Breakables

My granddaughter comes to me and says "Mimi I want some breakables". Of course being a potter I can make "breakables" all day, and  I did.
Now, a year or two later the pots are broken and I am to make more.

This is William's first set.

  Olivia wanted a repeat of her ducks

Kate's favorites are flowers and the color pink.

And Sam gets a creature of my choice.

This time I got wiser and made extras just in case.

Let's hope this time they will last more than a year or two.

Damascus

I just got back from my annual trek to visit my mom and the land I was born in. I usually go visiting other places while I am at it but this time I stayed close to my Mother's house. walked everywhere I could and was blessed with good weather all the time I was there.

This is where I grew up.

Every time I go I come back with different thoughts. This time is: Contradictions

Syria is: clean and dirty, green and arid, beautiful and ugly, has the best people and the worst. but mostly it is old as earth and quite young.

Contradiction. no comment necessary.

 

For more pictures of Damascus:

Picture of Damascus; New and old 

 

Beth Cavener Stichter

I just got back from her Ceramics workshop, my head is still spinning with  images, information and processes.

 Beth and "Bolt" at the gallery of Huntington Museum of  Art

Beth Cavender Stichter is a wonderful presenter full of knowledge and information that she graciously share for the asking.

 

 In the beginning

She start with a maquette made from plasticine on armature to have a working idea of where she is going and how to get there including placement and length  of armature and supports

Clay on Armature

She builds a replica of the armature to the size she wants the work. She builds solid and then cut up hollow out and compress from the inside to end with large sculpture that are not too heavy and very expressive.

Beth, sculpture and little Maquette 

You really have to go to a workshop to get the full flavor. This is just a little spoonful like they do at Baskin Robbins .

Eyes on you

Although this was not hands on but it felt like one because she was so sharing on individual level. Here are all the eyes she had us make to have a feel for the process and the use of shadow instead of color to paint.

 

Hanging from the ceiling.

Finishing touches 

 

All Done

Now she will cut it up bit by bit hollow, compress and refit but for purposes of the worksop it all went in the recycle to my chagrin.

you can go to my Picasa page for more pictures:

http://picasaweb.google.com/mayssan1/20100308

Also to her website  fro pictures of actual work ;

http://www.followtheblackrabbit.com/

End of year report.

Yesterday was my last show of the season, It has been a fair year in sales but a marvelous year in recognition, and you know how artists need their egos stroked.
There was a great article about me and my work in wonderful West Virginia Living magazine, there was a newspaper articles and a TV interview but most importantly I was juried int the WV Juried show, on my fourth try. and my piece in it sold, so double ego boosts.

  This one made it

And this one didn't

What a difference a few days will make.

Today the winter started with a bang, even the sun could not get warm enough.

And the moon clutched onto some barren branches of the oak tree trying to stay while the sun chased her across the sky.

And snow bloomed on some dead pods, leftover from a distant summer.

Yet only 3 days ago the sky was on fire with a marvelous display of red and orange while today it is all icy blue and silver.

After Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is over and so are most of the leftovers. It was the quietest one I had in over 30 years.

We always celebrated largely first with our small family and a large family of fiends then lately with just our family that is not so small anymore.

This was the first Thanksgiving without my mother in law who passed away last winter, and my son and his family circus with 4 boisterous children, six and under, who make a lot of happy noise could not make it as most of them were sick with the Flu, boy do I hate the Flu.

Just before Thanksgiving

 my Christmas village

This weekend is dedicated to the Capital City Art and Craft  show here in Charleston at the Civic Center. It was the usual in crowds and buyers but I was impressed by the new additions as they were quality crafts and arts. of course there still was the normal junk that sells real well, better than Walmart, but this show seems to be getting better not worse.

Another shot showing a sculpture of Don and his Afghan.

I took the pictures beforehand since I was hoping to be depleted by now and am writing on a Sunday morning since the show is from 12-6 and this is the only time before the madness of thanksgiving begins; with my children and their families all staying at the house and cooking and laughing and playing and screaming at the Ball game on TV.  Oh I so look forward to this beautiful madness that fills my heart with joy. 

A day well spent

I went with a few friends to a Jen Allen workshop at Concord University in Athens, WV

The day started on the right note with a beautiful sunrise that made my heart sing.       
 The workshop was very informative and she was very pleasant and open. She answered all questions and shared her recipes and tricks of the trade.

Here are some of her pieces in progress at different stages of being slipped, carved, trimmed and handles applied.

And applying the colored engobes and accent glazes with a syringe bottle after which she will wax the decorations to keep the glaze from settling on them then dip the whole thing in her beautiful Celadons and others.

 And the finished, intricate, layered and functional product.

