Biography

My name is Dalleen, (Dal-lean, third daughter of George-Dallas and Harriett. Clever parents!). So nice to meet you!

I've been immersed in some sort of creative effort since childhood. My formal art training began in 1981 when I left my childhood home in West Virginia for art school. Graduating from The Art Institute of Pittsburgh in 1982 and receiving a BA in 2009 from Ashford University. As an adult I've designed greeting cards for American Greetings, painted murals at an Amusement park and lead creative staff at a Global Health Care Company.

In 2012, after 30 years of working in Visual Communications, I retired and began a phase of self discovery in the mountains of North Carolina. No matter the state, mountains feel like old friends, providing inspiration in their peaks and valleys. This is where I found the magical properties of clay.

Artist Statement

My work is a constant search for the best way to interpret ideas while pushing myself to challenge the limitations of clay.

As a child I remember jumping in ice covered mud puddles fascinated by the swirling mud beneath. Decades later, I find myself once again playing in the mud with the same simple joy of a child but also with an experienced focus on form and function. Nature calls me to settle and breath, clay calls to me to be something new and often something useful.

This messy, playful medium allow me to immerse myself in this art form while pushing me to explore and develop practical, yet distinctive works.

We are all a bit like clay, formed by our surroundings and experiences.

-dalleen

It's been a journey!