RHONA POLONSKY

As an international teacher who sat in many faculty meetings, Rhona learned to doodle. On the sides of her notebooks, you could follow page after page of doodles.  They eventually became more sophisticated.  As her interest in ceramics expanded, her goal was to transfer her doodling to ceramics.  Looking at the lively, offbeat, black and white sgraffito vessels that should bring feelings of amusement, playfulness, whimsy and enthusiasm.

All her life she has had the urge to be creative. At one point in her teaching career while living in Indonesia, she worked part-time and took life drawing classes with Teguh Ostenrik (teguhostenrik.com), an Indonesian artist.  Creating and being creative fed her soul in a way that was long overdue.  It was a craving and a need.  Being a teacher and a librarian allowed for her creativity but she knew it was time for something more. At one point Teguh suggested that she work in clay.  Rhona was instantly hooked to a material that was so forgiving and ever changing.  For her it was a material that she could explore and be inquisitive with.  She went to work with an Indonesian sculptor Dolorosa Sinaga (Instagram: @dolorosasinaga) who inspired her progress in clay.  More recently, in South Africa under the guidance of veteran potters at The Pottery Studio (www.potterystudio.co.za).