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About Fireborn Studios
Artist Statement by Daniel Vito revised 2006
I see with my hands. The need to touch things, pick them up and hold them made my mother,
teachers and shopkeepers nervous. I always had a need to work with my hands, to build, create
and fix things. It made me feel good about what I had done.
I discovered clay about 35 years ago. Every aspect of clay excites me. When soft, it is sensitive
to the slightest touch and reflects everything done to it. It is forgiving and can be erased and
reworked. A finished vessel is a record of my emotional response to volume, line, form and
surface. The final firing resolves and clarifies that response – hence my studio name “Fireborn”.
One of the most exciting times for me is in the days after a firing when I select the best works
from the kiln and put them in my home: a small pot on the kitchen table, a new rice bowl, a large
piece on a sculpture stand in my living room. I look at them and see discover things I didn't
understand at the time they were worked, but which now seem so necessary.
Traditional functional pottery and Asian glazes have always inspired me. I have traveled
extensively, visiting ruins, museums and living potters. Functional pottery and ceremonial
vessels tell the story of past civilizations. I am part of that continuum. I strive to blend form and
function, art and design, color and texture into beautiful timeless pots.
I have always found pottery to be a very sensual, touchy-feely, thing. The balance of a piece, the
way a pitcher or teapot pours, how many fingers fit in a mug handle, how the lip of a mug feels
on your lips, the ring of a piece when you “ping” it with your finger, the smoothness of a pot’s
foot, all these things are important to me. Granted, I am a perfectionist about pottery, but it is my
life’s passion. You too, when you hold a pot sense these qualities, even if on an unconscious
level. On the surface, literally, we are all drawn to color. Next, I think we see the shape, and
appreciate it in terms of the pot’s function. But it is the hands that have the most intimate contact
with the piece and where I find the most joy.
Without getting too philosophical about all this, let it suffice for me to say that, although neither
drawings nor a website can show it, you can be assured all of these aspects are fully
addressed in my work. My intention is for everything I make to become, for you, a treasure; to be
prized enough for you to need that special bowl or mug when you have breakfast and to be
willing to go to the sink and hand wash it if need be so you can use it. Whether I make a simple
mug or a purely decorative art piece, I make each with loving care.
In 1985 I met my wife and partner Donna Hetrick. Together we created Fireborn Studios. We
collaborate on many pieces and also make our own work. I sign some of my work “Fireborn”
others I sign “Vito”, and sometimes I use chops.
I see with my hands. The need to touch things, pick them up and hold them made my mother,
teachers and shopkeepers nervous. I always had a need to work with my hands, to build, create
and fix things. It made me feel good about what I had done.
I discovered clay about 35 years ago. Every aspect of clay excites me. When soft, it is sensitive
to the slightest touch and reflects everything done to it. It is forgiving and can be erased and
reworked. A finished vessel is a record of my emotional response to volume, line, form and
surface. The final firing resolves and clarifies that response – hence my studio name “Fireborn”.
One of the most exciting times for me is in the days after a firing when I select the best works
from the kiln and put them in my home: a small pot on the kitchen table, a new rice bowl, a large
piece on a sculpture stand in my living room. I look at them and see discover things I didn't
understand at the time they were worked, but which now seem so necessary.
Traditional functional pottery and Asian glazes have always inspired me. I have traveled
extensively, visiting ruins, museums and living potters. Functional pottery and ceremonial
vessels tell the story of past civilizations. I am part of that continuum. I strive to blend form and
function, art and design, color and texture into beautiful timeless pots.
I have always found pottery to be a very sensual, touchy-feely, thing. The balance of a piece, the
way a pitcher or teapot pours, how many fingers fit in a mug handle, how the lip of a mug feels
on your lips, the ring of a piece when you “ping” it with your finger, the smoothness of a pot’s
foot, all these things are important to me. Granted, I am a perfectionist about pottery, but it is my
life’s passion. You too, when you hold a pot sense these qualities, even if on an unconscious
level. On the surface, literally, we are all drawn to color. Next, I think we see the shape, and
appreciate it in terms of the pot’s function. But it is the hands that have the most intimate contact
with the piece and where I find the most joy.
Without getting too philosophical about all this, let it suffice for me to say that, although neither
drawings nor a website can show it, you can be assured all of these aspects are fully
addressed in my work. My intention is for everything I make to become, for you, a treasure; to be
prized enough for you to need that special bowl or mug when you have breakfast and to be
willing to go to the sink and hand wash it if need be so you can use it. Whether I make a simple
mug or a purely decorative art piece, I make each with loving care.
In 1985 I met my wife and partner Donna Hetrick. Together we created Fireborn Studios. We
collaborate on many pieces and also make our own work. I sign some of my work “Fireborn”
others I sign “Vito”, and sometimes I use chops.
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