Sara Lee Hayes is a self-taught clay artist/potter living on St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands for over 40 years.
She graduated from Wheaton College (MA) in 1972 with a Bachelor of Arts in Asian Studies. Her pottery training began in 1974 with adult education classes at a local high school, and has continued with books and videos, trial and error, and lots of practice. She is a self-taught clay artist.
Sara has been recognized as a Culture Bearer for the Virgin Islands by the VI Department of Education. As such, she endeavors to bring local culture into much of her work and teaching.
Sara Lee sells her pottery, functional and sculptural, through local stores, at craft shows and at art shows. She supplements her income teaching both children and adults in many settings, and she is often assisted with grant funding from the Virgin Islands Council on the Arts for her community clay projects. She is currently managing the clay studio and teaching classes at the Caribbean Museum Center for the Arts. Her work can be found at Mango Tango on St. Thomas and at Aubrey Artworks pop-up shows on St. John. Along with a former student, she will soon be opening Crucian Clayworks in Frederiksted, a shop featuring and promoting art and all works made from clay.