Ruminations

Perhaps I am a wee bit schizophrenic, or, maybe it's just my Gemini nature manifesting itself, but my work seems to vacillate between rather rigid formal geometric patterns and construction,and much looser, organic and seemingly random patterns. And, as the work evolves, bits and pieces of previous patterns get recycled into newer clay incarnations, leaving a fossil like trail through my pieces... Making patterns in colored clay often results in a loaf that is pretty big. It can be boring for me to slice and form many similar plates or bowls all the same size and the same pattern, so sometimes I just wrap up the unused loaf in plastic and put it aside for a while. As time passes I accumulate a number of partial loaves, and while viewing them I get the urge to just stick some complimentary ones together to create a whole new "patchwork" pattern, something like a crazy quilt. I have found that adding a border enhances the "presentation" of the patchwork, giving it a frame and touch of formality.