Davita Miles

Terra Vita

Hand-formed sculptures shaped from wild-harvested clay.An exploration of resilience, femininity, and the stories our bodies carry.

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• Wild clay
• Available works - Tofino Gallery
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My story

The beginning

I never set out to become a sculptor.The work began during a season of healing. After being diagnosed with breast cancer, I found myself returning to the earth ~ gathering wild clay from the bottom of the lake of our family propertyOne day, as I shaped the clay in my hands, a woman emerged.She was me.That first sculpture became the beginning of everything that followed.I don't believe my diagnosis created this work; I believe it simply revealed what had always lived within me ~ a desire to honour women’s bodies and the beauty found in motherhood, healing, and seasons of transformation.Each piece is hand-built from wild-harvested clay and explores resilience, femininity, and the stories our bodies carry. No two are alike. I embrace the marks, cracks, and textures left by the making process ~ they are reminders that beauty is often found in the imperfection

The process

Wild clay

Every sculpture begins with clay gathered from our family’s property on Vancouver Island.The rich blue clay is collected from the lakebed, the green clay from the shoreline, and the warm brown clay from the creek.
The wild clay used in my work is gathered by hand on the traditional and unceded territories of the Hupačasath and Tseshaht First Nations, with deep respect for the land and waters from which it comes.I spend days harvesting, cleaning, and preparing it before it is ready to be shaped by hand.
Each sculpture is individually charcoal pit fired in a small outdoor kiln at my home.This process was never taught to me. From the very beginning, it simply felt intuitive. Through patience, curiosity, and a deep connection to the earth, I slowly found my own way of working, allowing each piece to emerge at its own pace.Every sculpture carries a small piece of the landscape it came from