Covered in clay, hair pulled back, dirty old clothing, sitting at a pottery wheel is where Kirsten Goodman feels most comfortable.

Goodman has been doing different types of art since she was young. She is seeking a duel degree in Fine Arts with a concentration in ceramics and part of the honors scholar program.

“I can’t wait to graduate,” Goodman said. “When I graduate I will be able to focus on more fun projects that are not for school.”

While Goodman may work on projects at school she said she has her own art studio at home and spends most of her time at home creating.

While being a full-time student, Goodman is also married and has an 11-year-old son named Gabriel.

“It’s great most of the time, but sometimes she can get too lost in her work,” her husband Greg Goodman said. “She’s in her studio five or more days a week.”

Goodman said she spends a lot of time on her art and that art is often perceived as easy, but that it is often a misconception.

“My inspiration comes from my own personality,” Goodman said. “I like creating beauty.”

Goodman said a lot of her works of art are often based on a type of awareness or a nature theme. Goodman said she has several pieces of work that deals with different types of cancers and promoting the awareness of them.

Brian Harper, assistant professor of fine arts and one of Goodman’s professors said he has seen a lot of her works reflect different cancers such as breast cancer and bone cancer.

“She’s very socially minded about issues in her art,” Harper said. “She turned one show into a fundraiser for different cancers.”

Goodman said that breast cancer is a very important issue that has impacted people that she is close to. She said she did a detailed bust of a woman for breast cancer awareness during her first year of ceramics.

Goodman said that the real life like bust of a woman was one of her favorite pieces that she has created because one of her best friends had breast cancer. She said she wanted to take something that was close to her and create something out of it.

“It’s exciting to see something like that in a student,” Harper said. “You don’t see it very often.”
Harper said that Goodman sold several pieces of her artwork and donated the money to different awareness’s. He said that Goodman’s cancer project was her largest project that she has done.

Goodman said that hard work is the key to success and that a person gets what they put in. Goodman said she likes to add tiny details into her works of art that others can appreciate. One of classmates, Logan

Walsh, ceramics and english writing senior, said he doesn’t see much of her process at school since she works at home, but usually see the outcome of her projects.

“She is very well organized and always plans everything out,” Walsh said. “She puts a lot of detail into her work.”

Goodman is helping with building the new wood fire kiln in the back of Knobview Hall. She said that she and roughly 10 other students are working on the kiln. Goodman said that the kiln will roughly be done in a week.

“This is my second wood fire kiln that I have built,” Goodman said. ”I am also working on pieces for the fall show on November 22.”

Goodman said that she and 16 other artists will showcase their works in a Senior Bachelor of Fine Arts show. The show is called “Monkey Uprising” inspired by their last year of school.

“I like her art and feel proud of what she can accomplish,” Goodman’s husband said. “It’s very passionate, functional and thought provoking.”
Goodman said that currently she is working on a series of pigs that she is painting for a fundraiser. She said she is already working on some of her pieces for the spring show.

“She’s really lively and real friendly,” Walsh said. “She’s always ready to talk and get it work.”

Goodman said her focus is in ceramics because it is her favorite medium to work with.

“I enjoy 95 percent of the work I do,” Goodman said. “I’m very passionate about every step it takes to create.”

Goodman said that she does not just work on ceramics. She said the she works with other mediums such as oil paints and print making.

“I like to have fun with it. Don’t worry about making a mess because it washes out,” Goodman said. “You can fix mistakes, but sometimes you really have to dig your heels in.”