Shane Mickey
Shane Mickey is a maker of vessels and objects. He has made wood-fired pots for almost over two decades. After fifteen years of anagama firings, Mickey switched to wood/salt firing using more glazes and introduced color to pots. He enjoys texture and patterns on the work broken up by bold lines and different glazes. The work is rooted in functional design while expressing ideas of spontaneity. Completely one with his kiln, Mickey believes that wood firing is similar to painting; the vessel is the canvas and how he loads and fires is the process of painting it.
Shane Mickey at MudFire
Gallery group show Mug*Shots, August 2009
Gallery group show Potters Of The Roan, April 2009
Gallery group show Asheville In Atlanta, September 2004
Shane Mickey Artist Statement
I am after the discovery of my pots, my place, my language, in this rich continuum of clay history. The work is rooted in functional design while expressing ideas of spontaneity. At times, the work takes on human characteristics, such as the feeling of plump flesh, personalities or expressions. I do not need to extol the justifications utilitarian ceramics can play in today's world. I am a potter, period. I am more concerned with living, moving forward. The act of working at the wheel, kiln, etc. is for me the same as a mechanic, a doctor, or a teacher. It is a life lived. The warmth and energy gained from daily life, allows me to create pots that are full of energy, and full of humility.
My work is just as much a sculptural process as it is a functional pot. I approach each form with the end results in mind. I try to utilize all the diverse surfaces available in the Woodfired Anagama kiln. I will pick a surface that is peculiar to one zone in the kiln and then make vessels or objects that I feel will work in unison with that surface. I feel it is similar to painting in the respect that the vessel is the canvas and how I load and fire is the process of "painting" the vessel.
