Born and educated in Germany, Franziska’s interest in clay began at a very early age while attending art classes in the city of Stuttgart. Later, after arriving in Canada in 1963, she again renewed her love for clay as an art form and began to take a variety of courses and classes which she has continued to do through to the present. She is a member of the Visual Arts Society of St. Albert, where she instructs classes in clay sculpture.

Although a competent wheel thrower, Franziska’s personal focus and fascination is mainly with clay sculpture where her interest in the primitive cultures of the world becomes apparent. Numerous pieces have been sculpted in this fashion influenced by the early works of the Canadian Inuit and the North and South American Indians. Franziska works out of a private studio in Alberta where she creates her sculptural forms using the primitive firing technique of Raku.
Franziska’s work can be found in both public and private collections world wide. She has been commissioned on many occasions by the City of Edmonton, the Hospital Board of St. Albert and the City of St. Albert.

Raku Technique
Raku is a centuries old firing technique developed by the Japanese. The pieces of pottery are fired outdoors in a kiln fuelled by wood or propane. The pieces are heated very quickly to the red hot stage and while the glaze is still molten, they are pulled out of the kiln and into the air. The iridescent colours and/or crackle surfaces are a result of the chemical reaction of the glaze materials oxidizing when the posts are removed from the kiln. To stop the oxidation process and control the surface effects and colours, the pots are then places in a pit or container, covered with combustible materials and sealed airtight with a lid. This is called a reduction atmosphere. This reduction of oxygen stops the flaming and produces thick black smoke which permeates the clay body and produces the unusual, spontaneous surface effects.