Dorothy Koss
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Every child gets asked sooner or later what they want to be when they grow up. I remember many answers. Like the times I said I wanted to be a ballerina, ice skater, and a judge. All at the same time. I would dance and direct a court room simultaneously. I came up with some pretty outlandish answers. This was because I figured that there was no way I could possibly be what I really wanted to be. Those people were equal to gods in my tiny perspective. They were awesome and magical and they filled my early years with enough creative fodder to keep me inspired for the rest of my life. These individuals could pluck something brand new out of the ether to make it tangible, to bring it to life for the rest of us who do not have the vision. Wheresoever these people went it seemed to me that laughter, love, and joy followed them. They left a wake of light, color, music, and jubilation. Parades should be held in their honor because as far as my young mind was concerned these people were the epitome of all that was good in the world. These people that filled my young world were artists, and many of them starving, and even through that they could still bring joy. I thought that there was no way I could achieve such things. I still might doubt my worth frequently, but now I know that I don't ever want to stop trying. But I did not find my craft, it found me. Each piece takes me on it's own journey. I usually start out with a piece of what will become the finished product and I allow that tiny thing to guide me. Sometimes I want an item to start out one way but it has other ideas and takes me in an entirely new direction. I don't like to force a creation, I strive to find it's proper place. I grew up in Dallas, Texas roaming all over the countryside with my mother who is an artist, and learning all about beer and the law from my father who is an attorney. My favorite place to play was outside. There were always new games to be found if you had the enthusiasm. I was blessed to be able to spend my high school days in the Puget Sound area in Northwest Washington State. What had been suppressed for some years by a darkness that I could not previously overcome, began to breathe again. I experienced a passion and verve that I thought I had lost. I was once more inspired by the wilderness, the gritty and wet urban experience, and the friends I eventually made. I was enchanted by the Earth. I was gifted with some glorious surprises by the world around me. I like to think the mystery, wonder, and confusion I found in watching the world reflects in my work. I have a tendency to avoid the symmetrical if I can. I like to mix things up and give you something you won't expect. That's the way life is after all, you never know what is about to come. I absolutely adore found things, |