I make things.
For a long time, I was learning how to make things. Finished a BFA in ceramics, got certified in decorative painting, got another BFA in Sculpture. All, so I could make things well. Well enough that I taught ceramics at Newman University for 12 years. Well enough that I was a STEM artist for Arts Partners for 12 years. I have over 60 public art pieces in public education buildings throughout Wichita and one in Topeka with my fingerprints on them.
I enameled for 14 years. Just finished a piece for Enamel Jam, an international enameling show. I made pots and clay pieces for 25 years. The accumulation finally got to me. Now I make ceramic buttons to go on fibery things. I weave, felt, spin wool, sew, hand stitch, glue, dye. I’m presently learning about sheep.
I guess you’d call me a fiber artist. Fiber doesn’t weigh as much as clay. I still teach, but now it’s potential art teachers who attend my Fiber Exploration class in the fall at Wichita State University. I curate and hang art for the Unitarian Church. I belong to MakeICT and The Handweavers, Spinners and Dyers Guild. Every once in a while, the guild gets me to teach a class for them. I’m a From the Studio Artist. I am a member of Alliance, an Ulrich Museum Board.
I’m a member of TechArtICT, which keeps me honest and learning something new. Like how to make speakers for trees. I really, really like doing truly collaborative pieces.