i'm so happy to get to spend some time with you here! i am the ceramic artist and owner of her name is mud (and everything in between). i live in sunny arizona with my husband and three children. my family made room in our home for a ceramic studio where i promptly covered the floors in blush penny tile, opening the door to the studio fills me with joy!
i fire my work in a kiln which was a surprise christmas gift from my husband. i named my kiln betty and i say she is my fourth and most termpermental child. i tuck my pieces in and the anxiously wait while i leave her to her work. ceramics is the only art form where all four elements: earth, water, air and fire factor themselves into your finished product. i have learned that clay has a personality and a will of its own which i find quite beautiful; its my job to guide it along and offer encouragement, to show it what it could be if we trust the process
i think you will soon find i have a healthy obsession for color and its ability to express what words cannot. my color stories will always include desert tones, it simply cannot be helped! the desert is one of my most persuasive sources of inspiration.
i find beauty in the seemingly ordinary moments, in the familiar scent of a loved one, the details of vintage items, the curves of a female figure, books with the page corners turned down, a fond memory, the sound of water flowing, the weight of a sleeping baby on my chest or the little puffy hand of my child tangled in mine.
i look to nature for the purest expression of beauty. i love a clever cover of a song, sheets warm from the dryer, the twinkling night sky when you are out in the country, sitting on the porch with nowhere to be, unglazed terracotta pots with a patina only time can issue, a genuine expression of love, wind tousled hair, the final tap of a wooden spoon on a slow simmering pot and the call for everyone to gather, the smell of the desert after rainfall, connection when you were strangers just a moment before, love notes from flowers. creativity, community and kindness are especially important to me.
as an artist i aim to create ceramics that are thoughtfully designed and beautifully made. there is a warmth and grounding effect that radiate from items crafted by hand with care and intention, they carry the ability to elevate the ordinary. the pieces we collect for our homes allow us to attend to each moment more fully, draw more attention to the significance of daily rituals, savor small moments, and find joy in the act of homemaking
