I spent a significant portion of my freshman year in the ceramics room, despite not taking a ceramics class. I began working on projects and creating two hands as my first focus. I started to develop my own style, revolving around snake-like objects and dark imagery. The piece on the left was my original sculpture, a simple hand painted white, but as I replicated the concept while making a second hand, my fascination with design allowed me to create a more complex piece.

The Gargoyle was the last longterm piece I worked on as a sophomore, and the first project I had ever “planned out” before the pandemic canceled classes for the year. After we were assigned a group project spanning multiple months, a classmate and I created the largest ceramics project ever successfully fired in Newton South history, over 4ft in height. We spent classes focused on the structural integrity of the creature, and its survival in the kiln required large arches built inside the body and two large holes below the shoulder blades to relieve pressure. As I delved into religious architecture and the history of gargoyles, I worked to highlight the fear that gargoyles are infamously known for igniting, through the rams-like head and the decaying eye. Despite my modifications to the design, my partner and I refused to compromise the traditional gargoyle form, determined the piece would be recognizable. As I translated my research into art, my style continued to develop, modifying around limitations.