Rebecca Morton

Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania

Title: Growth

Year of Creation: 2004

Glaze: Cone 10 oxidation neutral

Clay Body: Porcelain

Dimensions: Height 19 inches, Width 12 inches

Artist's Statement: Nature finds voice in form. Nature blooms, cycles through the seasons. The power of nature's ability to regenerate is inconceivable. It is not always apparent why things are shaped the way they are, but nature is constantly creating similar forms over and over again. Within these similarities there is never an equivalent. With diversity there is order; within my ceramics there is constancy.

Flowers are vehicles of expression. They are declarations of love, a gesture of gratitude, a symbol for festivity or reward, or a sign of mourning for a loved one. Flowers arrive harmoniously, with careful and balanced arrangements of all sensual elements. The desire and obsession I feel towards them is something I experience, but do not completely understand. I know I'm not the only admirer of flowers, for this reason I create; longing to clarify that of which I love so deeply. The pot, as vessel, hold and presents and becomes the view.

I use color, form, line, volume, and space to create beauty. Total concentration of form, surface and the process of making is my goal through every step of my practice. Excitement comes from working at a larger scale. The physicality of the material awakens my body. Throughout the process of making I travel with the clay, similarly to planting a seed and watching it prosper over time. I prefer to create classical forms on the wheel to reinforce a connection to the past. I do not loose sight of this, even in its finished state. The organic imagery that I apply to the surface is playful. My hand ever so carefully pushes the clay to create new folds and creases. A bend here, a curve there, a push to make it complete; I know when it is right. To me, it's about paying attention to detail and remembering that I can make adjustments later. I try to keep the rhythm going and often find that if my life is balanced, the rest follows. Being creative is the ability to dive off into the unknown. It's not just the willingness to go off the edge; it's the ability to move and act without knowing exactly what's going to happen.

It is impossible to recreate nature's beauty, but within my vessels there may be a glimpse, even if for only a second, leading to the allusion of our natural world. The floral element that I often take from nature is my desire to see things within close contact to it. One steps into the garden, walks a field of wild grasses-finds purple-blue irises open to the summer sun...