About Laughing Tortoise Mud Farm
Hello! I'm Dawn, a ceramic artist working in Hillsborough, NC as Laughing Tortoise Mud Farm
I was hooked on all things clay after a beginner's ceramics class at a local community college near my childhood home in Minnesota. They had an overnight raku firing workshop. I had never done anything like it. It all seemed quite magical. I was hooked. I worked in potteries and Ceramic studios as much as I could for a time, but took an extended break of many years while raising my daughter.
After my daughter was off on her own for a while, and I was well into another career, I had a life-changing medical event knock me off my feet. I ended up in the hospital with a serious brain bleed caused by a congenital vascular defect. It was essentially hemorrhagic stroke with different origins than usual.
This left me with a new reality and limited physical abilities. I was never "quick" at anything, but this new reality really made me have to embrace taking things slowly, and reinforced the idea that laughter is essential to making it through anything. At this point the laughing tortoise became a mascot - of sorts.
While I was mourning the loss of use of most of the left side of my body, a dear friend, and my current studio mate, was getting into ceramics. She suggested I take a class with her to see what I still could do, rather than thinking just about what I couldn't do. The first seed was planted in what would become my mud farm.This current portfolio is the result of that dive back into having clay in my life. You can read more about the journey to make this do-able in this Ceramics Monthly article here
I live in a small cobb house (built of clay sand and straw - yes - we live in a pot of sorts...) with my husband, the best dog in the world (stay calm - best dog to me - I know there are others,) and a grumpy old man of a cat. I share a studio here with my dear, kind, and talented friend, Darcey, of Hoot Owl Pottery. My husband, ceramic sculptor, Paul Toma of Clay House Ceramics has his studio here as well.
Since all my work is post my life changing so drastically, it is influenced mainly by the concepts of healing, transformation, and finding strength. Protection symbolism often finds it's way into my work as well.
I am also inspired by the natural world, both at large, and in all the elements that make up the art and process of ceramics. Nature, where I find much healing, transformation, and strength, inspires much of my work.