Commonwheel Artists Co-op

ESTABLISHED 1974

Artist Statement:
From the first time I touched clay--in my first pottery class--I sensed there was something special about the way this substance felt in my hands. What I didn't realize at the time was that this introduction was the beginning of a life-long love that would blossom into a career that would form the rest of my life.

Years of making functional tableware provided grounding for the person as much as the ware. When life's upsets have come to roost for a time, I feel blessed to be able to recall the notion that "as one centers the clay, one centers the self' -- as throwing pots. Then, the act of potting becomes therapeutic beyond the mere making of pots. As I now know, the practice of meditation works, too.

In recent years I have been able to fire my work in kilns that are fired with wood, instead of gas or electricity, and find that the effects of this kind of firing resonate quite deeply with my personal aesthetics. While there always seems to be a functional reference to the current work, I observe that woodfiring pushes me increasingly toward sculptural solutions to my everyday issues. I am often stunned at the beauty that the flames and ash deposits do to the work I produce.

If the viewer understands only a little of the joy I derive from this work, we are both honored.

ROGER TOLZMAN