Playboy Bunny & Leopard

Gary chose his own costume and he's going as a playboy bunny. I had nothing to do with this.


I'm going as a leopard. We elected for just masks since they're less expensive then a whole costume. Gary said masks are better because one can drink a margarita with the mask on.


Meanwhile I am still painting away. It takes forever to prime and then paint two coats on all this lumber. Have to wait for it to dry in between coats. More later. Happy Halloween.

Fishing & Free Kiln

Garage sales are wonderful since I always find something which I can't say I really need, but I might want if the price is right. Today we drove by a garage sale in our neighborhood and I talked Gary into stopping. We decided to get two fishing rods and reels and take up fishing.

Mine is an older Penn reel and Gary's is a Mitchell reel and both came with nice condition fishing rods. I'm no stranger to fishing, but I'm sure the stream and lake fishing in California I did years ago is much different than what I'll be trying here in Florida. If you've got tips about fishing from shore here in Florida, be sure and comment. We both need all the advice we can get. Like what kind of bait do we use, sinkers? Maybe we can find someone to teach us. I figured if i could take up a hobby which could provide food too, all the better. I'm dreaming of sea trout cooked on the BBQ right now.


Then I couldn't resist this light duty bench grinder for grinding those rough spots off the bottom of pottery. Again this is in very good shape and was very reasonably priced. While we were at the garage sale I mentioned I made pottery and the folks said their next door neighbor had a kiln she wanted to sell. They said the kiln was big and I wasn't really looking for a kiln since I already have one, but the neighbor happened to be home so we went over there.


She gave me the kiln for free! She said she was going to make manatees but never got around to using it, but that it did work. It's an Olympic 328J which fires to Cone 6 on regular household current. It needs a little cleaning and maybe some work, but for free who can complain. Do you think it's worth saving? I hope so. I was thinking this will be the perfect test kiln and I can fire tiles and jewelry too.


Here's a photo of our pool with the new paint on the deck around it. The surface looked pretty shabby before, but this porch and pool deck paint really improved the look.


Our neighbors are having a Halloween party, now what to go as. Gary said a skyscraper can't sit down, so I guess that's out. Maybe just a mask; any ideas?

One of the last scheduled space shuttle launches at Cape Canaveral will be this coming Tuesday, November 2nd; I'm not sure if we'll go or not, still deciding. Be sure to check out my new pages at the top of my blog. I'll be adding and subtracting from them regularly. Have a good weekend; I've got to go back to painting those booth shelves.

Blog Pages

Looking at other booths helps me decide how I want my own booth to look. I took a few photos of booth displays at a recent art fair in Ocala and I've added the photos in a separate page to my blog. Just click on the tab at the top and it will take you to that page. I've also added a contact page and will be adding finished work to my gallery page very soon, so stay tuned for those.

I've been working on land inspired pieces. The first vase is about seven by ten inches and I've come back to a shape I made a couple of years ago. I'm still working on my booth shelves, painting them. Once I have them ready I'll show you how they turned out, and I'll set up in my tent in my back yard as a trial run.


The next piece is a free form bowl, another shape I've used in the past. It's about seven by ten inches where I'm experimenting with different colors of natural clay slip. My intention was to make the surface look like stone with fissures. I textured the slab and then added three different slips to the surface and then made sgraffito fissures and added a white clay into those. Next time I might inlay the fissures with a solid coil of clay of a contrasting color.

Coming up I'll have my shelves completed to show you, so stay tuned. One more day for the Clay and Blogs Show, so hurry on out to see the show if you haven't been.

Jugtown and Misc.

Jugtown Museum photos for your perusal.


Enjoy the tour; scroll down for the miscellaneous.







I've been working on a few more pots, haven't fired my bisque since I've had the kitchen repainted to coral; didn't like the green. The pool deck is painted with special paint for that purpose and it looks brand new. Fresh paint really does make a difference.


We sold the motorhome and saturn wagon; didn't make money, but didn't loose money either. Plus we had a nice trip in it while we had it. Before we sold it Gary did some repairs on it. Oh, the day we got back the brake master cylinder went out in our driveway, guess that was lucky. Vehicle insurance in Florida is much more expensive than California, along with house insurance and property taxes. There are lots of costs we didn't know till we actually moved here and bought a house.


I decided to build my art fair shelves myself. I have the lumber and hinges and already primed the wood. I need to get the shelves finished right away so I can take photos of my booth. Most shows require a photo of my booth along with photos of my work. Please come back for more details.

