About Liz Walker, Potter, Naked Raku Specialist I first began pottery 20 years ago at a community based course while living in Christchurch. I had always wanted to get my hands into clay and once I tried it, I knew it was something I would always do. I set myself up with a wheel and a small kiln and played and experimented for several years. In 1990 we moved to the Old School House in Teddington and clay took a back seat to renovating our 1870's home and raising 6 children. Sometimes my hands would not touch clay for months or even a year, but I always knew I would come back to it. In 2002, our eldest daughter Sarah, who was profoundly disabled, died when she was 8. I knew then that I had to do something for myself to renew my spirit and it is with clay I feel the most who I am. Although our youngest children, triplet girls, were only 6 months old, I knew this was what I wanted to do and needed to find a way to make it happen. I simplified my daily routines, organised my time and moved Martin's gear out of the garage. Martin, my fabulous husband turned the garage into a working pottery studio for me and I haven't looked back since. I have found the past years have given me a new patience I never had before, and this has allowed me to focus on a new style, developing and expressing my work as a reflection of my spiritual growth. I have always been inspired by nature and the environment around our home and have developed a keen interest for creating things from the beginning. I enjoy the process of the clay evolving, the fire and flames and the results of it all mixed together. Having first a profoundly disabled child and then finishing our family with triplets, has given me a lot to think about! We live in a world where we often can feel we need to conform to feel included and accepted. In doing so we can loose our uniqueness. Raising triplets brings all sorts of new experiences. While on the outside each girl looks the same as the other, they each have an individual personality that is as different as it is for each of our single children. It is the important understanding of myself that we are each an ‘individual soul’ that my work stems from. In 2009 we decided after 19 years, to move from Teddington as we no longer fit in to our loved home. We found a lovely new home for us in West Melton and it did not take long for us to settle in. I also underwent hip surgery at the beginning of 2009 and became unwell after this. Recently I have been diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome so find myself with little or no energy. In January 2010 my new studio was completed and I hope now to be able to spend small amounts of time returning to what I love. I am sure the new pace of life I now need to work at will reflect in my work and new and exciting pieces will come forth as I find different ways to work with the clay. The patience Sarah taught me is again at the forefront of my life and the challenge continues. AWARDS: Selectors' Choice, First Timers Award, Mt Pleasant Pottery Group, 2004. Selectors' Merit, Mt Pleasant Pottery Group, 2005. Selector's Merit, Canterbury Potters Association, 2005. Students Award, New Zealand Potter's Society National Exhibition, 2006. Selector's Merit, Mt Pleasant Pottery Group, 2006. COLLECTIONS: Canterbury Museum. Current Work My current Ceramic Artwork "Sacred Vessels" is concentrating on the connection between earth, fire and spirit. When I am making this work, I feel this is when I connect with who I truly am. I shape the clay and feel the sensuous texture and find the finished smoothness of the clay brings a calm and gentle feeling. The process of firing with the naked raku method is exciting and requires fast work. I love the flames leaping and the smoke swirling, creating unique pieces of art that I am only a part of. After the excitement and the cooling process is over, the glaze is removed from the pottery to find out what really lies beneath. This reveals itself over a period of time as the clay dries and the colours and marks become apparent. I love that as I turn the piece a new perspective is revealed with the patterns changing from different angles. I then spend time waxing and polishing the surface of the pottery with a gentle motion to finish and complete the piece.