About the Artist, Sharon McCoy

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I am a Christian and the mother of two adult children and have four beautiful grandchilren. I was born and raised in Chula Vista, CA. I lived in Monte Vista, Colorado for 40 years and resently reconected with a high school friend, who is the love of my life. So, I packed up everything I own, moved to Scottsdale, Arizona and married him in August of 2022.

I received both my BA and MA from Adams State College and have taught in grades from kindergarten through college. I owned and operated Muddpuppy’s Coffee House, a delightful potpourri of art gallery, bookstore, deli, bakery, and yarn. During that period, it was hard to find any spare time to do any art work at all. I eventually sold my coffeehouse dream to get back to my real love—mudd! My MFA degree is from Fort Hayes State University in Kansas - May, 2014.

I am a narrative artist that is in love with clay. Clay gives me the placidity to capture my thoughts when it is wet and permanency of the form when fired. My work is layered with meanings of who I am now and who I was. Using borrowed symbols from the Christian religion, other cultures visited in my travels, and those from history, I combine all to make my own personal symbolism. Previously, I made a vague reference to the figure in my imagery. Lately, the figure has become of grave importance to the story-telling nature of my work.

My mother was a professional clown as well as a seamstress. The costuming on the figures pays homage to her. Color is of the utmost significance in my work. The layering of bold, vibrant colors invites the viewer to take a closer look. Once captivated, the viewer is asked to look at the details. Next, the viewer is welcomed to create their own story. It is not my intention to give up my whole story, but to entice the viewer to make up their own.

Sarcasm is a way of life for me, thus, satirical humor is a major potion of my narrative vocabulary. It makes the sarcasm a little easier to digest. This work, although seemingly fantasy, is a reality for me.

The work is fired up to five times in an oxidation kiln to cone 6. It is layered with underglazes, glazes, stains, oxides and gold luster to give each sculpture its desired visual depth.