University of Wales Institute, Cardiff (UWIC)
Rena Friedant (US), MA in Ceramics, Cardiff School of Art and Design
I fell in love with clay while earning a Bachelors degree in Art Education at the Pennsylvania State University. Upon graduation, I secured a teaching position in the Centennial School District, a modest sized school system in the suburbs of Philadelphia. For fourteen years I have worked with students at the elementary level (ages 5 to 12), introducing them to a wide range of art genres as well as the artists and cultures that have created the great works. My dream, however, has always been to work with more mature students and share with them my love for ceramics. Because of this goal and my research into the pedagogies of ceramic education, I thought my practice as an art educator could only be significantly improved if I invested in my own studio practice, prompting me to pursue my interest in a Masters in Ceramics.
While earning a Masters in Art Education from the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, I met an extraordinary artist and educator named Neil Patterson. Neil attended UWIC in the early 1990s. He 
remembers his time in Cardiff as a period of exploration, both of the medium and of self. Understanding my aspirations, Neil suggested I pursue my academic inquiries at his Alma Mater, the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff. Always longing to travel, and finding myself at a professional and personal crossroads, I applied to UWIC in hopes of challenging my current perceptions of ceramic education while investing in my own aesthetic vocabulary. To pursue such an investigation in the United States would serve only part of my research goal for I have been looking to break away from the comfort of what I know. The United States has incredible institutions of higher learning, but it is the long and rich history of the European community that can bring greater depth of understanding to my contemporary life experiences. I traveled to Wales seeking total immersion into my studies, both inside and out of the studio.
Now having lived in Cardiff for six months, each day I marvel at the natural beauty of my new home. The energy of this young capitol city with its graceful Bute Park alongside the classic Victorian terraced homes, inspire me each day whilst on route to my studio at UWIC’s Howard Gardens 
campus where the Cardiff School of Art and Design is located. The textured architecture, the slow flow of the river and the warm palette of the Welsh gardens have each been surfacing in my studio practice. Using the thrown vessel as my format, I am investigating the alteration of classic forms while developing visual metaphors for the places and moments I have and will be having throughout my European education. My tutors at UWIC invest a great deal of energy into my theoretical inquiries, whilst the workshop technicians have been incredibly generous with their knowledge and support of my pursuits in bringing my inquiries to fruition. The rigorous timetable of this one-year program has provided me with the opportunity to submerge my love for ceramic art into an intense and sincere investigation. Though my time in Wales will come to an end in September, I aspire to nurture all I have learned here as I grow my practices, both as artist and educator, within my American community.
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