focus Monthly the potter’s life

Sylvie Granatelli focus the potter’s life

June/July/August 2008 $7.50 (Can$9) www.ceramicsmonthly.org

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 1 Monthly Publisher Charles Spahr Editorial [email protected] telephone: (614) 794-5895 fax: (614) 891-8960 editor Sherman Hall assistant editor Brandy Agnew assistant editor Jessica Knapp technical editor Dave Finkelnburg online editor Jennifer Poellot Harnetty editorial assistant Holly Goring Advertising/Classifieds [email protected] telephone: (614) 794-5834 fax: (614) 891-8960 classifi[email protected] telephone: (614) 794-5843 advertising manager Mona Thiel advertising services Jan Moloney Marketing telephone: (614) 794-5809 marketing manager Steve Hecker Subscriptions/Circulation customer service: (800) 342-3594 [email protected] Design/Production production editor Cynthia Conklin design Paula John Editorial and advertising offices 600 Cleveland Ave., Suite 210 Westerville, Ohio 43082 Editorial Advisory Board Linda Arbuckle; Professor, Ceramics, Univ. of Florida Scott Bennett; Sculptor, Birmingham, Alabama Tom Coleman; Studio Potter, Nevada Val Cushing; Studio Potter, New York Dick Lehman; Studio Potter, Indiana Meira Mathison; Director, Metchosin Art School, Canada Bernard Pucker; Director, Pucker Gallery, Boston Phil Rogers; Potter and Author, Wales Jan Schachter; Potter, California Mark Shapiro; Worthington, Massachusetts Susan York; Santa Fe, New Mexico Ceramics Monthly (ISSN 0009-0328) is published monthly, except July and August, by Ceramic Publications Company; a subsidiary of The American Ceramic Society, 600 Cleveland Ave., Suite 210, Westerville, Ohio 43082; www.ceramics.org. Periodicals postage paid at Westerville, Ohio, and additional mailing offices. Opinions expressed are those of the contributors and do not necessarily represent those of the editors or The American Ceramic Society. The publisher makes no claim as to the food safety of published glaze recipes. Readers should refer to MSDS (material safety data sheets) for all raw materials, and should take all appropriate recom- mended safety measures, according to toxicity ratings. subscription rates: One year $34.95, two years $59.95. Canada: One year $40, two years $75. International: One year $60, two years $99. back issues: When available, back issues are $7.50 each, plus $3 shipping/handling; $8 for expedited shipping (UPS 2-day air); and $6 for shipping outside North America. Allow 4–6 weeks for delivery. change of address: Please give us four weeks advance notice. Send the magazine address label as well as your new address to: Ceramics Monthly, Circulation Department, P.O. Box 662, Mt. Morris, IL 61054-9662. contributors: Writing and photographic guidelines are available online at www.ceramicsmonthly.org. indexing: Visit the Ceramics Monthly website at www.ceramicsmonthly.org to search an index of article titles and artists’ names. Feature articles are also indexed in the Art Index, daai (design and applied arts index). copies: Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use beyond the limits of Sections 107 or 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law is granted by The American Ceramic Society, ISSN 0009-0328, provided that the appropriate fee is paid directly to Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Dr., Danvers, MA 01923, USA; (978) 750-8400; www.copyright.com. Prior to photocopying items for classroom use, please contact Copyright Clearance Center, Inc. This consent does not extend to copying items for general distribution, or for advertising or promotional purposes, or to republishing items in whole or in part in any work in any format. Please direct republication or special copying permission requests to the Publisher, The Ceramic Publications Company; a subsidiary of American Ceramic Society, 600 Cleveland Ave., Suite 210, Westerville, Ohio 43082, USA. postmaster: Send address changes to Ceramics Monthly, P.O. Box 662, Mt. Morris, IL 61054-9662. Form 3579 requested. Copyright © 2008, The Ceramic Publications Company; a subsidiary of American Ceramic Society. All rights reserved.

www.ceramicsmonthly.org Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 2 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 3 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 4 June/july/august 2008 / Volume 56 Number 6

Monthly focus the potter’s life

34 Work and Play: The Potter’s Life 34 Choosing Solitude Jeff Oestreich, Taylors Falls, Minnesota 36 Deeply Invested Silvie Granatelli, Floyd, Virginia 38 Small Rewards, But Who’s Counting? Blair Meerfeld, Saguache, Colorado 40 Hard Work, Soft Clay Mark Shapiro, Worthington, Massachusetts 42 Foundation Stones John Glick, Bloomfeld Hills, Michigan 44 Pots in the Real World Ayumi Horie, Cottekill, New York features

46 Painful Truths: The Art of Greg Penner by Braden Frieder Hovering somewhere between fne art and kitsch, Penner’s sculptures seem cute, comical and playfully absurd. Then you realize all is not well here. monthly methods Cast-Offs and Slip Casts 50 The Eight-Month Workshop: A Journey of Discovery by Steven Hill The premise was straightforward: bring together a group of ceramics artists with at least rudimentary technical skills and help them fnd their personal voice. Piece of cake!

