About Christine
Christine received her MFA from The School for American Crafts at Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, NY.
Currently she lives and works in Portland, Maine where she manages The Clay Center @ Running With Scissors Artist Studios and teaches upper and middle school students at Waynflete.
Christine is a dedicated, compassionate 20-year veteran art teacher highly experienced in teaching art foundations, ceramics, printmaking, drawing, and painting. She has taught in classrooms ranging from middle school through graduate school. She strives for educational equity to ensure all students have access to success.
Process & Statement:
Functional work:
For the past two years I have been mainly focused on vessels and pottery, particularly on my take on the flower brick. This body of work explores interior and exterior and positive and negative spaces. Working primarily with a form I call a “flower cage” I pierce and cut away as much clay as possible while following some basic principles of architecture to create an open and seemingly fragile, yet strong structure. The lattice tops sitting atop their bases work as a sculptural object when empty, and a utilitarian vase supporting each bloom when filled with a bouquet. This work is primarily wheel thrown and carved porcelain fired to cone 6.
Sculpture:
My sculptural work began in graduate school resulting in my 2011 thesis show entitled, “Within.” This work was coil built from the interior forms outward. In the first couple of years following graduate school, I continued making some sculpture in this method and tried new surface treatments and forms.
After several years of focusing on other projects, (including starting a small ceramic production company- take a look at C&M Ceramics in the “Gallery” menu), I am returning to making sculpture. I recently began a new body of work at Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts and am excited to see where this new direction takes me. I will begin sharing images soon…
Within Statement:
My sculpture investigates the relationship between the interior and the exterior. Outside surfaces fold to become inside spaces; openings reveal hidden interior structure. I am interested in and strive to convey through my work the mysteriousness of the inside. Through sensuous yet ambiguous form I intend to create an object that inspires introspection.
