BARBARA SACKS, Raku clay,

Barbara Sachs is a ceramic artist who has been living and working in Dundas for over a decade. She attended L’Ecole des Beaux Arts and Champlain College in Montreal and went on to receive an Honours Bachelor of Fine Arts from York University. After rediscovering clay and the Raku process Barb has been exhibiting her work across Ontario and in 1998 the Ontario Government chose one of Barbara’s polar bears to present to Nelson Mandela.

   Inspired by nature Barb transforms clay into whimsical creatures that are full of life. Using hand building techniques, Barb begins each creature from a flat sheet of clay and carefully builds and transforms it into a hollow, three dimensional form. The clay is then fired using the ancient Japanese firing technique 'raku'.
   Artist’s Statement:
“With nature as my inspiration I strive to create lively and imaginative sculptural raku animals. Using hand building techniques and clay, I bring all creatures, great and small, to life.”