56 Reinventing Oneself by Hollis Walker After many years of assisting with his wife’s skyrocketing art career, Michael Lancaster returns to his own work and takes it in a brand new direction. 34 monthly methods Raku Safely by Michael Lancaster

cover: Breakfast/lunch sets, 10 in. (25 cm) square, slip-cast porcelain with in- cised decoration and glaze, by Silvie Granatelli, Floyd, Virginia; page 36. 56 50

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 5 departments

8 from the editor

10 letters from readers

14 answers from the CM technical staff

18 suggestions from readers 18 Tip of the Month: The Difference a Zero Can Make

20 upfront reviews, news and exhibitions 32 click and collect pay a virtual visit to the galleries in this issue 60 call for entries 60 International Exhibitions 60 United States Exhibitions 62 Regional Exhibitions 64 Fairs and Festivals 66 book review Firing: Philosophies Within Contemporary Ceramic Practice by David Jones Review by Mark Shapiro 68 new books Surface Decoration: Finishing Techniques edited by Anderson Turner 70 calendar 70 Conferences 70 Solo Exhibitions 72 Group Ceramics Exhibitions 76 Ceramics in Multimedia Exhibitions 76 Fairs, Festivals and Sales 79 Workshops 80 International Events 84 classified advertising 87 index to advertisers 88 comment Thursday Night Challenge by Dick Lehman 25 online www.ceramicartsdaily.org information and inspiration from inside the artist’s studio Features Tips, techniques, profles and more—delivered to your inbox. Education Listings of colleges, classes, guilds, workshops and residencies. Galleries Artist gallery pages, plus our comprehensive listing of museums and galleries that showcase ceramic art. Bookstore Complete line of ceramic art books to inspire, inform and instruct. Free Gifts Handy downloadable resources for the studio, including projects, recipes, our annual Buyer’s Guide and more! Magazines 32 23 32 Current and archived features, exhibition reviews and article index.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 6 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 7 from the editor by Sherman Hall

How does one plan to become a potter? but I doubt that’s why you started play- Wanted Or perhaps more importantly; why would ing with clay in the first place. It’s natural, Highly motivated individual with excep- one plan to become a potter? The reasons once you realize that the products of your tional spatial and aesthetic sensibilities. are almost never the same as why people creative efforts offer some value for oth- Superlative motor skills, hand-eye coor- choose other professions. Have you ever ers, to entertain the prospect of ditching dination and physical dexterity required. heard of a person getting a job as a potter the day job, ordering a few tons of clay Must have workable understanding of because that was the only job they could and planting a “pottery for sale” sign in inorganic chemistry, as well as a willingness get that was available at the time, and then the front yard. Perhaps surprisingly, that’s to experiment with the same. Thorough somehow finding themselves still making not a bad way to go. Many have had suc- understanding of the cultural and socio- pots years later, wondering how they “got cess with this model. Though it may be logical context of objects in daily human stuck” in this career? If so, let me know; less viable now than a few decades ago, the ritual preferred. Successful candidates it might make a good article. Financial dive-in-and-start-swimming approach to will demonstrate an enormous capacity gains are certainly not the primary motiva- becoming a potter is attractive. for endless testing of raw materials and tion, but it is possible to make a living— The impression of the want ad to the experimentation with form, while at the depending on your expectations. left notwithstanding, making pots can be same time performing repetitive physical For many of us, it is, and will continue personally and professionally fulfilling. tasks that require intense mental concen- to be, a part-time endeavor, which will There are many, with more first-hand tration. A high level of productivity and likely not provide income enough to sur- experience than I, who can explain this tolerance for long work days are musts. vive, much less thrive—especially if you better, and we have asked several of them The ability to control and monitor fire have a family. But I think we would all to do so. Beginning on page 34, six well- and various other physical and chemical agree that it is less about the amount of respected, professional, full-time potters phenomena on a regular basis will be key. time spent and more about the quality of share decades of knowledge and experience Must pay attention to small details and have the time we do have to devote to it. so that the rest of us might feel more com- the ability to contribute something to your Whether you call yourself an enthusiast fortable diving in. culture that will last for thousands of years. or aspiring potter, a beginner, student or Compensation not necessarily commensurate with experience. hobbyist, chances are you’ve considered how to go about selling what you make,

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 8 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 9 letters e-mail letters to [email protected]

