| Her work has appeared in Victoria Magazine,
Mary Engelbreit
Home Companion and Romantic Homes. Her work is featured at fine gift stores and
galleries. At Art & Soul in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin and Moorehead & Rhodes in
Mequon and at Brookgreen Gardens, South Carolina,
Gethsemane Garden Center,
Chicago, also
Kohler
Gardener at Woodlake Center, Kohler, Wisconsin |
Cover of Home Companion the first time Taffnie's and
Susan Alexander's work appeared in the
magazine July 1997 issue. |
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Taffnie is currently working on exclusive pieces for the gift shop at the Lynn
Fontanne and Alfred Lunt Estate, Ten Chimneys in Genesee Depot, Wisconsin. |
| Taffnie learned clay techniques and principles from her husband, artist, Bruce
Dorow and her dear friend and clay artist, Susan Alexander. Her technique has
evolved from making earrings, or as she calls them, ear bobs and
pins to bowls,
trays, Party Pumps , wall pockets
and tile and tiled one of a kind
mirrors. She loves to do custom work and has been known to build an entire
decorative theme around just a few color chips. She has been handbuilding
porcelain wall pockets from the beginning of her clay endeavors and her work is
part of many vintage and new collections. |
Supplies in abundance |
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Inspiration for Lampshades |
All of her pieces are a bit different being hand-painted in
colors that cover a broad palette that is always subject to the whim of the day.
She has taken inspiration from the majolica wares of Spain to the vivid motifs
of Sweden. Mixing it up keeps it fresh and fun. |
| Making tiny porcelain tiles for what she calls ear bobs
currently coincides with the hand painted tiles she creates for her one of a
kind mirrors. The mirrors range in size beginning at 16" by 16". She has
created mirror and hall table companion pieces and tile trivets. Virtually any
surface she creates can be translated for utile tile use; kitchen back splashes,
bathrooms, etc. She also creates small tile necklaces and larger tile pieces
with hand painted scenes depicting her studio. |
Color Inspiration |
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Invitations to studio events
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Porcelain is her main clay body but she also utilizes a low
fire white clay body. She uses two techniques. She applies her ever growing
vintage lace collection to the clay surface creating decorative impressions and
then hand paints each piece with stain and glazes. The second technique is
painting scenes freehand with stains directly onto the green porcelain.
She likens her porcelain technique to a watercolor artist applying paint to
white paper. The stains are applied in a painterly fashion when the porcelain is
in its fragile green state. The porcelain work receives two long firings. It is
a long and intricate process which after all the firing and cooling offers up a
very unique and colorful result.
The low fire clay work she calls Taffnieware. Bowls, tiny and large, trays and Party Pumps;
miniature Victorianesque pumps that can be used to hold a flower or two or
whatever. |
