Rosslyn Reed is one of only a few ceramic artists who works with crystalline glazes and her works are highly prized for their beauty and rarity. These glazes are among the most elusive of high fire glazes. Like ice crystals on a windowpane, the zinc crystals grow on the surface of each piece in beautiful unpredictable patterns. Their formation depends on a balance of glaze composition, careful firing and controlled cooling. Made of fine porcelain to ensure clarity of colour, each piece captures a unique moment in crystal formation. Rosslyn’s crystalline works are fully functional and can be displayed as decorative art or used in the dining room.

By contrast, smoke-fired vessels capture a particular moment in the sawdust and wood firing. Smoke fired pieces are decorated with terra sigillata, burnished with a pebble and fired in sawdust. Each piece, when removed from the kiln, is a record of a unique event in the firing cycle. The flashed images capture a specific moment during the firing as they document the interaction of clay, smoke and flame. The vessels are porous to allow the smoke to penetrate deep into the clay and create its unique pattern. As such, smoke fired pieces, like raku, are non-functional and are decorative only.

Rosslyn is the recipient of many awards and taught ceramics at Mohawk and Niagara colleges before moving to her waterfront home near Apsley. Her work can be found in various private galleries as well as at the prestigeous Gardiner Museum gallery shop in Toronto.