Oyster Shell 1: Eagle

Inspired by the humble oyster shell, my series of wavy bowls are one of a kind. 
I really love making these. Each piece is unique and I don’t work from a pattern or a plan. I start with an element, usually a footprint, and then begin carving organic shapes around it. If one of those shapes starts to take the form of part of an animal, then I might flow that way. The spontaneity of this process makes each one of these pieces a journey through nature, akin to watching for whales, birds, bears, and other animals here in coastal British Columbia. Sometimes those organic shapes seen in nature resolve into a creature, other times they don’t. It’s the interplay of light and dark, the tension between what we see and what we yearn to see, and the interconnectedness of it all that fascinates me. What do you see?
11” diameter
Black and white sgraffito carving glazed in glossy clear, intense turquoise glaze on the  underside.