Sarah Clague

Sarah Reynolds Clague is a graduate of Bradford College in Massachusetts and of the Cleveland Institute of Art where she studied under Toshiko Takaezu and where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree

Exhibitions
• The Cleveland Museum of Art May shows
• The Butler Museum annual
• The Trumbull Art Guild
• The Beck Center
• The Jewish Community Center
• The Chagrin Vallery Art Center
• The Fairmount Center
• The Russell Art Show
• The Gates Mills Art Show
• Kent State University
• Lakeland College
• The Mansfield Art Center
• Cain Park
• The Bratenahl Shows

Teaching
• The Fairmount Arts Center, 1972 - 1987
• The Willougby School of Fine Arts, 1980 - 1987
• The Jewish Community Center, Artist in Residence, 1987 - 2002
• MEC Clay Studio, Bratenahl, 2005 - Present

Raku is a quick, low-fire method of firing pots which requires a clay that can withstand extreme thermal shock. The entire procedure, from lighting the kiln to holding a finished pot in one's hands, takes less than two hours. When the pot is glowing red-orange, approximately 1700 degrees, it is removed from the kiln with long tongs and placed in a pit filled with dry material such as newspaper, straw or sawdust. As soon as this material bursts into flame, it is covered with a galvanized bucket which smothers the fire. This process, called reducing, turns the unglazed clay from white to shades of grey and black. The pot is then air-cooled briefly and plunged into cool water. The quick cooling, which began as soon as the pot was taken from the kiln, causes the random crackle in the glaze.
Although Raku has its origin in the Japanese Tea Ceremony in the middle 1500's, Raku pots are porous and are therefore not ideal for liquids.
Translated into English, Raku means "Enjoyment of Freedom."

The Goddess is a symbol of the unity of all life in nature. Her power is in light, water, animals, birds, hills, trees and flowers: all there is on earth. With Christianity, there came a rejection of the Goddess and all she stood for. Now the Goddess has reemerged from the forest. My women area a celebration of the Goddess in daily life.