Julie describes herself as a perfectionist. Much of her exploration balanced her ability to focus on details and precision with a willingness to takes risks. In this piece, she chose to cover much of a carefully crafted bottle form with spikes and peaks. The form is rounded and accessible, juxtaposed with sharp, angular additions. The copper red glaze came out perfectly, breaking white on the sharp areas where the glaze is thinner and pooling into deep reds between the peaks. Copper reds are risky; the piece might have had many less fortunate outcomes.

As a teacher, my job is to create a safe space where over 200 students who use the studio can learn to explore and think for themselves. With 26 to 33 students in a class, I expect to see as many individual solutions to the projects as there are students. My students, especially at the advanced and AP levels, work very independently while utilizing many one-to-one formative assessments. Every five to six weeks, we have a large class critique where each student presents work to the whole class. I encourage students to learn from and teach each other. We create a community of awareness, mutual respect, and cooperation.