Green Unfortunately, we called him Angus Gra- John Britt wrote an excellent article in ham, which wouldn’t be a big deal except undergraduate the May issue on saving energy [“The Ease that’s not his name. His real name is Brian of Being Green,” page 87]. Taylor, and we apologize to Angus and showcase He suggests placing a brick on the front Brian for the mix-up. If you look at the In September 2008, Ceramics Monthly will of an electric kiln lid to hold it down at pot Brian is throwing in that picture, it is feature the works of undergraduate clay high temperatures. Another method is to obvious that he’s making one of these: artists. Those enrolled in undergraduate check the hinge for binding. ceramics classes at accredited institutions are While the kiln is cold, close the lid. eligible. To be considered, submit up to five Kneel down so you can see the hinge, and professional-quality digital images (300 ppi lift the back of the lid. On most kilns, the resolution on CD), plus a color print of each lid will lift about 1/8 of an inch. This al- image, with complete descriptions of works, lows the lid to float as the heated firebricks contact information including e-mail, art- expand. If the hinge is tight, the lid won’t ist’s statement, résumé, instructors’ contact float, and the front will rise. information, and the name of the institution If you look at the hinge closely, you will you attend. Mail to Undergraduate Showcase, see what is causing it to bind. It could be Ceramics Monthly, 600 N. Cleveland Ave., Suite 210, Westerville, OH 43082. Do a bent section of sheet metal. Sometimes not submit materials in binders or folders. you can fix this by inserting a screwdriver E-mailed submissions and submissions of and bending the metal. Brian Taylor’s Green Spotty Petal Jar. more than five images will not be considered. Arnold Howard, Mesquite, TX Materials will be returned only if a padded Also in the April issue, Robin Hopper pro- envelope with appropriate postage is included. Corrections vided the wonderful answer to a reader’s Arrival deadline: June 30. On page 54 of the April issue, in our question about “Mocha Tea,” which was Due to the volume of submissions, we are unable to acknowl- “2008 Summer Workshops” listing, we great, except we said Robin lives in Van- edge receipt of materials. Notification via e-mail will be sent showed an obviously facile thrower at couver. In fact, the fabulous ’Chosin Pot- by the end of July. Please, no phone calls. Haystack Mountain School of Crafts. tery is located in Victoria, B.C., Canada.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 10 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 11 letters

Ed Scheier, 1910–2008 Ed Scheier, internationally acclaimed studio potter, died Sunday, April 20, 2008, in Green Valley, Arizona, at the age of 97. A pioneer in the studio pottery movement in the 1940s, Scheier was renowned for animated sculptures and robust functional vessels, the latter decorated with figural de- signs related to birth, love and entrapment. Born on November 11, 1910, in the Bronx to German immigrant parents, Scheier was first introduced to the world of craft and ceramics through apprentice- ships in New York with silversmith Peter Mueller-Monk, who became one of Amer- ica’s best known Art Deco designers, and with Austrian ceramist Valerie Wieselthier. Scheier ultimately accepted a position as coordinator for the Federal Recreation Project that took him to Big Stone Gap federal art galleries in Virginia, where he met and married Mary Goldsmith, who became his artistic partner as well. In 1938 they began making pottery at the Tennessee Valley Authority Ceramic Laboratory. The next year they set up Hill- crock Pottery, in Glad Spring, Virginia, with a focus on functional work and small figurines made of local clay. David Campbell, director of the League of New Hampshire Arts and Crafts, met the Scheiers at a conference at Black Mountain, North Carolina, and invited Ed to teach ceramics at the University of New Hampshire, where he taught from 1940–1968. The Scheiers moved to Oaxaca, Mexi- co, in 1968, when Ed retired from teach- ing. During the next decade, he turned from pottery and designed weavings, made paintings and carved sculpture from Guanacastle wood. When the Scheiers returned to the United States and settled in Green Valley, Arizona, in 1978, Ed re- turned to making pottery, including some of his largest vessels. In 1990 the Scheiers were made Honor- ary Fellows of the American Craft Council; 1991 Honorary Members of the National Council for Education in Ceramic Arts, and in 1992 they were awarded the Pettee Medal at the University of New Hampshire. About 1999, Ed was forced to give up ceramics completely. A documentary about their lives Four Hands, One Heart, produced by Ken Browne Productions, was aired na- tionally on many public television stations. Susan Strickler, Director, Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, New Hampshire Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 12 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 13 answers From the CM Technical Staff e-mail technical questions to [email protected]

