Art Square Clay Camp

I had a very fun and busy week teaching a children's clay camp at ArtSquare -Loudoun Academy of Fine Arts. The kids made some amazing work and I have my kiln firing as I speak. I will post some photos of the finished pieces when I head on over to ArtSquare tomorrow! The great folks at ArtSquare are going to promote an adult "getting started with handbuilding" class and then hopefully get me on the schedule starting in November! I need to stir up some interest in the time between!

Patience

I am being reminded of some very important lessons this morning. I have opened the kiln to find little chunks of clay embedded into all my glazeware. Apparently, I have had an explosion...the cone pack I put in to check my kiln temp was the cause. I was hurrying to load the kiln before out of town guest came and whamo...a whole load of work down the tubes. I have not unloaded the entire kiln, so maybe there will be some salvageable work near the bottom. I am reminded that hurrying through anything in this life is a recipe for disaster. I need to slow down and think things through a bit more and not rush to the finish line. Isn't this so true with life as well!

Now on the positive side, I got some great test tiles out of this kiln load and I am on my way to some decisions about my new work. Next week is a down week for the girls and I (as in no house guests) and I can work SLOWLY to remake the pieces I lost today and get a good start on my new ideas!

I am selling a good number of pieces at the Gateway Gallery in Round Hill, VA and I will hopefully have some new work to display in a few weeks....but I am just not going to rush it -lesson learned!

Gargoyle demo

I finished up the gargoyles from the children's demo at Round Hill Art Center. They look so GRUESOMELY cute! I fired them in the kiln, painted them with tempura paint and when dried, washed it off with water and a toothbrush and finished them off with a glossy spray enamel. I cant wait to get them back to the children!

Slow Food and Handmade Pots...any ideas or thoughts?

I read this article from Laurie Erdman today and it absolutely sums up my latest idea percolating about a class or an actual event centered around the art of the table, handmade serving vessels, local potters, local food and their inherent interrelationships. Any ideas or thoughts? Making notes and brainstorming...more to come!

“Yukkuri, tanoshiku” - slow down, enjoy it!

http://laurieerdmanpottery.com/2009/06/05/pottery-and-slow-food/

Wood Fire Pottery

I have gone over the mountains and through the woods today, and I ended up off a gravel road at Wood Fire Pottery. I met Shawn Grove and Bryan Mattraw! They have the juiciest pots ever and a lovely studio! I dearly wanted to purchase a pitcher, and after handling and petting it for a while, I reigned myself in and purchased a sweet little cup and spoon for my morning coffee ritual. They wood fire their kiln and the vapors and ash from the wood add to the color and texture of the clay and glazes. The word that comes to mind is "Juicy"...nice thick rimmed vessels with almost an orange peel look to the glazes. Very VERY Nice!

My NC inspirations

Oh.....to see the work of my heroes and inspirations! Please see the wonderful works of Piedmont Ceramic Artists - Adrienne Dellinger, Julie Wiggins, Amy Sanders, Joy Tanner, Terry Gesss, Nick Joerling, and all the rest! What a blessing to have "grown up" in the Carolina Ceramic tradition!

http://www.piedmontcraftsmen.org/artist-select.php?mid=1

Favorite website

My ABSOLUTELY favorite Website!

Amazing work!

http://www.akardesign.com/art/