I am a Minnesota native educated at the College of St. Benedict and Mankato State University, and have lived and worked professionally in Iowa since 1969. My current body of work is influenced by my years of rambling the woods of southern Minnesota. These pieces reflect my love of organic textures and the colors of the woodland floor, fossils and stones. Trained first as a painter, I use vessel forms layered with engobes, stains, and glazes as a canvas for translating these ceramic media. While I work with vessel forms and with functional considerations, still  a valid orientation in contemporary crafts, I relate most closely to natural forms and finishes than pure utilitarianism. My intention is for the work to be integrated in all aspects, not technique, form or decoration becoming the main emphasis of the work. I like repeat throwing both for the natural rhythm of work style and for the way it enables me to unconsciously personalize the forms. For these same reasons I work with limited color palette and with relatively few forms at a time. I like the challenge and freedom in working within these limits. One group of pots leads to another, changing subtly with mood and experience, exposing the richness of variety possible while working within a theme.