Heart of the Tree

Sometimes if I don't know what I'm going to make, I pull out my sketch book and make a few drawings and then something always comes to me. That's what I did the other evening. The progression of my sketches was interesting to me, so I thought I'd post them for you to see.


I started out with trees in windows. You might recall the ceramic window I did last year. I intended to get back to making ceramic windows, but life got in the way. I still plan on making some in the future.


Next I made two more sketches of trees, one with three main branches. The one on the left looks like the torso of a person to me. The one on the right is starting to look suspiciously like a tree I made a couple of weeks ago.


Later I drew more sketches and started to develop the idea of making a triptych which on my to do list. Tree imagery keeps coming back to me again and again, like this tree sculpture which I made last year.


The last drawing I made is the one below. I liked this one the best. I think the triptych looks better with the two side panels smaller than the center one. I started to make this piece, but as you can see in the first photo, I didn't. I only made a single piece and it's round rather than squared off. I didn't have enough of this clay to make a triptych. I plan on making a triptych one of these days though.


I like how the tree branches look open and welcoming, like arms open and welcoming. The big knot in the right center looks like the 'heart of the tree', the heart of a welcoming person. The Jugtown Museum post will be next time instead.

More Seagrove Potteries

The second day in Seagrove we stopped by Michele Hastings and Jeff Brown pottery. Michele recommended that Gary and I go to the Jugtown Pottery since they have a pottery museum she thought we'd enjoy.

I purchased this lovely lavender bowl made by Vernon Owens. One of my favorite colors is lavender, so I just couldn't resist. The bowl is 5 x 7 inches and I love the matt color. The lowered ridge below the lip with the scallop is perfect for holding the bowl on the outside. The simple yet elegant design really appealed to me.


I met Michele through through her blog. When she and Jeff decided to move to Seagrove from New Hampshire, she contacted me about what to look for in a bus to use as a moving van. She got the idea about using a bus from my blog, isn't that cool. Since Gary and I have had four buses, I could give her all the details she needed to know to use a bus as a moving vehicle. Michele gave me this mug, which is my new favorite mug for my morning coffee, it fits my hand just perfectly. Thanks Michele, Gary and I really enjoyed visiting with you and seeting your new studio and gallery.

We ended up spending several hours looking at all the pots in the museum at Jugtown and I took many photos so I'll put them in a separate post for next time, so stay tuned.

And if you missed it, be sure to check the previous post to see some beautiful pots I acquired for my collection from Whynot Pottery and Michael Mahan.

Seagrove Potteries

On a recent trip to Seagrove, North Carolina a couple of weeks ago I visited as many potteries as I could fit in. The first couple of days we stayed in our motorhome at Whynot Pottery. I couldn't resist getting a tile and a small vase from Meredith and Mark's gallery.


When I got home I opened up my package and inside I found Meredith had included these earrings she made. Wasn't that sweet. Thanks Meredith.


The next day Meredith took us to visit several potteries in the area and I got this soul pot at Michael Mahan's gallery. Mary gave us a tour while Michael was busy firing the kiln with Levi. Gary and I both love the color turquoise and I have always admired Michael's soul pots, so this pot spoke to both of us.


I had to curb my appetite in case I wanted to buy something at Clay and Blogs Show in Southern Pines. By the way if you're nearby, there's still time to go and see the work and perhaps find a special pot or two. There aren't many places you can see so many artist's work from around the world all in one place. Up next a few more potteries we visited while we were in Seagrove.

Booth Shelving

The wheels of progress move slowly when I have too many irons in the fire. I really have been working on plans for my art fair booth all along. I visited several more art fairs and looked critically at readi-made fold up shelves. I also went to Pier One and looked at their fold up shelves. Although the mass produced fold up shelves look nice and are convenient to purchase, they're not as stable as the ones I've seen in several booths.

Armed with photos of the shelves I saw which John of JBF Times (thanks John) used in his booth, I posted an ad on craigslist asking for someone to make the uprights for my shelves. Frankly I didn't expect a call. But low and behold, I've had three calls and I should have two sets of shelves in two weeks. I plan on having the uprights 6 feet tall and shelves 12 inches apart. I think the double uprights on each end which are hinged make for a more stable shelving system. I plan to paint them black for a cohesive look.Once I get the shelves painted I'll do a mock set up of my tent and booth and post it here. In the meantime I'm working on a free standing peg board placard design where I can display the tiles and other hanging work I make. I also looked at the various methods artists use to hold down their tents, PVC filled with sand or concrete, concrete blocks, and others. I decided I would use dumb bells since I can get dumb bells in various weights and not have to use one large heavy item for each corner. I can put a strap around the dumb bell and attach it to the tent and maybe the shelves to weight them down. Anything to save Gary's and my back.I went to a fabric store and thought about making a sign for my booth, but since I am a machine sewer and not a hand sewer, I quickly discarded that idea and am now researching a professional made banner for my art booth. Till I have that sorted out I can rely on my previous computer printed sign posted in a Plexiglas display at the front of my booth.

