About

I’m a potter and cook located in Berkeley, CA. After studying Sustainable Agriculture at UC Davis, I moved to the Bay to work at Chez Panisse. I’ve been cooking there for almost 3 years, where I focus on beauty, simple ways of intuitive cooking, and listening to the fire on the wood fired grill and oven. Fire has become an epicenter of my work and passion, leading me to begin wood firing my ceramics. I’m inspired by fire as a vessel and its own being, allowing processes to change in the kitchen, studio, and the ecological landscape of California around me.

I spent 3 months in Japan to pursue my passions in ceramics, farming, tea, dance, and of course couldn’t stay out of the kitchen. In rural Nara, I did a residency with potters Francis Bliven and Yufuko Kurioka at their home and studio, Okayama House, where Francis led a stripped down workshop on how somatics, listening to the clay and our bodies, and awakening our beginner’s mind can inform our practice. Immersed in their home nestled behind the Takami River, I was able to learn Japanese lifestyle practices and deeply connect with Francis over our love for cooking and showcasing food on handmade pots in their gas soda kiln.

I farmed for 2 weeks in Himeji with Takashi Shimabukuro of HPPBM, where I learned the mindset and ways of tending the fields and cooking rurally with a traditional family. At the restaurant Hachiya Shokudo, Takashi’s partner Yokko delivers the farm’s produce in such beautiful and delicious bites for the local community. Cultivating the “tambo,” or rice paddy, was one of the highlights. I got to sculpt and shape the field by hand, then return weeks later to plant with the community. It was a rich, touching, and fulfilling experience that highlighted the importance of community and why growing food is so important.

My first wood firing experience was in April 2026 at Cider Creek Collective with Nick Schwartz and Jess Thompson. During a one month workshop on wild clay and wood-soda firing, I learned how to harvest local clay from fallen redwoods with Ryan Schnirel and fire Nick’s cat kiln using local pine, oak, and juicy additions of soda over a 4 day firing. I continue to visit Cider Creek and fire with them, primarily using Nick’s mix with local clay. An unforgettable memory was when we spent the morning harvesting mussels with Wolfgang and built a rocket stove out of the abundance of bricks lying around the property, to fire up a Thai Coconut Curry with Mussels fresh from the coast. Folks gathered around the fire and wok as the kiln was cooling down from an awesome firing.