Helen Kunzman

On the potter's wheel I feel in harmony with the universe. Throwing clay on the wheel is an intuitive and spontaneous process. At times I stretch my clay almost to its breaking point - to see where it might lead. Transformation can happen when you push to unexpected places. And if the clay can survive the transformation - then the alchemy can happen.

I use glazes and slips and multi-fire in an electric kiln to create surfaces that reflect the elemental nature around us - dirt, mud, water, ice and fire.

On the wheel - as in everything in life - transformation is always present. From infancy to old age, day into night and the changing of the seasons. As if a metaphor for nature's entropic process - the pot transforms into a different state of being - it metamorphoses into something else.

Potter / art conservator

Hammond Museum "The Elemental Clay"
Through July 2023