For over 39 years, ceramist Daphné Verley has been creating dynamic new departures in clay.

Re-evaluating utility, Daphné explores potential beyond the humble clay vessel to document scale, pigment, motif and silhouette evident in random visuals of the every day.

Her awareness of ordinary elements from artichoke leaves or scattered beach rocks to sidewalk grates and bolts on a bridge, translate to vibrant color and dramatic surface pattern evident in her work.

Observations of surrounding elements get stored in her creative reservoir later to emerge as inspired motif on a ceramic piece. Form, symmetry, color choice and combination become the tools she uses to explore the balance and rhythm resolved in nature and revealed in the urban landscape.

Additionally, Daphné's  creative process is informed by the influences and experiences born of her large expatriate French family. They prompted her imaginative thoughts at an early age. The tradition of her surrounding culture, an appreciation for beauty nurtured by her mother, the architectural work of her father and chaotic, close engagement with her eight siblings cultivated a preferred form of expression, visual art.

Whether functional vessel or sculptural form, Daphné celebrates the ordinary elements familiar in every day living, into one of a kind inspired designs.

Verley received her BFA in Ceramics from Syracuse University under David Macdonald. The artist studied at the Hornsey College of Art, London and textile design at the Rhode Island School of Design. Her work is in private collections internationally and has shown in numerous galleries including the Paul Mellon Arts Center, Joan Lukas  Rothenberg Gallery and The Cat a Street Gallery, Hong Kong.

Regarding Daphne's  TOTEMS available at Ardnaglass-

Inspiration from ancient totemic icons as well as modern figurative sculpture has led daphné verley to her most recent series, ‘TOTEM’. 

These figurative thrown earthenware vessels with their striped garb and distinctive personalities embody the strength, beauty and grace of women in her life while acknowledging the shared story of women universally.

The stacked collars, integral to the structure of these totems, allow for the upward ascension. Each collar, delicately supporting the next, creates a contour and color study of rhythmic stripe, suggesting elapsed time and measured growth. The resultant form coaxed from this dense clay, present a seamless sealed silhouette, a shared secret.

Deconstructed, the totems become a jumble of discordance. The ascending clarity of each personality becomes evident as the vessels come together. As with each soul, it is innate talent, mindful intention, collective experience and effort that illuminate identity. So it is with these distinctive warrior women.

Despite precarious balance and divergent turns, these totems stand tall highlighting the power and elegance of the women they represent, collectively or alone.