It’s hard when you want to get the stuff out of the kiln but it’s just too hot!
Stuff fired over the Thanksgiving break 09
November 26th, 2009Nov Update
November 12th, 2009It has been a while since the last post. A lot has happened in that time. I did my first show in Austin at the Old Pecan Street Festival. It was a good show and it is easy to see why Austin is Weird! My last show was at the Heights in Houston. I had a customer, Sonia Jimenez, who spent some time going through the bowl of beads. She took some home and made some great jewelry.
loose beads
Thanks Sonia, great jewelry and great pictures!
My last two shows of the year are coming up. This Sat I will be at St Hyacinth in Deer Park and the last show is the First Sat Art Market in the Heights.
I will get pictures up of some new work soon.
New Work 6-27-09
June 27th, 2009A client requested 2 colendars. I had never made one before but had an idea of what to do. My main concern was how I would place the holes and how long it might take to poke all those holes. As it turns out it wasn’t as bad as I had imagined! I thought it necessary to create a 3 pointed design so that I could easily place the 3 feet. I made 4 colendars so that my client would have a choice of color. Here are two of the colendars.
I have a bucket of glaze that has just accumulated unused glazes. I tried it out and got a nice blue violet. Here is a platter with the glaze surrounded by the runny cream color.
Perhaps my favorite glazed pitcher EVER!
Finally, I love the idea of a carafe with stackable cups. This is one of the 3 sets I just completed.
Summer 6-20-2009
June 21st, 2009As a teacher I have the good fortune of enjoying a summer break. This is a great opportunity to focus on the pottery. But the first challenge is getting my workspace organized. On the first day of summer, my neice Kathy and friend Scott came over to give my garage a make over! After a couple of hours of sweat we moved tools to a new storage shed, put a ton of unneeded stuff on the curb and rearanged the workspace.
The new space has provided more shelf space and a better work environment. I am really enjoying it! Thanks Kathy and Scott!
My Boxes
My display is made up of the same boxes I transport my work in. I made these boxes out of old fence wood. I get excited when I find a neighbor replacing their fence! I gather some pieces, cut them to size and carefully assemble them into these boxes.
Once a box is finished, I use a stencil cut out of a file folder to spray the logo onto the box.
One more thing I have been working on is a glaze that gives me some movement. So here it is on a stein.
The glaze on top gave me some good drips but the color isn’t that interesting. I will try some oxides on top and see what that does in my next firing.
Update 5-25-09 Memorial Day
May 25th, 2009God Bless those who have given their lives in war for our country. God be with their families.
Much has happened since my last entry. A couple of kiln loads that I didn’t get on this blog. Mostly things already shown.
We did the Midtown Art Fest on May 9th. It was a makeup day and not as well attended as hoped. I was able to set up under some wonderful trees that kept me cool. Here are a couple of pictures of the setup.
So here are some things just out of the kiln.
I might keep these!
Now I am working on large outdoor citronella oil lanterns.
I will post the finished lanterns when they are done.
New Work 4-26-09
April 26th, 2009This has been a busy week! There are many things going on in the lives of those around me. Some great things like my daughter having a baby! I’m a grandpa!
However, I keep plugging away at the pottery. It isn’t my primary job (I teach art in public school) but it is a release for me. It is something I enjoy and it energizes me (most of the time). So here are the latest creations.
I haven’t made a carafe in a while. The think I like about these things is that the cups stack in the lid. This is just a trivial feature but fun and challenging to me as a potter.
I just can’t stop playing with the idea of a business card holder. Below are my latest ideas. I think I am done with this for a while. I have about 30 card holders of different styles. I need to clear some out before I make any more.
To purchase any of these items come see me at the First Saturday Art Market in the Heights May 2nd. Scott will also have my work at the East End Urban Market.
Where I will be on 4-18-09
April 18th, 2009On 4/18 I was going to be in TWO places! Actually Scott will have half of my work at the East End Urban Market. www.eastendurbanmarket.com
News Flash Midtown Art in the Park has been postponed due to expected BAD weather. The new date is May 9. Come to the show after the Art Car Parade!
New pottery as of 4-17-09
April 18th, 2009It has been busy and I actually had another batch of rice bowls come out since the last posting. This work includes some medium size vases, small bowls and a couple of business card holders. Oh yes, some cream and sugar containers as well.
Here we go!
It always seems the pots are taller than when I measure them.
I keep playing with the idea of a business card holder. So far, this is my best design.
Out of the kiln 4-3-09
April 4th, 2009The good thing about a small electric kiln is that it can be loaded, fired, unloaded, and refired quickly. This is a second batch of work done in 2 days. There are 5 plates, one casserole and 3 large drinking cups. The cups are not shown.
The casserole has a little combo drizzle glaze on top. I was having some fun and wanted to see what would turn out.
All this work from the last two days will be at the First Saturday Art Market in the Heights Houston.
Out of the Kiln 4-2-09
April 3rd, 2009A little trouble in the kiln. My green glaze was too thick and ran onto a couple of shelves! Other than that, there are some nice looking cups and business card holders in this batch.
