“Chicago-based McCarthy, who intermittently uses foraged clay in their work, frequently sculpts clay bodies, either identifiable as human figures or shaped in ways that suggest fleshy forms. For years they have produced an ongoing series of whistles, both singular and “built for two,” that bring the living body into connection with the clay one. In their classes, they frequently teach about clay foraging and the development of a reciprocal relationship with the landscape, both of which can be integral to the meaning embedded in an artwork and its process.”

”Origin Stories: How the foraging and processing of natural materials can expand our thinking, our maps, and our empathy.”
— by Shannon Stratton in American Craft Council (2023)