Deliverance

here is part of the order awaiting tags, packaging and sending. notice that in a small studio everything has to be double duty including me the boss and the gofer and the slab-roller, sorting and packaging table.

All is done now packed ,delivered or shipped.

Feels good?

I suppose being done with all the pending orders is such a relief, yet I feel a bit empty in spite of the up coming show on Friday " Capital City Art and Craft show, @ the Civic Center In Charleston WV" and the interview with the local TV news before that on Tuesday at 8:00 am.

I think what I need is more time in the studio now that I have time for me but then I do have this show to prepare for, a studio that could use a good cleaning, and a Thanksgiving which is the once a year gathering of all of our family at home. with Mom ( me) enjoying her other passion of cooking for all.

Half way there

On my way to the finish, everything bisqued. some painted and all awaiting glazing and second firing.

Claybeings everywhere

Even had to improvise for an extra table top. A Bat on top of a bucket right by the Kiln vent.
Claybeings, drying slowly in the improvised humid Cabinet, really a mini green house.
And the kiln is getting filled.


Just finished "building" all the orders I had pending. and then had to make more so I can be ready for Capital City Arts and Crafts Show in a little over 2 weeks.

Claybeings are everywhere in the studio, drying, being fired and finished.

But today is a no studio day as I wait for the kiln to finish the Bisque firing for the first batch, hoping I didn't put them in too wet. And hoping the next batch dry fast to fire it next while I am staining/coloring this bunch.

My Pottery collection

Looking out from where I sit at the dinner table, not only am I treated to all the beautiful outdoors, but I also am getting an eyeful of some wonderful pottery acquired by trade, purchase and gift.

Notably a bottle by Dick Lehman won at an after workshop auction, A Mark Hewitt mug purchased at another, a Debi Witchman traded for a Claybeing, a Billie Mitchel pink Rattle, a Dave Garner Raku Vase, a Don Goodrich Bowl and many more all in Christmas or Clayart exchanges.

So I sit at the table filling my stomach with food but also my soul with art and spirit with nature.

My Faeries

This is where the faeries play cards with the autumn leaves when no one is looking, all that is left for us to see are all the leafcards scattered when they rushed to hide.


And this is the tree they sleep in right outside my bedroom window. I bid them goodnight every night before I go to bed.

Rooms with Views

Autumn is in full swing here in Charleston especially all around the house, I mean outside not inside.

But sitting on the inside unaffected by the weather, looking out, is such a joy.
here are a few views from my hilltop home.


and another view right out the front door

The Mound Show

I did the mound Festival in South Charleston in September and it seems either the economy has affected it or it went down on its own.

But I had fun; The weather was great, even a bit cool, my daughter in law joined me with her hand made bags that matched my work with its colorfulness and she was joined by her daughter Kate 4 who helped actually and emotionally. I also won first place for craft, for lack of sculpture category.

Summer is over!!

It has been a crazy busy wonderful summer. Every moment of it I tried to memorize and stamp on my brain. The weather was great, traveling went smoothly and family was all good and happy. My pottery work was also good and ideas flowed enough to keep me busy till winter. I juried into a couple of exhibitions and won first place at an art fair.

But summer is over and my grandson has broken his leg, my clay is giving me trouble with a lot of cracking and autumn in spite of all its glorious colors and mild tempratures is bringing me down from my summer highs. So I am settling down into a pensive calmer state with an orange haze instead of the crisp blue green of last summer.

Alaska

North to Alaska:

We just got back from a cruise to Alaska. I actually think Alaska can be experienced better by traveling to it, not from a cruise, But being the (like to be pampered People that we are), we did chose wisely.

The weather cooperated famously by being crisp, cool and sunny.

Seattle; where we started was not even gray, just a few clouds in a blue sky.

The ship was modern, well designed and easy to navigate, the food was great as all cruise food should be. But the highlight, of course, was ALASKA.

What a beautiful state, what wonderful bays and inlets, and what magnificent islands and glaciers.

Alaska, Glacier Bay

We spent the first day sailing north then we sailed some more into Glacier Bay and what scenery and colors and wildlife.

On the way there we saw some whale spouts but were promised by the captain to slow down and see them on the way back, which we did, the glaciers for those that do not know are rivers of pure ice and as they reach the sea in their slow march they get pummeled by the salt water and the warmth and they will, Calf, by breaking pieces off and dumping it in the sea.

We didn’t see any while we were there but could see plenty of pieces floating around the bay.

On the way back from Glacier bay we saw some far off whales spouting and one that was especially playful and jumped out and smacked his tail a couple of times.

Alaska, Juneau

Next we sailed into Juneau, a beautiful city/town with plenty of things to do and each chose their own activity. We ended up at a salmon bake and a visit to an old gold mine in a very picturesque spot and then, what else, shopping.