I work in terra cotta because of the freedom it allows when the pieces are created, and also for the diversity of color surfaces permitted by lower firing temperatures. Most of the elements of the form are wheel thrown and assembled when leather-hard. This enables me to work with fluid thrown forms, altering and assembling them while instilling a quiet geometric structure in the final piece.

I am particularly interested in the formal aspects of creating; getting each piece to work aesthetically. Balance, gesture, and and rhythm all function within the same structure of the work. The inherent elements of the form are enhanced by the decoration, and as the piece is altered or assembled - a system for the decoration emerges and helps to clarify the work and give it character. Each element receives a different surface treatment: pattern to solid, transparent to opaque, mosaic to texture, wet to dry, soft to hard, line to mass. They can be read as one and as part of the whole. A balance is established between the rhythm of the form and the decoration.

Contact:

Woody Hughes

32 Chapman St.

Bethel, Maine, 04217

207-824-6588

hughesw@gouldacademy.org