Steve Hansen I Berrien Springs, Michigan

I remember as a boy of thirteen standing in a newly dug trench of what would become the basement for a house my father was building in central Minnesota. Staring up at the twin strata of earth I was overcome by the feeling that was witness to something important and primal. The walls that were newly cut into the earth had two vital layers. The first layer was rich black dirt, almost three feet thick, strong with the musk of decay, yet ripe with the promise of life. The second layer going down five more feet was red clay, never quite dry, and always ready to stain denim and skin. I felt then that I had somehow stumbled on a metaphor, though my as yet untrained mind could only grasp the loose edges of its meaning. I could not have guessed then that the rich black earth of the Midwest would become for me the center of my life's work. I create ceramic works that awaken trace memories of childhood experiences I have growing up in the rural Midwest. Rusted license plates and wire, radiator cans and hubcaps off a '39 Ford have for me the strength to evoke the smells, sound and tastes of my own places of becoming. These are pots that could spin yarns about first cars, first times, and how treasures become broken. I believe that sharing with others the things that have made us who we are enlarges our understanding of what it can mean to be human. I am interested in working with imagery and processes that are true to both my nature and nurture.