Summer Inspiration

This is the work of a potter I met at the Utah Arts Festival. Of all the pottery, his work caught my eye. Both eyes actually, lol, and I had to come back to his booth to buy a pot. The work had a lively, spontaneous look that I strive to have in my own work, colorful glaze combinations and a gloss/matte finish I really enjoy. I appreciate that he gave me permission to photograph his booth, which was lovely, I might add....booth set-up is an art in itself. Check out his website at www.bradhenrypottery.com  The pottery is his, the daisies are mine.

Utah Arts Festival

A few weeks ago, I enjoyed attending  this festival in downtown Salt Lake City with some friends. The high level of quality of the artwork was very impressive. I appreciate that the set-up did not focus on food vendors and that the art booths dominated the festival. Of course, I enjoyed focusing on the pottery. Some potters were local but many, to my surprise were from, Washington State, Oregon and California. All was very inspirational. Next year, I hope to attend in the evening when the temperature is cooler and catch some of the music at the same time.

A close up

A little gem

Believe it or not, this is the only piece I managed to get in the last glaze firing. I've got to do better next time. Anyway, this little pot exceeded my expectations and is, in my opinion, a little gem. Since I tend to over think the glazing process, I took a page from a friend of mine who likes to splash it on and let it fly. She's the one who needs to write it down because she comes up with some great combinations. With this pot and that in mind, I textured the clay, then layered on glazes (with a combination from a previous test in mind) to follow the pattern .....sort of. Just two Mayco glazes were used despite the variations in color and finish of matte and gloss. Check out this website for Mayco cone 6 glaze combinations.  http://maycocolors.com/index.php?option=com_igallery&view=igcategory&id=18

A little inspiration from mom nature

The photo doesn't reveal how intense and full it was. The best I've ever seen. I had to share.

Slow going

I enjoy making these pendants as of late but it is surprisingly slow going. I am, what I call, a fuss-pot potter. Using stamps to get the basic shape is quick and straight forward enough, but it's not enough for me. I find it necessary to curl the edges, carve the flat areas, and tweak and burnish. I know that I am fortunate in that I do not have to rush through the process and just enjoy being in the "creating" moment.

A full glaze firing

Here's a view of the kiln loaded with glaze fired pottery and pendants. In the past I had used Nichrome wire to make the small "s" hooks to hang the pendants on the larger rods, but I noticed that some of the larger, heavier pendants would sag enough to almost touch the shelf (which is covered in clay flats to protect the shelf). So with some internet research, I found and ordered some A-1 annealed 16 gauge Kanthal wire. I am not sure of the high-end of its temperature tolerances but, according to some forums, it is at least to cone 7. No sagging was evident in this cone 5/6 firing. So far so good.

Pottery with a view

Just came back from the Draper Senior Center. I unloaded the kiln and enjoyed the view. The class is creating some beautiful work. I consider myself very fortunate to have a very talented, creative and self-motivated group of people that make me look forward to every Thursday. I will eventually post some of their work on the Utah Arts blog and make glaze notations for future reference and also for everyones viewing pleasure. I will have to talk to them first about their glaze combinations and either hope they have a good memory or took notes. A potter at a local festival said he had 10 years worth of firing/glaze notes. So I told my friend, in sort of an annoying way, "Seeeeee! You've got to write it down." We are all working on it. I write it down but then I lose the paper!