A flower in the mud

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A random decision at Clark College changed Linda Kliewer's course in life forever. 

“I took a pottery class and fell so in love, so completely, obsessively in love that I finished at the end of the year with my floral design class and the instructor sat me down and said, ‘You need to reevaluate your direction. I think you should be a potter instead.’”

Kliewer tells her story as we (a photographer and I) stand among her muses in a greenhouse attached to the workshop behind her home. Bromeliads, Alocasias, and Anthuriums thrive in this humid little oasis she’s created where she not only practices her first love of gardening but also gains inspiration for her botanical art pieces.

It all started when she wanted to be active in something that wouldn’t return her to the monotony of a cubicle. She’d done her time before, eventually taking a break from the suits to be a stay-at-home mom to combat exorbitant daycare expenses. A vocational degree in floral design was her answer, but after selecting an intro pottery course for the sake of elective credits, that answer soon morphed into clay, rolling pins and sculpting tools. 

She delved into the art form with passion, refining her craft, participating in events and shows, and founding a staple to the Southwest Washington art community: the Battle Ground Art Alliance. Decades later, she now holds a permanent spot at Aurora Gallery, has been featured in a magazine and three books, and has held and been shown in countless exhibits, contests, and programs. Her resumé is impressive, but the artwork that backs it up is moreso. 

The majority of her work represents nature either through rows of clay Gingko leaves, goddesses encased in blooms the first of its kind, or vases riddled with cracked negative space as new growth furls from the edges. 

A vessel with pinnate leaves wrapped around its midsection displays Kliewer’s old crafting style. 

“I started more with just straight carving,” she mentions, pulling it out from the shadows of a bottom shelf so its rough design is more visible. The leafy ridges and veins had been carved into pliable clay with tools before it was baked into place with a kiln. 

“Now I’m doing more cut out work,” she said. In her hands is a small vase with empty spaces framing wide petaled blue flowers and verdant leaves.

It goes without saying a lot of work is put into each piece. Of course, the time behind them depends on the size and complexity of the design, but, regardless, they all start out as a large block of clay. 

Kliewer trends towards handmade pottery as opposed to pottery made on the familiar potter’s wheel, leading to her first step of “coiling” the clay. This is where balls of clay are rolled out into long tubular shapes to be stacked on top of each other and smoothed out into a vessel-like form. 

“Once it dries and it gets a little stiffer, I draw a design on there and then start carving out,” she explains. “After that’s done I sort of smooth it a little bit and then I start carving the in-betweens, that are the sides of the leaves.” 



She smooths out the edges with a damp sponge in between the pauses she takes in carving and protects it with plastic when she has to step away for longer periods of time. 

Eventually, she has enough prepared pieces to fill up her kiln, a device about three feet tall and three feet in diameter. It’s lined with dense firebricks that allow it to get to upwards of 2,000 degrees.

At times during this initial bisque firing, or the secondary firing that sets the glaze, some of her pieces crack or shatter due to thermal stress the pieces undergo in this process. 

“Usually they’re breaking at the endpoint which is sickening because now you’ve put 10 hours into something and it breaks right when you’re at the end. You just have to throw it away,” she says, her tone defeated solely in remembrance. 

In more fortunate times, masterpieces emerge from the flames. 

She directs us to an asymmetrical vessel with broad flowers cut out from gold washed clay on one side, and a solid contrasting black glaze decorating the other. The most startling feature is its bulbous center, far wider than the base and neck of the vase. Currently, it’s Kliewer’s favorite piece. 

“It’s asymmetrical yet it’s completely balanced so it’s not shaky at all,” she displays with light pushes to the piece, showing off her craft.

It’s by far the most attention-grabbing piece in the workshop, but that’s not to say the surrounding pieces pale in comparison. Each of her vessels are special in their delicate stem carvings or creationist symbolism displayed through stamens and Mother Nature imagery. 

It took years in the making, but her urge to try something new those decades ago in college allowed Kliewer’s future to blossom into the dream it is today. 

{{tncms-inline content="<p class="p1"><span class="s1">In Fall 2019 Linda Kliewer’s art will be at Second Story Gallery, 625 NE 4th Ave., Camas. In the meantime, she is a mainstay at Aurora Gallery, 1004 Main St., Vancouver.</span></p> <p class="p1"><span class="s1">You can also set up an appointment to view her workshop by calling Kliewer at (360)635-8526 or emailing claywiz02@gmail.com. Small pieces are available to purchase on her Etsy site: etsy.com/shop/ClayArtBotanica.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p>" id="522b4de1-3fcd-4822-87c6-48402659fa58" style-type="bio" title="View Linda Kliewer's Work " type="relcontent"}}

{{tncms-inline content="<p class="p1"><span class="s1">Visit bgartalliance.com/join-bgaa to join the Battle Ground Art Alliance. Single memberships are $25 and doubles are $35, annually.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p>" id="5e616cfb-1451-4ae2-9bf8-0995dda1061f" style-type="bio" title="Join the Alliance " type="relcontent"}}