Kari Weaver Hopkins

Clay
Singing Tree Pottery
2250 Hwy 80S
Burnsville, NC 28714
828-675-9780
singingtreepots@gmail.com
www.singingtreepottery.com

I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Ceramics from Clemson University in 1996. I cut up my first pot in college and have since found myself incapable of putting the knife down.

Each piece begins with the fluid symmetry of the throwing wheel. I throw bottomless cylinders and let them set up until they are firm enough to handle.

To create the baskets and other work, I cut the cylinders and combine the parts, intersecting one with another. While throwing clay can be somewhat meditative, the cutting and assembling is very spontaneous. I enjoy exploring the limits of the clay, seeing just how far I can push the angles and interrupt the predictable curves referenced by the throwing marks. I attach slab bottoms, and the handles are either thrown on the potter's wheel or pulled traditionally and attached. The resulting works are unique and one-of-a-kind.