Oceana Madrone and Diane Sonderegger
Featured Artists for September 2016
Friday, September 2nd
6 p.m. - 9 p.m.
Music by: Penny Gun and Son

To see this artist create one of her figures is an amazing experience. She starts with a lump of clay that looks a lot like a small potato and begins to pull and push, and soon the unmistakable shape of a familiar animal is seen to emerge. A seal is sunning itself on an ocean rock, a dog is on point, a skunk is lifting its dangerous tail, a fish is swimming. Much of Diane’s work is raku fired, a process where the piece is lifted by tongs red hot from the kiln and placed in a bin of combustibles to soak in its smoke. “A surprise always occurs. Sometimes it’s not so good but sometimes it’s fabulous. Kind of like gambling and I love it,” says Sonderegger. Recently she has been using the more usual techniques of high fire as in the fish shown here. This results in a shinier, slightly more predictable finish.

Madrone has a number of her pieces on display at the Trinidad Art Gallery, and she is also available to make custom orders or to set up private lessons or workshops. She has led a number of day-long sessions where women who have experience violence come together to create a healing quilt. She says, " Art gives women and children a voice to tell their story, a place to put strong emotions like pain, fear, and anger, as well as a chance to find hope while exploring future possibilities." Through this work of Madrone's the Healing Quilt Project was born.