wet, pudding-like slurry that is poured onto plaster bats and later wedged. mixing such a small quantity allows the clay to remain as clean as possible. the amount of clay is, by pottery standards, miniscule. my manhood suffers. my clay body is formulated to fire dense with as little warping as possible — it’s always a balance. when i mix clay, i’m a technician, not an artist.
…
“start to finish, the process takes longer than i’d like. 8 weeks? 10 weeks? more. I’m a father now. I have a real baby. my work happens at a more unusual pace. working slowly poses problems: it’s tough to maintain the early energy of a piece; big ideas are slow to evolve; the temptation to make each piece a masterpiece is unhealthy. for an artist hoping to make a name, the novel ‘obsessive quality’ has become a true, tall hurdle. i recognize, however, that each piece informs the next one. so i trudge through it. i love the completion. sometimes i love the result. i believe i am making the right work.”
