MY STORY

In 1972, I fell in love with clay. It was a time of paisley bedspreads, macrame pottery hangers and worn-out blue-jeans. I was entering High School with no clue as to what to take as an elective to satisfy my curriculum. I grew up as a home builder’s son, always tinkering and creating something for fun, so why not try something I could do with my hands - ceramics. From the very first day of class, watching the advanced kids on the potters wheel, I became mesmerized by their ability to create something out of nothing…a ball of clay. I thought, I can do this. From the first time I sat at the wheel, I strove for perfection and continue to this day with great enthusiasm for creating something out of nothing. The magic of clay had begun to grab me.

It became my goal to find enough time to satisfy my thirst for working in the medium. I continued to take classes and apprenticed with my ceramics instructor during summer periods to gain experience in all facets of working and firing clay. I even borrowed a wheel, ordered a half ton of clay of various types and set up a makeshift studio in my backyard and began to produce pottery and fire it in the school kiln.

Upon graduating from High School, I attended San Diego State University. Although my major was in biology and finance, I found an off campus ceramic studio where I could continue to hone my skills and learn from fellow ceramicists. Once again, I set up a wheel in my backyard and spent any free time I had satisfying my creative yearnings as an artist.

I moved back to the Los Angeles basin in 1980 at the age of 24 to continue my education in graduate school and soon began my career as a CPA. While driving home from the beach one Sunday afternoon I came across a ceramic studio called the ClayHouse. It had everything I wanted in a studio and I couldn’t wait to become a member. It is there at the Clayhouse where some very good things continued to happen for me. I would change out of my business suit into overalls and come to the studio in the evenings. It wasn’t long before I became noticed for my creativity and strong skillset in working with clay. I was asked to teach a few classes in the evenings. I was enthused, honored, and accepted the offer. The ClayHouse became my refuge, my sanctuary, my retreat to do all that my creative mind could imagine in clay – I was home. It was here that I began to work in the more challenging medium of white porcelain clay. I began to develop a unique style and found galleries in Los Angeles and Laguna Beach that took a particular liking to my work. I even had an exhibit in the Los Angeles Museum of Folk Art and Craft.

There was a young gal, named Laura, from Michigan, she signed up to take my class during the winter of 1986 and her ceramic skillset required attention and coaxing. We were married one and a half years later – the champagne flowed! We moved back to San Diego in the Spring of 1989 and now we have raised three wonderful children and have two grandchildren.

While living in San Diego, I continued to explore my work in clay and participate in workshops around the country from experts in the field. My unique style of work continues to be featured in galleries, art institutes and private collections. Over 40 years from that fateful day of finding the Clayhouse, I am honored to have won the Lorenzo il Magnifico Gold Medal for excellence in ceramic art at the Florence Italy Biennale, It is one of the greatest highlights of my artistic career and I look forward to achieving more pinnacles in the future.

Artist Profiles

Claudia Abderhalden

Diane Allison

Ed Alton

Morgan Amirani

Isaac Anderson

David Baldwin

Lisa Baldwin

Naira Barseghian

Ash Beheshti

Lori Betz

Tom Boatright

Myra Burg

Jan Bushart

John Carroll

Sangho Choi

Michael Clark

Candiss Cole-Footitt

Matt Conlon

Richard Curtner

Richard Daniel

Linda Donohue

Joshua Dopp

Ian Ely

Annie Flynn

Benjamin Frey

Rosario Garcia

Oriana Gerez

David Giulietti

Sarah Goodnough

Katherine Goulandris

Veronica Grankina

Carol Greiwe

Signe & Genna Grushovenko

Guilloume Guilloume

Daniel Han

Erin Hanson

Meg Harper

Scott Hartley

Marirosa Hofmann

Christopher Jeffries

Jessica Joy

Laura Junge

Tanya Kirouac

Ryan Kvande

Jennifer Lashbrook

Nick Leonoff

Crystal Lockwood

Clifford Lounsbury

Kevin Lubbers

Mark MacKinnon

Maria Marriott

Alejandro Martinez-Pena

Laurent Martres

Jeanine Matthews

Time McClendon

Richard Meyer

Jonathan Morgan

David Mosier

Jason Napier

Randy O'Brien

Richard Oliver

Cindy Olmes

David Palmer

Joshua Pass

Eugene Perry

Dakota Pratt

Bruce Reinfeld

Marlene Rose

Maryam Rouhi

Terry Sauve

Melissa Schmidt

Reese Schroeder

Stephen Schubert

Lyn Sedlak-Ford

Scott Shangraw

Charles Sherman

Haylee M. Shoop

Jeffrey Siegel

Nicholas Stelter