Artist Statement

My work aims to capture small moments of happiness and inspire a sense of joy in the user. I am inspired by the natural world and the magic that exists within it. The elements I use in my repeating patterns are taken from some of my happiest memories - the first time I tasted a wild strawberry; finding sand dollars on a beach; witnessing the return of crocuses in the spring. I think of these patterns as a kind of wallpaper, a representation of interior space. They reference memories as well as a hoped for future and the interior of the home I’m still searching for.
I work in series, constantly making small changes, finding and repeating what works, and discarding that which I no longer connect to. My work focuses on memory and nostalgia, longing and belonging. It’s about my ongoing search for a home.

Biography

Alana Lea Wilson completed her MFA at Pennwest Edinboro University and her BFA at NSCAD University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She makes colourful, ceramic work for the home under the name builderburner ceramics. She’s done residencies in Canada, Australia, and the U.S. and spent two years living in Mexico, learning Spanish. In 2020 she received a Create and Explore grant from the Canada Council for the Arts and in 2023 she received a Professional Development grant from Arts Nova Scotia. Her work explores ideas around memory and nostalgia, longing and belonging, and her ongoing search for a home. Currently she lives in New Waterford, NS.