Ishara Sweeney

 
Ishara Sweeney group shot-2.jpg
 
 
 

BIOGRAPHY

Ishara Sweeney is a studio potter in Carbondale Colorado.  She received a dual undergraduate degree from the Claremont Colleges: a BFA with a concentration in Ceramic Arts and a BA in English literature.  The two have been married together in her work ever since.  Although her studies turned towards the asian arts, receiving her Masters and Doctorate in Chinese Medicine, she has not stopped exploring the vast wilderness of ceramics, with the past few years finding her immersed in the creative process in wholly new ways.

 

ARTIST STATEMENT

The natural world and the world of literature—especially fairytales, myths and folktales—are always finding their way into my work in one form or another.  Often to my own surprise!  Perhaps now more so than ever.  Creating to me is very much an act of allowing.  The skill of pottery is like the editing process in writing, but the creative process of clay and the inspiration that arrives is always something less structured.

When I see a finished piece and it’s something greater than my intention, then I feel I’m in the right territory.

@i.e.ceramics

Q&A WITH THE ARTIST

Carbondale Clay Center (CCC): What’s your favorite beverage recipe?

Ishara Sweeney (IS):
Lucien Gaudin (twist on a Negroni)

  • You can use any red bitter aperitif (aperitivo) such as Campari, Forthave Spirits aperitivo, Dolin bitters, St. George Bruto Americano, or Cappelletti.

  • 1 ounce gin

  • 1/2 ounce red bitter aperitivo (see headnote)

  • 1/2 ounce orange liqueur, such as Cointreau, Pierre Ferrand Triple Sec, or Grand Marnier

  • 1/2 ounce dry vermouth

 Combine ingredients in a cocktail mixing glass. Fill two-thirds with ice. Stir/shake until well-chilled, about 15 seconds. Strain and pour.

Revolver

  • You can use any whiskey, although it is traditional made with a bourbon.  Bourbon makes it “sweeter” and a Scotch or Irish whiskey will make it “spicier.”

  • 2 ounces bourbon

  • 1/2 ounce coffee liqueur

  • 2 dashes orange bitters

Combine ingredients in a cocktail mixing glass. Fill two-thirds with ice. Stir/shake until well-chilled, about 15 seconds. Strain and pour. Garnish with an orange twist.

CCC: What makes handmade pottery unique to you? Why use a handmade object to sip your coffee, tea, water, etc.?

IS: The piece I drink out of affects what I’m drinking—on so many levels!  The very shape of a vessel can change how something tastes or even smells (think Brandy snifter vs wineglass), but when you then add the creative expression of the artist it adds something utterly unique on top of that.  I can drink the same green tea out of a different cup from five different artists and the tea will seem like it’s five kinds.  I love how the way a person forms the rim, or the weight of the cup, or the color and design, or even the texture of the surface, can utterly transform what’s in it.  That’s why I use handmade objects every opportunity I can.

CCC: Where does your creative process begin (i.e. sketchbook, specific routine, image reference, etc.)? What considerations do you think about when creating drinking vessels?

IS: Part of the process is under the surface of conscious direction.  I grew up immersed in fairytales, folktales and myths.  I went on to study them in my undergraduate years.  Those are always present in some way in the creative process—but like dreams, they’re just woven in.  I don’t look to reference any particular story, but I do recognize them after the creation.  The natural world is also an integral part.  Seeing foxes in the field or listening to the coyotes howling under a moon bright sky, those then send me looking at nature photography—and from there I start to earmark images that interest and inspire me.

CCC: What influences your pots? What are you looking at or thinking about when making specific beverageware?

IS: When I’m making a drinking vessel, there’s always some thought of shapes I enjoy drinking out of.  There’s also the thought of how it will fit in my hand and then of course whether it needs a handle—size/function.  Although, in all honesty, some days in the making, the shape and other considerations seems to inform me rather than I the vessel.  Who’s in charge here?!