Recycling Day For Clay

This is my clay recycling station. First, I slake down the clay in a bucket with water. Next I shove the moist, sloppy clay through a screen, pictured in the back corner of the photo. Then I scoop up the clay, place it on top of a piece of canvas and wait for the sun to do the rest. Every now and again, I go out to roll it into a log. Once enough moisture leaves the clay, it's ready to be wedged and become a lovely clay object or, if this plan fails, the clay is returned to the slurry bucket and recycled again.
Over the weekend, our new neighbor, Phil, threw a party. I ended up giving several tours of the studio, sold some pots and discussed the merits of a wood fired pizza oven with his guests. Phil says next time, he plans to take a commission...

The Maker and The Critic

When studying clay at university, the professor gives out concrete assignments, such as make twenty-five teapots by next Monday. Everyone gets busy quick, cranking out lots of pots and keeping the best for the Monday critique. The class would take lots of time discussing the work, praising the good and pointing out the bad. At the end of the long discussion, the professor would bring out the trash can, trashing what was deemed a failure and keeping what was successful. While this approach is potentially painful, it was also very helpful.
Left alone in my studio with no critique deadline, it's easy to make a pot or two, judge it successful or not, and then move on to the next thing. The downside of this approach is that rather than forcing myself to work on something until it in fact works, I can say, "Oh yuck, no more of that." '
Going to the Clay Symposium worked to remind me of the far away time of class critiques. While there, I got to spend hours watching successful potters who have spent years honing their skill. Pot after pot, they have forced themselves to work out the glitches. Often the information was just so simple, yet powerful. My favorite demonstrator was Bruce Cochrane, a Canadian potter who has taught for 30 years . Here is one of the simple things I picked up from him. As he was throwing his nesting bowls, he started with the biggest and worked down to smallest. I was busy feeling stupid for not realizing the genius in this approach, when someone spoke up and said, "God I always start with the smallest and struggle to make the biggest one big enough." This comment came from one of the elite in the group, which worked to make me feel better. I was then able to accept it as a eureka moment-this is but one example of such moments.
Back home, I'm busy working on the Bramwell Awards. I allowed popular opinion to guide my design, though I wasn't so sure that the design was my favorite. However, my studio is full of these pots-a small portion of the bisqued pots are pictured above. Over the weekend, a friend from Connecticut visited. He loved the shape and texture of the award cups, and ordered 30, which he will use as his holiday gifts-sans the Bramwell stamp, of course. That order is forcing me to continue working on this shape and after I finished the 80th cup, I'm beginning to figure out how to make them. Without the impetus of more money for these shapes, I may well have abandoned them to move on to something else. Like so many things in life, I'm glad to be forced to continue working to improve my understanding of the form and am receiving a sense of accomplishment. Thanks, Henri!

Big Thumbs Up From The Universe

I was just writing about how the clay community is sleepy here in my town, but change is in the air. I was on my way home the other day, when a sign caught my attention. It had images of pots on it, then I saw the word clay and supply. I immediately pulled into the parking lot and knocked on the door. The owner's, Michael and Karen Garnes, welcomed me in and showed me around. Not only will they sell clay and glaze supplies, but they are setting up a lovely teaching studio, which is full of light and lovely shades of green and blue. They are just moving back to the mountains from down south and saw the need for more things clay! There are no clay supply companies in West Virginia, and if you are a friend of mine living in a city with clay, I've probably called you up at least once to beg you to bring clay to me on your next visit. My search for clay mules is over. Yes, the only clay supply company in West Virginia will be located at the bottom of my hill. I could literally walk down there, throw a box of clay on top of my head and soldier it on home. I am still experiencing disbelief, but even as I came home from yoga class, the owner's of the new business are in there working hard. The open date is slated for October 15th! Good friend Mary says, "It's a big thumbs up from the universe. Now is your time to shine." Thanks Mary, I will do my best and I do feel buoyed by this event.

Pleasant Drive, Perfect Weather

My head is full of information, images and ideas... What a treat to watch people who so intimately know how to work with clay. While in everyday life, the label potter might not garner much understanding, for a few short days I was with people who work with clay everyday and still come to learn something new from the interaction. Spending time with potters is not the norm for me, a solo clay artist in a town with a very sleepy clay community. Spending this time with people who share my need to work with clay gave me a fresh perspective, fostering a reawakening of the passion I have for clay.




This is my newly acquired Mark Shapiro tea bowl. The plate above was made by North Carolina potter, Michael Kline. The sculptures are made by one of the artist-in-residence at Arrowmont-it's life size and entirely made from clay, even the lace.

Driving in my car...

This week I will be attending the Utilitarian Clay V Symposium, where seventeen nationally known ceramists will come together and share their approach to clay work through demonstrations and dialogue.
My co-pilot will be Jenn Gandee and I am very excited to get in the car and head south. It's a relatively small conference and is limited to two hundred participants. It always does me good to hear of stories from other potters-to learn of their struggles and successes, which usually leads me to the conclusion that we are all crazy. All of this unfolding in the Smoky Mountains will simply be a plus.
I'm sure I will have lots of stories and pictures to share, so stay tuned...

The Garden Behind the Studio

I'm lucky enough to have a lovely vegetable garden behind my studio. Today's yield is a bountiful bowl of delicious cucumbers, peppers and onions. The onions have been drying in my out building for the past two weeks, and today I finally got around to braiding them up. It's a pleasant, meditative process and I can't wait to get my fall crop in the ground. This weekend the eggplant and serrano peppers will be ripe-chili rellenos are part of my weekend plan. I also stumbled across a pear tree in my neighbors yard. I don't know how I've missed it all these years, but a tart will be the perfect end to a weekend feast. If you are in town, give a call, stop over and enjoy some lovely food with us.


My clay work today has also had a garden component. Several years ago, as a neighbor moved, she gave me a small pot of hens and chicks. I accepted them, but wasn't really that excited by them. I left them on the front porch over the winter thinking that would kill them and I would be off the hook. I am here to tell you, hens and chicks need absolutely no care and they will still flourish. From those three small starts, I have grown a jungle of hens and chicks. I made some little pots to hold a small portion of them and today I put them in their new home.