Q I have been curious as to why I am getting matter, any information on other techniques to the glaze) or increase the firing temperature and/ varying results in my glaze firings, specifically help accomplish this, I would appreciate it. or soak time at peak firing temperature. with the matt finishes I am supposed to be receiv- Since chemistry of the glaze, application and However, if slower cooling makes a glaze more ing. I have been using a variety of commercial firing all play a part in the finished piece, I’d matt, then the glaze is rich in fluxes. Glazes that glazes that are labeled as matt finishes. Some like to hear what might cause these variations are more matt in your large kiln, but appear glossy have been successfully producing matt finishes, to the surface luster.—J.D. while others are coming out glossy. I am finding if fired in a test kiln, are often of this type. Dense this to be inconsistent between the test kiln I use The gloss/matt problems you mention are and the larger kiln I use. Both kilns are electric unfortunately all too common. Here’s what you and I am firing to cone 5 in oxidation. need to understand to deal with them: a matter of size Glazes that are glossy are fully melted into I have also experienced the reverse effects Test kilns can be heated very rapidly, as well. I have seen pieces with a glossy glaze glass. These glazes have a balance between fluxes but they also tend to cool rapidly as well. applied, placed below kiln shelves, fire to a matt/ (melters) and glass formers (silica and/or boron Neither of these is true of most full-size kilns. satin finish. The same glaze fires to the expected compounds). However, there are two reasons To make a test-kiln firing predict what will glossy finish above the shelf in the same firing. glazes are matt. Glazes can be matt because they come out of a full-size kiln, it is necessary to I can only assume all sorts of factors may cause just don’t melt. Glazes can also appear matt because fire the test kiln at approximately the same these types of differences; temperature, soak crystals form from the chemicals (fluxes) in the rate, both during heating and while cool- time, atmospheric conditions, size of firing load, ing down—at least as far as about 700°C cool down rates, etc. Unfortunately, I have not molten glass. The challenge for us as ceramic art- (1300°F). Below that temperature, the glaze been able to discover any consistency for the ists is to figure out which one is happening with is essentially a solid and no further change reasons why this happens. our glazes, in our studio—an unmelted matt or in glaze appearance is going to take place. a flux-rich matt? Lastly, I have heard it is possible to help reduce So the bottom line is, watch the cooling If a glaze fires glossier as you increase firing the glossiness of a glaze by adding a dry white rate as well as the heating rate in both types clay body to it. My tests have had little notice- temperature, then the glaze is clearly unmelted. If of kilns. To get the same results from each, able effectiveness with this technique thus far. If you want to increase gloss, you need to either add make those rates the same. there is any validity to this technique, or, for that more flux (to lower the melting temperature of

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 14 Why 2 women in remote Montana have fired only Paragon kilns since 1972 Pioneer Pottery near Roscoe, Montana is so isolated that bears come right up to the studio and smudge the windowpanes with nose prints. The sound of the East Rosebud River flowing past the red two-story building breaks the silence. Janet Hero Dodge and Julie Dickinson began Pioneer Pottery in 1972. They converted a horse stable built in 1910 into their busy pottery studio. Janet and Julie planned to fire with propane; in the meantime, they bought a Paragon square K-6H electric kiln. But they were so satisfied with the Paragon that they never converted to propane firing. Over the years they just bought more Para- gons and have been firing them ever since. “The glazes I developed for the electric firings had the softness and subtlety I had hoped for with propane,” said Janet Hero Dodge. “So I never quite got around to building that gas kiln. “In 1978 we added a Paragon K-6HS square kiln so we could glaze fire back to back when nec- essary. This allowed us to move pots steadily through the firing cycle and fill special orders quickly. In 1980 we added a square Paragon K-6A to our kiln collection. All the kilns are still func- tional.” Janet and Julie fire their glazes to a flattened cone 9. At this temperature, their matte glazes soften and absorb iron from the clay. “Some of Julie Dickinson and Janet Hero Dodge. Pioneer Pottery the glazes are quite bright for electric firing,” said has been firing Paragon kilns since the studio opened in 1972. Janet. “We’ve been real happy with our Paragons. They’ve held up well and produced good results.” We offer a wide selection of top and front Have they been reliable? “Quite.” loading kilns. Call 800-876-4328 or visit www.paragonweb.com for a free catalog and the “You can’t deny that gas firing is exciting,” name of the Paragon dealer near you. said Janet. “But as a production potter who also does my own specialty pieces, I need the reliability The Paragon Dragon of electric, which is more reliable than gas be- front-loading kiln is becom- cause you have fewer variables. And I like the fast ing a favorite with Potters. It is easy to load, heavily insu- turnover I can have with the electric kilns. If I get a lated, and designed for special order that I have to get out fast, I don’t cone 10. have to wait to fill up a big gas kiln. “I use a copper barium glaze,” Janet said, “and part of the reason I started doing that is I had less control over it. So I get some of that same ‘I won- der what I’m going to get when I open it’ feeling.” The Paragon kilns of today are built with the 2011 South Town East Blvd. same dependability as the kilns Janet and Julie are Mesquite, Texas 75149-1122 using. Since their Paragon kilns have worked The switch box on most 800-876-4328 / 972-288-7557 Paragon top-loading kilns Toll Free Fax 888-222-6450 faithfully for so many decades, imagine what your hinges at the bottom for next Paragon will do for you. easy access. www.paragonweb.com [email protected]

