MARY ANN BURK
Nature’s beauty in color, texture, and shape is the constant source of inspiration for my pottery. My work is informed entirely by my personal interpretation of the natural world. My Mother was a gifted and magical gardener. She fostered a profound connection in me to the earth’s subtle designs and patterns from an early age. My father, a gifted photographer, did the same as he traveled this country to capture and document our Natural Parks. Their vision mingled with my own continues to influence all of my pieces. Every design is one of a kind. They are sometimes hand thrown, sometimes hand built, etched, carved, and textured with a whimsical sense of purpose. Every endeavor, every piece, every sculpture is a result of my admiration for a world I find familiar as well as complex and quite simply beautiful.
“The philosophy of Ikebana is one of simplistic design using natural materials, just as they are. An Ikebana artist has said, ‘One piece of foliage has more meaning than the use of many.’
My journey of creativity begins at the very beginning of forming the clay. For me, it is a magical connection working so closely with nature and the organic structure of the piece. My wish is that my work be a simple reflection, of nature's endless tapestry of patterns and textures that resemble shapes created by the wind, sun and water.”
~ Mary Ann Burk, on Ikebana