Art on the Bluffs Inc: Artist Highlight

Hometown:

I was born and raised in Kirksville, MO. My family moved to Ballwin (suburb of St. Louis, MO) when I was 12 years old.

Preferred Mediums:

My work consists of ceramic, mostly porcelain; other natural and organic materials, as well as some glass and metal materials. I have recently been able to combine my passion of creating with clay and my love for jewelry to make Ceramics as Wearable Art.

How many years have you participated in the Art on the Bluffs, Inc. Art Walk?

This will be my 4th year with AOTB. The staff has always been very friendly and accommodating. I keep coming back because of the people who come to this event! I love meeting all of the people who stop at my booth and talk about their tastes in jewelry as well as their own creative experiences.

Where did you go to school, earn a degree, or formally study art?

I graduated with a BS in Art Education from SIUE. I plan on going back there to get a Masters in Ceramics and Metalsmithing. I love teaching children as much as I love teaching adults how to be creative. I had a great experience with all of my art teachers growing up, so much that I wanted to be just like them.

What is your art about & what inspires your work?

I have always been drawn to contrasts that exist in nature, as well as texture, shape, and that anything handmade can make something sentimental. Color, texture, weight, pattern, symmetry, and contrast are all variable that you can find in my work.

What is your creative process like?

I am very lucky to have a spare bedroom converted into a studio space. Everyday I go there to collect my thoughts and begin creating. I normally make a set of ceramic beads first. I play in clay; I make designs as they come to me. After the pieces are fired and glazed I usually turn them into a pendant or incorporate the ceramic pieces into a necklace or other piece of jewelry. I like to experiment with new techniques and try something different every now and again. I talk with like minded women who enjoy making jewelry and get inspired by them. I look online for techniques and pretty glazes that I could incorporate into my work. Inspiration is all around us, everyday I get inspired to create and make something new.

How or when in your life did you know you wanted to be an artist?

I sort of just became an artist over the years of making art in school, I wanted to continue the craft as I graduated and got older. When I was in high school, every piece of my artwork was put into the gallery and display cases. This was a huge encouragement for me to peruse the arts as a teenager. I fell in love with pottery in high school, mainly because of my teacher Pam McCormick. She made me confident to go above and beyond the typical assignment. Taking the skills she taught me, I made beautiful ceramic work, things that I still cherish to this day. After high school I took classes at Meramec community college. My ceramics professor/artist Jim Ibur was another great motivation for me to continue in the art world. He taught me how to throw clay on a wheel for the first time in my life, and I was hooked. I continued my arts education at SIUE, taking a summer long primitive ceramics class from professor/artist Paul Dresang. With him I got to experience firing a RAKU kiln, a wood burning kiln, and a pit fire kiln along with a few other ways to fire pottery; all of which were invaluable to me.

Where can your work be viewed?

There are three places I currently have work online.

www.mariagotart.com

www.facebook.com/mariagotartonline

www.etsy.com/shop/mariagotart

I do at home “Paint Your Own Pottery and Glass” parties. A mobile pottery studio!

www.thrownmud.com

www.facebook.com/thrownmud

I teach Jewelry Classes at Michaels Arts and Crafts store in Florissant, MO.

www.facebook.com/jewelryclassatmichaels

Upcoming shows:

“Lady Bug Beads” Bead Art Show, St. Louis, MO. 63119. September 29^th, 2012.