Cute Fat Bird

Last year I sold this cute fat bird, a real favorite of mine.

Baby Hedgehog, Raku Fired Sculpture

I sculpted this little Hedgehog in the
Spring of this year after seeing the cutest hedgehog picture a friend posted on Facebook. Little furry animals are a new subject for me, I enjoy the challenge of sculpting something different. I especially like to try to captivate the spirit in the gaze and the posture, a most rewarding feeling when I find it.
This next photo is of the Hedgehog after I finished sculpting with clay.

Ad for the Audubon Wild Arts Festival, 2010

Well this little bird gets to go around town!!!
I'm so honored to be featured in the back of Tri-Met buses this Fall. It's a magical time of the year, my favorite season... Fall...
Here's another bird I made at the same time, an Indigo bunting...

The kestrel

Backyard Raku!!!

Here's how it's done right in my backyard, my daughter Jaya is unloading some of her pieces. At night the kiln glows a bright orange, something you don't see during the day, it's very exciting: the fire, the wood shavings, the flames flashing, the smoke... and finally getting to look at the pieces soon after... I just can't get enough of this process.

Emperor Penguin Chick

Penguin are so mysterious and amazing, their survival skills unbelievable and yet they are so beautiful. I find their shape very attractive, and somehow because they stand upright, they seem almost human... I love the emperor penguins they are the tallest of all the penguins at 4 feet tall, when I first saw them live in a zoo a couple of years ago, I was so excited like people are excited when they see a celebrity, I was so moved, it made me cry, because I finally saw one in real life instead of a picture. It was everything I expected and more, the way they move, their body language, they are like little people from a fantasy land or something like that.

So you see that's why I had to sculpt this penguin. I just sculpted another penguin and hopefully I'll have a successful firing. This penguin is called a Rockhopper, he's very unusual and has bright yellow feathers around the ears, I can't wait to finish it...

Sea Turtles

Have you ever swam with these beautiful creatures? Just imagine a quite and peaceful day out in the ocean as you encounter a sea turtle, it must be magical...

I will never get tired of sculpting them. I love their presence and the symbolism in their being. Their shell makes them tough, yet they are fragile and vulnerable. They are slow, yet live a long life.