meet the lizards
liza q. furr, lead lizard / founder of dirty lizard ceramics studio
liza is a 30 year old multidisciplinary artist, musician, and pottery teacher born n’ raised in hollywood, fl. she/they attended the university of north florida and first discovered clay in 2014 in stephen heywood’s beginning ceramics class.
liza continued to work with clay throughout college regardless of time or major requirements, eventually pairing sociology with a minor in ceramic arts. after school, she began a 5-year odyssey [of a teaching journey], supplementing a highly experimental practice by offering classes at community pottery studios and institutions all around broward county. however, after a few too many close calls on the i95’s deadliest mile and a professional kick in the ass in 2023, Liza launched her own studio on an order of passion and spirit, which is where you are now 🐊
about the work: liza combines a range of wheelthrowing and handbuilding techniques to create quietly curved, occasionally complex forms with weathered surfaces that reflect the south floridian landscape, focusing on drinking and storage vessels meant for sharing resources with the community.
nick abrami, co-founder
nick abrami is from st. pete, florida and has been working / teaching / experimenting with clay since 2007, receiving his MFA in ceramics at the university of georgia-athens in 2020.
nick recently started as an adjunct and studio specialist at st. pete college in clearwater, fl.
we miss you, bub, but we know you’re going to do so well. ❤️
IG: @nickabrami
nick sculpts and stretch coils of clay to resemble the structural components of buildings and objects relegated to non-use and memory over time, an idea/object generally referred to as a “thomasson.” these are objects in our every day life that remain physically present in spite of the redevelopment, renewal, and eventual replacement of the original environment. nick’s work can be seen throughout the garden and marks the entrance to our studio.
sophia fiorella, studio assistant
sophia fiorella is a local multimedia illustrator, painter, and seamstress who has been making art as long as she or I can remember (so at least 20 years).
depending on the media, sophia’s process is both reductive and quest-like, a search to find and spotlight hidden, highly emotive characters loaded with streaks of bright color and all with their own personalities, externalize the internal worlds in which we live, the concepts and culture that surrounds and guides. through highly texturized paintings, small zines, multi-function fashion, sophia story-boards her way through life as a means to process, embody and devour reality as it unfolds in front of her.
IG: @pobrecita_