Oklahoma City for her work Flight.
Particularly gratifying was the
November 2014 Choctaw Nation
acquisition of two totem vases for
display in the Hall of Chiefs. In
September of 2014 the Choctaw
Museum acquired her piece Summer
by the River for its permanent
collection.
Calling her artistic endeavor
“Earth to Art,” Young markets her
work through various galleries from
Houston to California and north to
Ontario, Canada, and at shows and
competitions. Her studio is open to
the public on a very specific schedule
— “If we’re here, we’re open.”
Calling ahead might be a worthwhile
consideration.
“And we’ll have an open studio
for the holidays,” she added. “We call
it a Holiday Open House, and it’s on
the Saturday before Thanksgiving.
Happy Thanksgiving!
817-596-2858
Kathy Evans
TRLP, MRP
Cell: 817-637-7506
Cynthia Williams
GRI, MRP
Cell: 817-629-0000
Partners With
Parker County
For a Clean Environment
Progressive Waste Solutions is proud to serve all of Parker County’s solid waste needs.
PA R K E R C O U N T Y T O D AY
800.350.3024
NOVEMBER 2015
makes my heart sing.”
The Fort Worth native retired
and in 2012 moved with husband
Sam to a home and two acres in
Weatherford. There they built the
“studio of her dreams.”
“Now I spend every day making
pots and living that dream,” Young
said.
As can be seen in a photograph
of her turning a piece on her wheel,
Young absolutely delights in her
work. The toothy smile is boundless,
her eyes are closed in elation. Her
hands are covered in clay and her
apron is mucky. And it’s a good
mucky.
The pieces themselves are black
and “white” with delicious bursts of
color peeking out from the inside.
There is a scratchboard or woodcut
quality to the work. The Native
American iconography is earthy,
perhaps simple at first glance; but it
is an intricate simplicity born of ethos
— in the final evaluation, perhaps not
simple at all. Certainly the joy of the
potter shines through in each piece.
While it is tempting to assume
Young has an innate ability to make
visual music from clay (and this is
likely true), she has worked at her art.
“Without a degree in art, I was
determined to learn from the best,”
she said. “For many years, I spent
a week each summer at Arrowmont
School of Art in Gatlinburg,
Tennessee, learning from the best:
Lana Wilson, Ellen Shankin, Josh
DeWeese, Pete Pinnell and Kathy
Triplett, to name a few. At home, I
took classes from the best in Texas:
Dale Neese, Daphne Hatcher, Mark
Epstein and many others. I bought a
wheel and practiced my craft every
day, preparing for the day I could
retire and live my dream — to be a
full-time potter.”
Young keeps busy in her studio
dreamworld and often participates in
art shows and competitions. At the
2013 Peach Festival Art Show she
won 2nd place for her piece Bear
Totem, and she took 2nd at the 2013
Renaissance of Art competition for
Spirit of the Bear. In 2014, she took
2nd place at the Choctaw Indian Art
Show with Plenty to Share. This year
she won 3rd place in contemporary
pottery at the Red Earth Art Festival in
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