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 15 answers

stacking, which slows cooling, can also cause a matt glaze to fully develop. Virtually all clay bodies are refractory, so they don’t melt very well. Most clay bodies have at least five to ten times as much silica and alumina (compared to fluxes) as a glaze will. So adding clay (or a clay body) to a glaze will make the glaze drier. The alumina and silica in the clay body will overwhelm the fluxes in the glaze and make the glaze more refractory. This approach is tempera- ture sensitive. Higher temperature equals glossier glaze, so you need to balance firing temperature and the amount of clay you add. The most efficient way to test how much clay you need to add is to make a simple line blend with one end being your current glaze and the other end being that glaze plus more clay body or silica than you think you will need. If you prepare a blend of five to ten test tiles using increments of the two ends of the blend, you are more likely to find the right mix than if you just pick an amount and see what happens. Getting two glazes to look the same when one is fired in a test kiln and the other is fired in a full-size production kiln requires use of both witness cones and a good temperature indicator (pyrometer). Whether one uses a programmable kiln control- ler or controls the heating rate manually by adjusting the kiln switches, it is possible to heat two different kilns at the same rate to the same peak temperature simply by tracking time and firing temperature. The witness cones will indicate whether similar heating has occurred. However, the witness cone does not tell all. Glaze melting depends on actual peak firing temperature. The kiln must reach the same peak temperature AND the witness cone must be deformed by the same amount to consider two oxidation firings to be the same. But wait, that’s not all! There is something more, and in this case it is the cooling of the kiln. The important thing to remember about cooling and glaze surfaces is to control the speed. Slow cooling will cause matt glazes to develop more— and larger—crystals, because the glaze remains fluid longer, giving the flux materials time to re- form crystalline bonds, thus appearing more matt. Rapid cooling has the reverse effect, because all of those materials in suspension in the glass matrix don’t have time to reorganize into their crystalline structures. Glazes that are very sensitive to cooling rate, in fact, will turn out matt with slow cooling but glossy when cooled very rapidly. Dave Finkelnburg CM Technical Editor Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 16 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 17 suggestions e-mail suggestions to [email protected]

Traveling With Glazed Ware To safely transport glazed pots to a kiln for tip of the month firing without marring the glaze surface, mix white glue and water at a 50-50 ratio in a glass jar. Shake it up. Using a soft brush, paint it onto The Difference a Zero Can Make Reynolds Green Metal Patina (Cone 6) One of your subscribers was unhappy about Lithium Carbonate...... 40.0 % Green Metal Patina glaze running off their pots. Frit 3124 (Ferro)...... 30.0 So was I until I tried it at cone 06. Superpax ...... 20.0 Silica (Flint)...... 10.0 100.0 % Add: Copper Carbonate...... 2.5 % First I bisque my pots to cone 06, then apply Barnard slip clay to my texture (any stain can work), wipe the excess off and fire to cone 5. Then I spray Reynolds Green Metal Patina on and fire again to cone 06. the glaze and allow it to dry on a plastic sheet It produces a beautiful copper turquoise (usually overnight is sufficient). Do not allow semi-matt patina. It’s now one of my fa- it to dry on a wood board or any other porous vorites. Because of the copper and the low surface, or you won’t be getting it off! Put each firing, this really should be for decorative piece in a plastic bag before transporting, and ware only. wrap or pad as usual. High humidity can make the glue sticky. Handle the glued pieces with Congratulations to Nancy Wright of dry hands, even after they are dry. This makes Venice, California. Your subscription for a very hard surface and no glaze faults (so has been extended by one year! far).—Steve Murphy, Boston, MA

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 18 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 19 upfront reviews, news and exhibitions

20 Anders Ruhwald by Sean Francis rowlandcontemporary, Chicago, Illinois 22 Ben Waterman: Reckoning of a Mile by Matthew Kangas Drop City Gallery, Seattle, Washington 23 Tony Moore: Sculpture Paradox in Form by Marc Awodey Gallery in-the-Field, Brandon, Vermont 24 Sixteenth Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National Wayne Art Center, Wayne, Pennsylvania 25 Doug Herren: Industria Kelly & Weber Fine Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 26 Porcelain Now: The Alfred Connection The Artisan Gallery, Northampton, Massachusetts 26 (In) Between Wexler Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 28 The Objects of My Affection Clay Art Center, Port Chester 28 Love Your Figure Puls Contemporary Ceramics, Brussels, Belgium 30 Jordi Marcet and Rosa Vila-Abadal Loes & Reinier International Ceramics, Deventer, Netherlands 30 Victoria Christen Margo’s Pottery and Fine Crafts, Buffalo, Wyoming 30 Five Ceramic Artists Barry Friedman Ltd., New York, New York 32 Bente Skjøttsgaard Køppe Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark 32 Mary Roehm Solo Lacoste Gallery, Concord, Massachusetts

Clockwise from top: Installation view of L-stand and N-stand. Cooler, 30 in. (76 cm) in diameter, glazed stoneware. Untitled #9 (from the functional series), edition of six, 18 in. (46 cm) in length, glazed earthenware, brass. Installation view of Social piece of furniture #7, Interior #10, Interior #11, Interior #9 and Untitled #9 (from the functional series). Installation view of Candle/Light and Interior #8; at rowlandcontemporary, Chicago, Illinois. All works by Anders Ruhwald. All images courtesy of rowlandcontemporary.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 20 From left to right: Mirror (Ornamented), 15 in. (38 cm) in diameter, glazed earthenware, mirrored, vinyl, tassel, edition of four. Mirror (Candle), 15 in. (38 cm) in diameter, glazed earthenware, mirrored, vinyl, candle, edition of four. review: Anders Ruhwald by Sean Francis

