Clay has always been part of me. I am shaped by the Springbokvlakte and vast open plains of the farm I grew up on in the Northern Province. There we had an open canvas for imagination and time to play.
We experimented with the red and black soil, allowing Mother Earth to stock our curiosity as we made cows and bowls. Even today, my heart is still pounding in a pinch pot.
I was introduced to pottery at the age of seven. At that time I was a curious observer, fascinated and in awe of my mum, Lorraine's, pottery and well aware of the meaning it had in her life.
In the ‘70s and early ‘80s, she made mesmerizing under the sea movements on our bathroom wall. Outside were the fashionable and trendy owls, Mexicans and palm trees.
I felt extremely proud of her porcupines, tortoises and small bowls which I proudly presented to my primary school teachers at the end of the school year.
I was in love with clay.
My initial journey to Sandy's studio started because my dear friend and colleague, Corne Peach, and I needed a socially acceptable time-space that provided us with both a creative outlet and enough freedom to connect and utilize the time to cultivate our friendship.
Years have quickly flown into decades and I have now been a student of Sandy’s for the past 17 years. Four years after we started pottery Corne's journey detoured into motherhood, but I still keep her place in my pottery space.
My relationship with Corne soon circled wider and embraced my colourful classmates. I have freed myself from expectations and performance anxiety and given my inner child complete freedom. Clay time is playtime.
I am simultaneously an observer and artist. I choose to respect clay as a gift from the earth to share with others, serving, decorating and sometimes just letting it crack and letting it go. My work gestalt is an authentic artistic freedom with an earthly mustang muse.
Last year I depicted a part of my husband and my Camino in clay. I found heart-shaped stones on "the way to Santiago" and embodied our experience infinitely in a clock. My mum was overwhelmed with her gift.
Sandy had been welcoming, passionate, wise and forgiving since day one. She knows her students and co-creates a space of learning, growth and healing. She majestically transforms experience and creativity into breathtaking sculptures and masterpieces. Sandy has the ability to expand our imagination beyond the boundaries of reality and invites us to find our own unique relationship with clay.
Key to my core is meaningful relationships. Being a psychotherapist and clinical psychologist I appreciate the essence of time and the sacredness of whom you choose to spend your time with.
I rarely engage in therapeutic conversations and allow myself to be just Yolanda, celebrating clay with my fellow potters.
Pottery is my therapy. Clay became an extension of me and gave birth to small vessels that sail the earth. I love giving my pottery to loved ones. I share freely and feel blessed to see my humble pieces exhibited and utilized in their homes. I love meeting new handmade bowls and I never tire of co-creating a bowl.
I feel so privileged to be part of Sandy's studio. Our Thursday morning class is therapeutic, intimate and safe. Our teatime has transcended into a scrumptious taste bud adventure.
Potters are caring, empathic and honest with their heartfelt compliments. I have never left a pottery class in 17 years without feeling satisfied, loved and respected. Sandy is truly a choreographer of context.
I share Sandy's love for horses, nature, travel, spending time on our farm, spicy food and full-body red wine. I love writing poems and cherish chocolate and romance.
If anyone wants to step out of their comfort zone and risk taking themselves less seriously, I would highly recommend pottery. Pottery is an essential service to your self-love and self-care.
I recommend pottery as a meaningful therapeutic space and wish any future potter a teacher, mentor, guide and earth mother like Sandy.
Thank you for the opportunity to share a part of my potter's journey with you. I wish you poetry in motion, timeless joy and many more sacred experiences with your inner child.
