Barbara Donovan’s Work in Clay: A cure for the grumpy morning blues!

Barbara Donovan – Baton Rouge, Louisiana

We’ve found a cure for the grumpy morning blues!  Barbara Donovan’s fantastically fun line of studio-made bowls and mugs should make any frown; turned upside down, go right side up!

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Hailing from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Donovan’s work is decorated with characters she says are pulled from nature and her imagination.  Puppies with love-sick eyes are irresistibly cute, and have a way of disarming any wave of crankiness one may be experiencing at the moment.

And while there’s something to be said for the perpetual cuteness that shines from her work with a child-like freshness, it’s a refined balance of “line”  which shows this potter to be a seasoned professional.

I see Donovan’s “line” as being illustrated in three ways.  First, Donovan draws her characters freely and with care, yet without any pretense alluding to a desire for a perfectly rendered image.

Over lapping lines or even places where Donovan has seemingly colored out of the lines is part of the overall appeal.  Second, her wheel-thrown forms follow this same looseness; mugs especially, as curvatures to the form are left alone;  resulting  ring handles are then applied.  Lastly, Donovan tools the clay body in a way that delicately breathes life into her little critters.

The technique reveals a surface that’s not exactly two-dimensional, yet not three-dimensional either.  The result, in all three instances, aptly shows Donovan’s insight when preparing the clay and it’s surface. 

The reward for such hard work? Engaging the viewers  until they can’t help but smile!

Smiles found here:  http://www.etsy.com/shop/barbaradonovan?ref=seller_info

Much thanks to Barbara for allowing Studio Potter Archive to use her images for this entry!