Visitors to the recent exhibition of Anders Ruhwald’s ceramics-based The anomaly of Cooler’s ravishing aesthetics and unambiguous art at rowlandcontemporary (www.rowlandcontemporary.com) usefulness within this show’s context also indicated Ruhwald’s in Chicago, Illinois, were immediately confronted by an object decision to address, albeit obliquely, the problem so often raised that in its unstable combination of drollery and menace is typi- with ceramics in relation to the discourse of high art: the vexed cal of this young Danish maker’s fascinating output: a circle of question of whether form must be divorced from recognizable earthenware three feet in diameter, glazed in a matt black and functionality in order to count as significant. As he sees it, by surrounding a vinyl mirror, mounted high on a white wall and making ceramics that “verge on the functional—but always stop staring mutely down at all who were sufficiently intrepid to keep just short, or move just beyond,” he is engaging in a “concep- on coming into the gallery. Though not quite as unsettling as the tualization of the utilitarian” that lends his projects a resonance “Abandon all hope, ye who enter here” posted at the threshold of beyond their individual components. And while almost every Dante’s Inferno, the piece did suggest it would be best to check object here could conceivably serve some purpose beyond that of any preconceptions about a ceramics show at the door. Half providing sensory pleasure and provoking musings on meaning— surveillance device, half funhouse fixture and wholly compelling, the hilarious N-stand, for instance, which might do nicely to Interior #10 kept its perceivers off-balance, some more pleasur- prop up a television in the family room of the Flintstones, or the ably than others; only when they had realized the title might refer small Untitled #9 (from the functional series), upon whose skinny more to their hidden psychic spaces than to the uncanny object and bumpy earthenware bar one might drape a hand towel or it named were they truly ready to proceed further. two—Ruhwald is more keen on stimulating thought around the That the London-based Ruhwald might have been as interested notion of utility than in fashioning explicitly serviceable products. in discomfiting as in delighting was suggested by the rubric he (It was revealing to learn from him that an early apprenticeship in settled on for this grouping of thirteen creations, all made since Minnesota was entirely given over to the throwing of commercial Christmas in Chicago, where he has been a 2007/8 Visiting Artist pottery, and that he hadn’t operated an enterprise in Denmark at the Art Institute of Chicago: One is never so close to change as strictly devoted to functional ceramics for very long at all before when life seems unbearable, even in the smallest and most everyday realizing it wasn’t, so to speak, his cup of tea.) things. Taken from a letter by the poet Rainer Maria Rilke, whose For a number of this show’s pieces, the ceramic medium or most famous poem, “Archaic Torso of Apollo,” ends with the exhor- material provided only one part of a larger assemblage. Particularly tation “You must change your life,” the statement is more suggestive intriguing was a work that featured two devices of illumination. In than definitive—and hence appealed forcefully to Ruhwald, who Candle/Light a candle burned atop yet another earthenware beam, regards ambiguity as the key to all he does. “I don’t want people and, on its other end, a sleek light bulb drooped downward as if to to dwell on what this work looks like,” he notes; “I want them to keep its “eye” on the coil of black cord plugged into the wall and ask what it is.” (Not that they’ll find any certain answer.) To this keeping it going. The contrast in the modes of lighting—one as end he eschewed the often bright colors, shiny surfaces and witty old as man, the other a readymade emblem of modernity—added titles of previous work in favor of an all-over blackness, occasional a two-fold temporal dimension to the piece’s spatiality: while bluntness of modeling and neutrality of naming; the sculptures do the wick and wax were visibly finite and clearly diminishing, the not reach out, but must be approached and engaged on their own filament under glass, while destined to endure longer, was also terms by those who would comprehend their quiet but persistent under the curse of obsolescence. power. (The one exception to this was the dazzling stoneware vessel Candle/Light’s simple allusion to the charged philosophical Cooler, which seemed hewn from obsidian—and true to its name category of time was echoed in another of the exhibit’s engaging brimmed on opening night with the iced intoxicants that evinced aspects: the way different pieces subtly evoked widely divergent the largesse of gallery director Mark Rowland.) historical epochs. Some suggested the era of Neanderthal man,

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 21 upfront others the Northern Renaissance of Jan van Eyck (whose seminal for one year, followed by current M.F.A. studies in ceramics at the Arnolfini Betrothal was evoked by a set of exquisite mirror objects “con- University of Washington Graduate School of Art. Like many recent versing” in a corner); meanwhile, the gawky mushroom-on-a-tripod students of Professor Doug Jeck at U.W., Waterman has now switched L-stand irresistibly channeled the B-movie pod-people of the 1950s. to photography and dropped clay for the time being. Let’s hope this is only temporary. “Reckoning of Mile,” his solo gallery debut in Seattle at the new Drop City Gallery in the basement of Glenn Richards (www.dropcitygallery.com), was a mixed tour-de-force. Its titular centerpiece, Reckoning of Mile, displayed 16,180 oblong unglazed soda- and wood-fired stoneware pieces the artist calls “rail spikes.” Impressive for its sheer size, Reckoning of Mile’s labor-intensive quality is an extraordinary riposte to those who feel craft processes inhibit any attainable art status. Waterman’s three narrow tracks of thin elements set side-by-side were placed in a long raised V-shape around one of

Installation view of Anders Ruhwald’s Candle/Light, Interior #8, L-stand and N-stand.

