Raku fired ceramic signage for Google’s 2016 Zeitgeist Conference in New Mexico.

Foraging botanicals and embedding them into clay captures the immediacy of the present; the kiln functions as an instrument of fossilization and makes the present permanent as a geological archive. This process draws on the ancient tradition of cuneiform, where clay tablets served as a ledger for human transactions, acting as both a system of writing and an earth-based cultural record.

The urns are handbuilt using stoneware clay, coated in glaze and slip and once fired in a gas kiln. Layers of wet slip create a fine juicy muck to capture the intricacies of botanicals. Layers of pigments, flux, and minerals are used to enhance the surface, highlighting details and textures of the impressions.

72” l x 20” h

(183 cm x 51 cm)

Stoneware, glaze, Raku firing