Process
On Anna’s Ceramic Art
All of Anna’s pottery is hand-built using coil and pinch methods. She aims to create work that resonates with the user while expressing playful themes from nature and using ceramic forms from ancient civilizations as an inspiration. For her, the utilitarian quality and tangible handmade connection between her hands to her audience’s hands is the living art.
Wood Fired Ceramics
The wood fired pottery is the product of a nature immersion experience as wood is collected from forests and fired in an outdoor anagama kiln. This is 5th century technology that is still being used today. The 2400 degree heat and flame from the fire pit is gained over a seven day period. This creates an internal atmosphere in which wood ash collects on the pottery and fluxes to a glaze. The colors are subtle ranging from pinks to greens and will vary depending on what type of wood is used.
Earthenware Ceramics
The earthenware ceramics are decorated with an array of terra sigillata, slips, patinas and underglazes and fired to cone 03 in an electric kiln. The combination of the red clay, layers of colors, and subtle marks left behind from her fingers and tools give a rich, warm feeling.
On Anna’s Paintings
Landscape Paintings
Anna’s paintings and murals are created in response to her observations of nature, especially of the Loess Hills landscape and the grassland biome as it relates to various systems and a larger order structures. She uses lot of color and paints in a post impressionist style in order to make her art relatable and visually interesting. These paintings often highlight specific locations where public and private land meet in order to show the results of commodification and conservation of the land.
Pottery Classes
Experience the process of building pottery first-hand. Anna offers hand-built pottery classes at her studio in Malvern, Iowa, or travels to your art space within the Omaha Metro area.