Meanwhile I've got a list of shows to enter from now till next summer and I'm looking into various credit card options. Next week I'll fire a couple of bisque loads and a glaze load because my drying shelves are filling up and there's no room for more work. Any advice or suggestions are welcome. Up next is a post about pottery shopping in Seagrove, NC, you won't want to miss that.

Skyscrapers

I'm still thinking about templates and forms to aid in the construction of my skyscraper vases. Hey, that's a good name for them, skyscrapers. I made this skyscraper using a cardboard form to help hold the vase up till I got the sides attached to one another. I think it's more than 16 inches tall. My kiln is only so tall. I'm drawing up plans now on how I'll construct a piece which fits together so I can get some height. I'm thinking tall, really tall.


I used a piece of 4x4 post on the outside to hold up the first side till I got another one attached. Since I only had one 4x4 I had to use painter's tape to hold the second side up and then all kinds of gyrations to get it to stay together. Maybe I can build them lying down and then stand them up. Now that I've finished the skyscraper, I discovered a video of Graham Sheehan by Ceramic Arts Daily where he used this type of construction technique.

St. Pete's clay has new owners. There's a wood firing at St. Pete's this weekend, but I don't have any cone 10 bisqueware ready. I plan to get more of that cone 10 sculpture clay; I'd love to wood fire several of my skyscrapers.

There's a newly formed Potter's Guild of Florida's Gulf Coast which I have joined. The first meeting will be coming up soon, can't wait to meet more local Florida potters.


Here's another triangular shaped skyscraper made with a speckled stoneware clay. I made the back section bow out because I was thinking of a rounded corner building I once saw in San Francisco. You know the buildings that just fit on those narrow city lots. I have a feeling cardboard forms will be filling up my studio very soon. Oh, I just found some more cardboard and made this seven by ten inch diamond shape.


Here's another photo of the first skyscraper for perspective of the size. Yes, now my secret is out. I have poster paper taped to the mirror in the bathroom because there's a South facing window and a florescent light panel above, so there's good light. I just keep that poster paper taped to the mirror all the time so I can take photos of greenware. When I have my studio tour or guests for dinner I might take it down. Ha!


When the tile guy was here he finally said something when I was taking a photo. He said he always wondered what that paper was doing in the bathroom. Hey, when you have a home studio, you have to do what you have to do. I read on one potter's blog she had her potter's wheel in the bathroom and sat on the toilet to throw. It was the only place in her house she had any room. Potter on the pot, throwing pots. (Sorry I couldn't resist). Now that's dedication, throwing pots in the bathroom.

The Purpose of Art

Here's Gary outside Stumpknockers, a local seafood restaurant. A stumpknocker is a type of a fish and a type of a boat. When I first heard the word stumpknocker I imagined it to mean a stump in the water which could knock a hole in a boat, or perhaps a stump in the forest which could trip me if I didn't see it, a literal meaning. It's a word which means different things to different people, like art means different things to different people.

Occasionally Gary and I have discussions about art. What do you see in the photo of him? What does the photo tell you? How do you feel about the photo? I'm not saying the photo is art, just keep these questions in mind as you read the next few paragraphs. I posted the photo and questions to stimulate the conversation a little. A bit of a ramble here, nothing heavy, just some fun and friendly discussion. Oh and the same questions for the next photo too.


Gary is reading Dean Koontz, From the Corner of His Eye and read me a quote. Enoch, the main character in the book, is attending art classes at a college in San Francisco and he relays this about what he is learning:


"The purpose of art: to disturb you, to leave you uneasy with yourself, and wary of the world, to undermine your sense of reality in order to make you reconsider all that you think you know. The finest art should shatter you emotionally, devastate your intellectuality, leave you physically ill, and fill you with loathing for those cultural traditions that bind us and weigh us down and drown us in a sea of conformity".

