Sharon Leary is a potter and teaching artist. She was raised in a multi-cultural, artistic family, speaking both English and German. After years of international travel and artistic exploration, in 2001, she found her true artistic voice in clay. She launched her artistic career with a three-year apprenticeship with ceramic artist Brooke Millecchia of Opal Creek Pottery in Rochester, NY. Sharon now specializes in functional high-fired pottery that weaves together elements of both American and Asian ceramic traditions. Sharon has exhibited in juried shows throughout upstate New York. Sharon has received regional recognition with the Individual Artist Grant from the Genesee Valley Council on the Arts and was awarded a Teaching Artist Fellowship for 2009-10 from VSA, which is an affiliate of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Sharon's integrated arts work with pottery and literature has immediately captured the imagination of children and adults as she makes ancient societies come alive by recreating the ceramic techniques and designs of each culture within a narrative framework. Sharon works closely with educators to design customized arts integrated lessons that animate core academics with motivational arts activities. Her most recent project, based on the children’s book “A Single Shard” by Linda Sue Park, explores the culture of ancient Korea through the eyes of a child. Though Sharon works mostly with upper elementary and middle school students in her residencies programs, she also leads intergenerational activities that bring people of all ages together in art making and cross cultural learning.