LeeAnn Norgard
biographyBorn in Burlington, Ontario, LeeAnn moved with her family to Calgary, Alberta, where her father started a new business. LeeAnn continued her education at the University of Calgary where, in 1995, she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Geology. From there, she worked in the oil and gas industry for a few years before deciding to marry and travel the world. An eight month journey with her husband, Sean, took them to India, Nepal, Indonesia, Egypt, Turkey, and Africa. Upon returning to Canada, LeeAnn was accepted into the Alberta College of Art and Design, where she took a new career path in the arts. In her second year, she fell in love with clay, and had decided to major in Ceramics. She graduated in 2000 with a Bachelor of the Arts in Ceramics. After graduation, she began a family, and took every opportunity to create clay pieces in her spare time. In 2006, the family made a move to Salt Spring Island. This allowed LeeAnn more time to focus on her work and craftsmanship where she concentrated her efforts on earthenware clay and the finishing/glazing technique of Terra Sigillata. Though the original plan was to stay for a year, they fell in love with the west coast, and particularly the community on Salt Spring, where they work and play today. Currently, LeeAnn’s ceramic work has evolved to become more sculptural and she is working with Cone 6 clay, which is providing to be both challenging and satisfying. Though she very much enjoys dabbling in other mediums such as paint and charcoal drawing, clay is truly the one that has her heart, and where most of her creative energy is focused. She enjoys meeting new people and selling her work through her home studio which is on the Salt Spring Studio Tour, and through the Salt Spring Gallery. where to see or read moreshows: LeeAnne's work can be seen locally at the Salt Spring Gallery or through her studio.
web: lnorgardceramics.com artist website www.saltspringpottersguild.com/lee_ann_norgard potters guild site www.saltspringstudiotour.com/view.php?artist=35 studio tour site contact the artistaddress: 470 Sky Valley Road, SSI, V8K 2C3
phone: 250-537-8313 email: lan.norgard@gmail.com |
artist statementNature, as beauty, simplicity and organic symmetry is fascinating to me. As a potter, I strive to capture these aspects in my work, while still maintaining function and the notion of pottery as a vessel for containment. Color, texture and line are all extremely important to me, but first and foremost, attention is paid to form. Clay as a medium is an obvious choice, for in ceramic history, countless cultures have been informed by nature and the beauty of objects such as gourds and flowers. |