ALI member, Diane Rossong is a life casting artist and owner of A Lasting Impression Artistic Castings in Calgary, Canada. Diane specializes in pregnancy castings. However, not only does she create beautiful wall hangings of her clients in their final weeks of pregnancy, she provides a very clever and unique ceramic bowl out of her client’s belly. So instead of simply creating wall art her clients can hang, she offers an option to create and everyday use of the casting. Her ceramic ‘belly bowls' may be used as a table center piece filled with a cornucopia of earth harvests, a punch bowl, salad bowl, soup or whatever one chooses.

Diane assures us that her belly bowls are not only dishwasher safe, but they can be used in the oven, too. So an imaginative baker can create the perfect belly cake to celebrate the birth.

Diane explains that once she takes an alginate mold of her client, she then casts it using a hard art casting stone. Normally, that would be the finished artwork after painting. But Diane has collaborated with a local ceramic artist. Her casting is used by the ceramicist to create a ceramic clay bowl – her “belly bowl.” The bowls are then glazed in a choice of colors and patterns to the delight of her clients.

If you are pregnant, in Calgary and wish to obtain a one-of-kind piece of very personal art you can contact Diane at: diane@LastingImpression.net. To view more of her art visit her website at: www.lastingimpression.net