Penny Parnes

I have always loved pottery. I have collected and admired pottery for most of my adult life and for the past 20 years have been creating my own.

​While I usually admire things that are hand built and seem more organic to me, when I come into the studio, the pottery wheel is a magnet. I often intend to make things that
are hand built but wind up on wheel.

I sampled pottery at several locations in Toronto when my children were little, but did not have the time to pursue it. For the past 20 years I have become more involved. I have been a member of the potters studio for most of those 20 years, however the studio’s relocation to Scarborough made it much less appealing to me due to the long commute. I was delighted to be welcomed to Woodlawn.

Some special experiences I have had have been week long courses at the Haliburton School of Fine Art ;where along with friends we stayed in cottages and got to enjoy intensive pottery and the beauty of Haliburton. One very special experience for me has been travelling to San Miguel de Allende for the month of February. For the past 2 years I have enjoyed working at the Estudio Paloma. This studio operated by Blance Garcia is a dream location complete with resident cats. It is interesting to me that most of the pots I create in Mexico are so different than my usual work in Toronto. I think that the light and the beauty of San Miguel are a big part of that outcome.

I think that clay offers so many options that I can never imagine myself getting tired of it.