(The spindly legs of this piece are also dead ringers for the knobby and attenuated limbs of Alberto Giacometti’s pinched, striding bronzes.) In addition, Ruhwald had prepared a time frame of sorts for the show as a whole, constructing two very large mirrors of small, brassy tiles in mosaic meant to bathe the space in golden light while referencing the idea of the “total art work” which so obsessed early modernists in Vienna like Josef Hoffman. (Think of the pattern and hue of Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss and Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I.) This effort to incorporate installation is part and parcel of Anders Ruhwald’s conceptual bent, patent throughout this profound show, and demonstrated his eagerness to grow by exploring new ways of contextualizing his remarkable artifacts. However, it is ultimately his thoroughgoing physical, hands-on engagement with clay—part loving craft, part struggle, and integral to his intuitive, at times frustrating process—that sets his work apart. Nor are the results going unnoticed: Ben Waterman’s Willing Them to Sleep, 8 in. (20 cm) in height, bisque-fired The Victoria & Albert Museum just purchased one of his seven pieces stoneware, white paint, iron oxide powders and Plexiglas, 2007. on display in London’s sixpm project space in late January, and in November he will unveil his first solo museum show at England’s the gallery’s interior support columns. At the angle’s vertex, a tall pile Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art. of the “spikes” was mounded up. Instead of the artist’s wordy explanatory statement (so popular Ben Waterman: Reckoning of a Mile in American graduate school art programs) speaking of “presence,” by Matthew Kangas “innocence,” “horror,” and “complex cultural significance,” the works The 32-year-old artist Ben Waterman majored in political theory at are more about Process art and Minimalist art, closer to Robert Mor- Whitman College in 1998 before attending the University of Iowa ris and Carl Andre than Waterman’s absurd claims of “looking for America,” as he puts it. Also disregarding the artist’s windy claim that the exhibition ex- presses “the stories I had accumulated, people I met, etc.,” maybe it’s better to concentrate on the “et cetera,” and argue for de-intentional- izing Waterman altogether. Many ceramic artists (teachers included) have felt the need to write their own statements, i.e., reviews, because (a) they fear real critical judgment and (b) they secretly think no real art critic will write about or agree with them. There’s no need for such fear on Waterman’s part. Waterman’s achievement in Reckoning of Mile and the two accom-

Ben Waterman’s White Cubes, 17 in. (43 cm) in height, bisque-fired stoneware and panying pedestal works, White Cubes and Willing Them to Sleep, is sub- white paint, 2007. stantial enough to suggest a brighter future, one that should continue

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 22 to interest art critics. need not be about any- How to make large- thing except repetition scale ceramic sculpture and sequencing. has been a dilemma By persisting in among clay artists for the use of the spike, many years. Many Ca- Waterman dilutes its nadian and American symbolic power after ceramists have, like the large installation Waterman, turned to piece. Visually com- installation art, as if pelling through sheer to guarantee art status. dint of size, all three This is not surprising, works command the but it is recent among new space that is sure clay artists. Elsewhere, to become a venue it has become an in- of choice for emerg- stitutionalized avant- ing clay artists. As to garde complete with the content of such university art school Ben Waterman’s Reckoning of Mile, soda- and wood-fired stoneware, 45 in (114 cm) in height, 2004–2007; at works, the critic and the Drop City Gallery, Seattle, Washington. All photos courtesy of Drop City Gallery by James Reindhart. departments devoted viewer are the instillers to it and tenured fac- of meaning, not the ulty reinforcing it. There is often a ten- to twenty-year lag between artist. When the art is removed from the graduate studio, taken off contemporary art trends and the mainstream craft world. campus and placed in a public setting, no grade is given nor are there For a change, let’s concentrate on how Waterman turned numerous any more pats on the head. Ben Waterman may be a late bloomer. I discrete elements into an accretive, giant object, like the big heap in hope he will have more than one idea per decade. I’m looking forward Reckoning of Mile. By far the most interesting part of the piece, the to the next one—or even two. pointed mound could be a breast; if so, Waterman is reconceiving the author Matthew Kangas is a frequent contributor to Ceram- gender. Or it could be an archaeological conceit; if so, Waterman ics Monthly, Art in America and Sculpture. His biography, Robert is dredging up American railroad history. Or it could be about the Sperry: Bright Abyss, is due out this fall, distributed by University of death and detritus of 20th-century industry: so many railroad tracks, Washington Press. nowhere to go. The duty of the art critic is to project meaning, to interpret, not Tony Moore: Sculpture Paradox in Form translate, the artist’s efforts. Sadly, few writers about clay are art critics; by Marc Awodey many simply swallow whole the artist’s explanatory statements. This Tony Moore’s recent sculpture installation “Paradox in Form” at often begins with the collusion of dealers (see Katherine Westphal’s Gallery in-the-Field (www.galleryinthefield.com) in Brandon, Ver- writings on the “vessels of metaphor” of Richard DeVore) and contin- mont... examines a central conundrum of existence: that each hour ues with the lazy thinking of journalists and artists themselves. of life brings us an- One of Professor Jeck’s predecessors at the U.W., Robert Sperry, other hour closer to once told me “Most craft artists only have one idea per decade.” I death. But Moore’s hope this is not the case with Ben Waterman. For this show, however, work isn’t all doom he did use one idea—three times. Besides Reckoning of Mile, White and gloom; rather, Cubes and Willing Them to Sleep both use the same modular element it reminds us that to slightly differing ends. The former sits on a shelf. Hundreds more human handiwork nail-like prongs are stacked into three squarish solids. Rather than the can challenge that warm tones of the big installation piece, these pieces are drenched in paradox by leaving white paint. In the latter, a clear, covered Plexiglas tray contains one lasting imprints on layer of orderly rows of the same white spikes which are, in this case, the world. loosely dusted with an iron oxide powder. Memento mori With each element in each piece fashioned by hand, Waterman’s loosely translates task has been enormous. Its overall impact suggests obsessive-com- from Latin into pulsive behavior—and one basic idea, the clay nail or “rail spike.” “remember you are This loaded element does not completely transfer from Reckoning of mortal.” The phrase Mile to the other two works. White Cubes is just piles of white clay has spawned cen- nails set into cube-like shapes on a shelf. Willing Them to Sleep sets a turies of skull and different, albeit yummy, red-orange frosting on the layer of sealed-in Tony Moore’s Smoke Screen (A Work in Fifteen Parts), funerary-urn images white elements. They follow in a Minimalist tradition in that they detail, 72 in. (183 cm) in height, wood-fired ceramics. in still-life paintings,

