2005 Award Winners

I have always used art as a means of self expression, from my first container of play-dough to portfolio and AP classes in high school. I've tried a variety of mediums and techniques, and so far have enjoyed clay and sculpting the most. I like the idea of "playing creator", the freedom of expression, and the malleability and forgiving qualities of clay. My sculptures involve mainly my own memories and thought process; they concentrate on how different thoughts flow together and mix. (My 3-D portfolio is more recent, my 2- D work consists mainly of still life and portrait drawings.)

I will be attending Virginia Comrnonwealth University in the fall and hope to major in sculpture. I would like to continue pursuing an education in art and hope my future career will involve sculpture in some way. For the past few years I've been working as an assistant to a potter with a private studio, and hope to have a studio of my own some day.

The first project we completed in Ceramics class was my favorite; it was a dowel-expansion clay bottle where we were assigned to carve on the outside. This project opened my eyes to the potential of a simple clay form (the same potential a blank canvas has to a painter) as a place to express myself.