Since I was a small child, creating art has been a sanctuary for me. My art school degrees (BS, MFA) focused on ceramics and drawing. I’ve been working over 15 years using imagery to decorate the surface of wheel thrown pots. Brush painted and sprayed underglaze, in addition to commercial underglaze decals, along with stamps and molds are tools and materials I use in creating the surface composition. Intermixed with ceramics and drawing, I’ve spent years casting bronze, papermaking and printmaking, making large sculptural ceramics and various collaborative projects. I strive to create a unique personal aesthetic rooted deeply in a personal narrative approach to art making. My graduate school experience was bisected by a one year deployment to Iraq (03-04) with the Iowa National Guard, where I served honorably as a combat medic, security detail and convoy operations leader. Parts of my work strives to be honest and accountable to the enigmatic experience of serving in Iraq, and my path “coming home” working my way to recovery and redemption. Many things factored into my recovery, but being healthy for my daughter was the driving force, and facing myself and doing to work to recover from war was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. My family has served in Germany, Viet Nam, Pearl Harbor, Tarawa, New Guinea, and France (WWI). Throwing a pot on the wheel requires a physical presence, and the decorative and painting of the piece provides a three-dimensional conceptual challenge that I find deeply rewarding. The historical and cultural significance of pottery and ceramics is universal and human. I make objects to hold and carry things, physically and metaphorically. My pots are formed like myself—imperfect but with plenty of character.