Studio Information
About The Artist
Clay’s geologic origin in the landscape that surrounds us has greatly influenced my work. I draw inspiration from the mountains, rock, and terrain, as well as the ancient cultures that inhabited these lands.
My abstract sculptures are “clay formations.” Each is hand built without armature. I hand roll coils and meld together altered pinch pots; It is a slow and ancient process. The unique qualities of clay, specifically its plasticity and strength, allow me to explore the shared organic nature of geologic, botanic and human forms. I engage in a dance between strategic and deliberate action and improvisational gesture. I continually study the sculpture looking for suggestions of other forms that may invite exploration.
Similar to the experience of viewing a geologic landscape, I want the observers of my art to identify their own forms within my sculptures and assign their own meanings and associations.
Shelley is a ceramic sculptor whose focus is on the hand-building of abstract forms. She works out of her studio in Sonoma, California. Shelley has studied ceramics with well known artists in the ceramic field. Her pieces have been in curated exhibitions in Seattle, Roanoke and Healdsburg. One of her sculptures was selected for the Di Rosa Museum’s Inaugural Exhibit “True North” in 2022/2023.
Ceramics, Sculpture
Contact Information
Exhibitions & Press
2022/2023
“True North-Juried Exhibition,” di Rosa Center for Contemporary Art, Napa, California
“Surface: A National Juried Exhibition Highlighting the Use of Textures and Patterns in Artwork.” D’Art Center , Norfolk, Virginia
“Gallery 110 12th Annual Juried Exhibition,” Gallery 110, Seattle, WA – Juror, Emily Zimmerman, Director & Curator, Jacob Lawrence Gallery, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
2021
“Bill Shelley and Shelley Spira Burns,” Hammerfriar Gallery, Healdsburg, California
“Garden Art.” Online Exhibition, Association of Clay and Glass Artists of California
2020
“Sonoma Arts Stroll,” City of Sonoma and Plein Air Foundation, Sonoma, California
“Created – Artists at the Center,” Sonoma Ceramics at Sonoma Community Center, Sonoma, California
2018
“13 Years Retrospective Group Show,” Hammerfriar Gallery, Healdsburg, California
“The Annual Invitation Show,” The Arts Guild of Sonoma, Sonoma, California
2017
“Shelley Spira Burns and Bill Shelley,” Hammerfriar Gallery, Healdsburg, California
