Tanis Saxby

Clay Artist

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Artist Statement

As a clay artist, I feel that I can best express myself by giving outward form to certain inward feelings. I strive to create a

visual language using porcelain clay that is thrown and altered on the pottery wheel and/or hand built.

The problems of mass and volume, of light in relation to form, and of volume in relation to space, and of continually learning

to grasp and understand form more completely are problems that interest me and which I believe I can begin to solve by

shaping, carving and cutting down the vessel form. My commitment to the purity of form and material is reflected in my

unglazed porcelain vessels.

My sculptures often reflect tranquillity and stillness in motion, a concept that is sublime and a paradox. I am drawn to

introduce the concepts of stillness, simplicity and sensuality in response to our often complex, distant, time driven culture.

Contrast also plays an important role for me with light and shadows, drama and tranquility, stillness and motion.

The shadows and negative space are as important to me as the form itself: shadows around the vessel frame the work and

become part of the overall composition. The interior space of the vessel is exciting to me and is as carefully considered as the

exterior.

Working in clay has been a mystery for me as it seems to teach me, as much as I shape it. Although I work in a series, I feel

very curious as if I am at the beginning again unraveling the mysteries of the next creation.