I can think of lots of art which has disturbed me, but I wouldn't want to think or look at it every day. So in other words, I don't mind seeing disturbing art in a gallery, but don't want to see it in my home. So does that mean I only want art that's "pretty to look at" in my home? Depends on the art, I guess.

The part about the 'drown us in a sea of conformity' I do agree with. In our world of mass production I like to see something a little different, something non conforming, something original, something handmade. Don't get me wrong I like the classics too, I like all art. Well maybe most art. Somehow, though, I don't agree with Enoch's view of the purpose of art.

I do think art makes us think, makes us feel, helps us to express ourselves whether we are the maker or viewer, makes us appreciate each other, makes us appreciate others' points of view, and should and does bind us together. I say, yeah for art, what do you say?

Halloween Whimsey

Witches, bats, pumpkins, black cats, all in a good days hallows eve. Don't get me wrong, I don't endorse the superstition of black cats bringing bad luck. I had my own black cat once named Poncho. I love cats. Cats are truly creatures to be proud to have as friends, even revered. Anyone who would harm a cat is truly evil, not the cat.

But I couldn't resist a little traditional imagery of Halloween on some pieces in clay, just for fun. Halloween images remind me of trick or treating, of costumes and cool fall evenings, reading scary books or seeing scary movies, and roasting marshmallows around a bonfire; all the while telling ghost stores and being scared of what lurks in the dark.


I've run out of the terra cotta clay, so the bowl has a small dip in the rim on one side of it. But I figure a spoon can rest there and not slide around in the bowl. That got me to thinking about bowls in general and I'm working on a pattern for a bowl with a built in handle and a pouring spout, having seen one in plastic which I thought was convenient to use.

Remember my black cat Poncho, well he and my cat Cisca, a white cat I later got as a friend for him, disappeared one night on Halloween in the 1980s when I lived in the (San Francisco) East Bay. I was worried sick someone had done something to them as a prank on Halloween. Three days later they both came home. Those were three long days.

Months after that I found out a pilot in the neighborhood had come home and was cleaning his van and my two cats had gone in the van out of curiosity. Later he didn't see them in there and locked his van. When he came home again three days later and opened the van the two cats shot out of the van like lightening. Luckily the East Bay had mild weather so they made it through the ordeal without any food and water for three days and three nights. I was so happy when they returned home. They've both since gone to cat heaven.


Bet you thought I was typing these posts? Looks like Betty my cat is typing, doesn't it? So please spread the word cats are good, even black cats.

A Couple of Angles

Geometric shapes, architecture, and city skylines have always facinated me. Back in the 1980's I once went to a halloween party dressed as a skyscraper. I made my own costume by "building" the skyscraper out of a very large cardboard box and painting it to look like a building. I cut holes in two windows for my eyes. I think I just wore black tights underneath. It was one of those costumes where no one knew who I was and everyone was intrigued with the design, a lot of fun.


Behind the scenes I'm working on a series of architectural influenced ceramic vases and sculptures. I see so much in all the angles and shapes of buildings in my travels; I feel like they just want to burst forth in clay. The first piece is three sided and all three sides are not the same size. Photographing these pieces is a challenge to see the perspective of all the angles.


The second piece has four sides which are distorted on purpose and then green slip drizzled over the edge on two sides. I think I like the non distorted sides and maybe less drips for the slip. But what could I do the whole thing fell over when I was putting it together and rather than crumple it I saved it, and enhanced the distortions. Do you ever do that with a piece?


The first building is the Mint Museum with other skyscrapers reflected in the windows. The second building is another tall one in Charlotte. I am itching to make a piece like this second building with wire sticking out of the top. Those spires look like crystal spires in the sunlight. I didn't notice the reflection on the side of the building in the last photo till today. More ideas are swimming around in my head.

I want to make some armatures to hold the clay up while it stiffens a bit. I hand build my pieces with fairly soft slabs. Maybe I can use some 4x4 or 6x6 covered with foam. I need something heavy enough to stand up on it's own. I read somewhere that rolled roofing is good for template making. Have any ideas on what to use as a firm and weighted armature?


I have two of these style vases in the Clay and Blogs show and those have four sides. You can see the finished ones here and here. I had lots of compliments on them opening night and one sold right away. When Meredith saw them before the show, she said I should make more. Who am I to question the experts, expert potters and expert customers. I already had plans to make more because they're fun and a challenge, but now I have more motivation. You can expect to see variations of these pieces in the future and up next are some fun Halloween inspired pieces I made.