Ken Sadler’s late life journey into pottery would normally be a good story in itself. Discovering the art form from an accidental encounter with Paulus Berensohn’s book, One’s Way With Clay, when well into his late 60s, Sadler not only took up the potter’s wheel but became totally absorbed with clay, including his passion for Raku pottery, the ancient Japanese method of using direct flame to release special colors and exterior surfaces.
But it’s not all “high art” with Ken’s work. Perhaps influenced by his clown character, Dr. Goodwrench, who has appeared at the Easton hospital for years, he has a complete line of clay snakes (and other garden art) that are realistic enough to scare one’s favorite Eastern Shore gardener, or more recently, his creation of “Watchers,” figures designed to be his modern version the St. Christopher medal; very capable of special protection for its owners.
When Ken and his wife, Sarah, recently sold their Oxford house and moved into Londonderry on the Tred Avon, Ken transferred his studio to the Davis Art Center in Easton to continue both his serious and not so serious pottery. That’s where the Spy found him last month and we had a brief conversation with him about the special pleasures that come with Raku.
This video is approximately three minutes in length. For more information about the Davis Art Center please go here
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