Rosamond Welchman
My pottery grows out of my fascination with texture and form. All of my work is handbuilt, often based on slabs which are modified in ways that reflect my background in mathematics, in particular geometry. I regard pottery as problem-solving, and love the challenge of finding just the right techniques for forming and drying to allow creation of the forms I envision. I love to travel, and often find design motifs in the places that I visit that get incorporated into my pottery. I am a scavenger, and pick up many objects and forms with a view to using their texture or form in my work. I work in the studio space that I created in the loft of the small barn behind my house. Most of my work is functional, as I like the idea of my pieces becoming part of everyday life. All of my work is food-safe and oven-safe, fired to Cone 5 or 6.
Bio
Rosamond Welchman had a 40 year career in Mathematics Education, teaching teachers at all levels from preschool to graduate school. For most of her career she was at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York, teaching in both Mathematics and Education Departments, but she took advantage of sabbatical years to teach in many other places including the University of Oregon and the University of California at Irvine. She was a successful grant writer and as a result could structure many interesting and novel ways to interact with local schools and other universities. Her early interest in design and ceramics (with classes at Harvard University, the 14th Street Y in New York and in Paris) was put aside until retirement about 13 years ago, when she began again in earnest. She is a member of the Longyear Gallery where she exhibits her work, mostly handbuilt ceramics with a special interest in texture and geometric form. She has taught workshops in ceramics for the Longyear Gallery and other local agencies. She also frequently paints in watercolor with a local Plein Air group.