Green Valley, 2024

Ash Glazed Stoneware | 13″ x10″ x 9″

Victor J Webster’s ceramic works in celebration of the Year of the Dragon, are tied to Shabakai, the Long Snake, the Russian River--the place where these works were created--and named for the tributary streams that feed this powerful entity.

The dragon symbolism permeates through all cultures, in all times, springing from our collective unconscious and embodying Jung’s grandiose exhibitionist libido. These powerful beings have always been tied to waterways. The precious life eternally collecting around dragons gave them their sacred powers. Just like the local materials used in these works (ash glazes from native trees of Sonoma County, native rock and clay, and the firing atmosphere of the Long Snake kiln, Yvonne), the water that flows in this river forged the idea for these pieces. Each dragon is accompanied by a cup, which invites the viewer to participate in the work, the vessel from which the sacred waters that give us life are consumed.

Webster, a recent immigrant to California, has become increasingly aware of the significance and scarcity of water in the recent years of drought and wildfire. These works acknowledge our very mortal connection to the use and management of this precious resource.