My relationship with pottery is long. My parents are potters and I grew up working in production from the age of 4. I made pots in their studio throughout middle school, high school, and college. I focused on wood fired pottery in college till a quick and unexpected change to conceptual installation in my final year. I graduated with a BFA in Ceramics and Sculpture but returned to pots after graduation. From 2010 till 2016 I was a production potter. I built a studio in the River Arts District in Asheville, NC firing midrange electric. and was there for three years. I moved to Longmont, Colorado in 2013 and became a member of the Boulder Potters Guild where I began firing my work to cone 4 with soda. Soda firing brought out new depth and colors that I found captivating and beautiful. In 2016 the soda kiln went under repair and I no longer had access to it. I couldn’t bring myself to go back to firing my pots in electric. My interests had already begun to turn towards figurative sculpture. The combination of an equipment change and a impactful assistantship with Patti Warashina changed the course of my work away from functional pottery to ceramic sculpture. I loved my pots and have a cherished collection of the best that I use in my home. Every once in a while I get the urge and make a short run of bowls and mugs and my multimedia installation and sculpture is heavily informed by this background. Learning clay from a functional standpoint gives a strong and nuanced understanding of clay that is a strength for any other application of the material.