Sheila Cavanagh  |  Ceramic

I can't remember exactly how I started making pottery, but it started as a casual hobby many years ago which gradually developed into a passion and a way of life. I love all methods in the art, from traditional pinch pots to slip casting, but my great love is the wheel. There is something deeply satisfying about using your hands and mind and imagination to encourage the spinning clay to become what you want of it.

The hardest thing for me to do is to make a set of anything. The second time I begin to center the clay on the wheel and make the second bowl like the first, something in my mind tells me that I have done this already, and I am off in a different direction. Every pot and plate and cup in our cupboard at home has it's own character and identity. We have sets of everything, just not matching sets of anything. The elephant logo on my pottery comes from several years I spent living in rural Zimbabwe where I learned traditional pottery-making techniques from the women in a nearby village. The actual logo just comes from the fact that I love elephants. In summary, my idea of a perfect day is a warm Arizona morning, sitting over my wheel with a cup of tea and a clay-splattered labradoodle lying at my side.