MARY ALDRICH

"That has changed over time with my work. At the moment, I love raku clay. I usually leave my work unglazed and the raw raku clay becomes a wonderful stone color once fired.  Just as I like the rough coarseness of raku, I also love working with cinco rojo because the texture is just like chocolate ganache and who can resist that."

Primary forming method?

"I learned to handbuild using slab rolled clay cut into ribbons. I use those for a sort of flat coil type of handbuilding. I sometimes use rolled coils if the piece I am constructing is particularly curvy."

Primary firing temperature?

"I for the moment I am using cone 5-6. It seems to give me everything I need for my current work."

Favorite surface treatment?

"I love a simple smooth surface but when I add texture it is usually done by attaching clay additions."

Favorite Tools?

" I have collected many… but day in and day out it would be a white Mudtool sponge, a Kemper rubber tipped  wipe out tool and my own handmade wooden ribs."

"Heaven -Tiny little rented garage shared with the most wonderful ceramic minded friends!"

How/Where do you market your artwork?

"My website maryaldrich.com, Serrano Gallery, Houston, Texas, The Silos on Sawyer, Houston, Texas."

"The Silos on Sawyer, Houston, Texas, Serrano Gallery, Houston, Texas"

"By nature I am someone that likes to work…. and to create. While I have worked in other media, clay is the one the suits me the best.  I enjoy working in 3 dimensions. I am a very visual person so usually my ideas come some small thing I notice while I am out wandering.  Often times it is something in nature."

"I have a background in graphic design, advertising and marketing. In that I spent a lot of time looking at the design of printed materials. I think that has given me a developed eye for proportion and color."

How have you have taken your experience as a well-established maker in the field and passed that knowledge along to students?

"The beauty of both spaces where I work, classes at MFAH Glassell Studio School and my shared studio space, is that the people are very collaborative and open about what they know.  I have benefited tremendously from working with other people. I feel we are all students since there is still much to be learned. Because of that, I am always happy to share what I know and increase our pool of knowledge."

"I was working on a sculpture when a fellow maker, Loes Berendschot, said “the look on your face says that you are not happy”.  I told her that a portion of the piece seemed to have gotten away from me.  She said, “well cut that portion out and do it over…. if you don’t like it today you won’t like it any more tomorrow.” She was right then and I often remind myself of her advice."

"The best advice I was been given by a teacher came from Libby DeLyria.  In class I would have a tendency to continue working on a piece before it was stiff enough to successfully continue. She would catch my eye from across the room  and say “walk away”.  I still hear her voice in my head…. it is good for me to stand up and walk away. It lets the piece firm up and it lets me take a fresh look when I return to work."