There were so many other pieces and photographs from my three-month artist residency I wished could have been included in my book, The Light in the Kiva, that I decided to create Kiva Memories to begin bringing some of these works to light. Going through the hundreds of pictures I took of this red mica piece “Wave Unexpected” and reliving the moments of seeing it all for the first time still fills me with excitement. I remember crawling around on the floor of my casita trying to find every angle possible as the light and shadow reshaped” the piece. Photographing my ceramic pieces held me spellbound for hours. It was during my first week living in Taos that I noticed the light in the kiva fireplace, and from that moment on, my world revolved around the afternoon sun. This small town, nestled in the high desert of Northern New Mexico at almost 7,000 feet, has the most gorgeous skies. Every day I would wait for the first rays of light to stream through my window then slowly move from the wall into the kiva. I made sure to have my camera fully charged and ready, because for the next several hours I’d be taking pictures until the light left. I felt so fortunate to have been assigned the casita that became my home for the next three months. While some of the other ten artist casitas had kiva fireplaces, mine was the oldest -- some 100 years old -- and the only one oriented for the light to stream in through the window then into the fireplace at the right time of day. This perfect alignment made it feel like my own personal Stonehenge. The way the sun “resculpted” the pieces to reveal these surreal clayscapes was exhilarating. The time I spent in Taos immersed in my art, dramatically influenced my style. This selection of six images of “Wave Unexpected,” only skims the surface of the vast amount of images I took, but I do hope it conveys some of the extraordinary moments of when light meets clay.
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Susan ZimmermanCeramicist and photographer inspired by the moment when clay and sunlight met and merged. Archives
August 2023
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