MEET THE ARTIST
Cynthia Pierce
In the last 1/3 of my life, I returned to the world of a child. My deepest desire, my urge is to just make things, and the studios become a play ground where each bowl, each drawing, each painting can stand complete within itself. One train of thought threads through one entire piece, independent of other work. From my small studio and yard I explore, follow and capture the thread that weaves together old and new spaces. Using a kick wheel made for me in Mexico, I play with grolleg porcelain. Most of this work centers on the search for the “perfect bowl.” My Texas roots have pulled me back to scenes of “Texanna” where cattle, horses, and dirt dominate my canvases. Color is the major focus in both clay and canvas. You can find me in my Austin studio every morning and at Breath and Body Yoga every afternoon, practicing yoga. The evenings I play with my 3 whippets, read and relax. This is a great life.
“My goal is to let each piece have its own space.
The clay tells me where it wants to go.”
Latin America called to me in the 90’s. The Guatamalan Highlands had the light and colors that I desired. “Chicken-buses” carried me from market to market with rolled up canvases and drawing pads. For three years I took up residence in San Miguel de Allende to study lithography and etching and to paint. Eventually, this led me to open my own gallery.
In 1988 I received a National Endowment Grant to study at the University of Pennsylvania where I had a easel at the Philadelphia Art Museum. My first of three one man show was in Brownsville in 1989. The Second in Austin in 1991, and the third in San Miguel de Allende 1995, Mexico.
The business aspect of art was not appealing, and that pushed me back to Austin where my small studio and yard have become home. Here I can explore, follow and capture the thread that leads me to new spaces. Using a Kickwheel made for me in Mexico, I play with Grolleg porcelain. Most of my work center on the “perfect bowl.” Lately I’m pulling from my Mexican roots, and the skull has become prominent as a decorative edge. Even though my paintings explore color my high size glazes are studies of black, white and grey.
I will never be a production potter. My goal is to let each piece have its own space. The clay tells me where it wants to go.