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 23 upfront friezes, even New England needlepoints. Moore’s Thou, a gravestone form that is about three inches thick, firmly fits into that genre. The word “THOU” is inscribed on this ceramic headstone, recalling Ebenezer Scrooge’s tombstone as revealed by the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come in “A Christmas Carol.” Moore also pressed a handprint at lower left, and several leaf forms onto the sculpture’s red and black- singed, wood-fired surfaces.Thou sits on a shelf. Its face is smoothed, but the gravestone’s edges appear as rough as coarsely graveled con- crete. Moore often mixes pebbles and grit into his clay. Trophy is a wall-mounted collection of fifteen buildings, each nine inches high and installed on a grid of little shelves. This aggregate work also employs iconographic forms. Eight buildings have spires, and seven have distinctive mastaba shapes, reminiscent of the earliest Middle Eastern temples. Tony Moore’s Trophy (A Work in Fifteen Parts), 72 in. (183 cm) in height, wood-fired ceramics. Smoke Screen is a similar work, but all of its buildings seem to be small cathedrals. Several are imbued with a subtle blue glaze, which Moore’s relentlessly repeated, disembodied ceramic heads lie in a also appears in many of the 150 self-portrait heads that constitute precise arrangement on the gallery floor. They are also stacked into Moore’s monumental Who Knows Why?. a seven-foot-tall vertical, cage-like structure; the faces are cheek to cheek and slightly upturned. The floor pieces inWho Knows Why? are the color of parchment, while blue specimens reside in the cage. Though each individual head is like a death mask, and the tall cage recalls the Catacombs of Paris, Moore’s 150 self-portraits aren’t necessarily macabre. Instead, each evokes a successive soul with its own identity, even though all the heads are virtually identical. Their beautiful glazing contributes to their peaceful appearance. As is obvious from the hues of blue-gray, umber, red oxide, black and white sprinkled across the exhibition, Moore is a superb ceram- ics technician. An exhibition sign discloses that he fires his pieces for six to eight days in an 18-foot-long hybrid Anagama-Noborigama Japanese-style wood-fire kiln of his own construction. In that kiln, Moore commingles inferno and earth. The works that emerge from it tell a story of spiritual transcendence.

Sixteenth Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National The following is excerpted from Linda Arbuckle’s juror statement for the Strictly Functional Pottery National. Arbuckle is an internationally exhibited potter, Professor of Art at the University of Florida, as well as a

Tony Moore’s Who Knows Why?, 84 in. (213 cm) in height, wood-fired ceramic, steel; with Thou, 36 ½ in. (93 cm) in height, wood-fired ceramic; at Gallery in-the- Field, Brandon, Vermont. Photo: Marc Awodey.

A British-American artist, Moore received his M.F.A. from Yale University, and his work has been exhibited on both sides of the Atlantic. He’s also a former exhibition installer at the Guggenheim Museum. So it’s not surprising that Who Knows Why? was installed at Gallery in-the-Field with museum-quality precision, taking the gestalt of the elegantly designed venue into account. In the work, Alyssa Welch’s patterned tray, 10 in. (25 cm) in diameter, porcelain.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 24 member of the Ceramics Monthly advisory board. The exhibition will be good about seeing on view through June 27 at the Wayne Art Center (www.wayneart.org) our work show up in Wayne, Pennsylvania. in good company, presented formally to other artists and the world. All the artists I know have also felt disappoint- ment, either from the results coming out of a kiln and/or Renee Heyer-Starrett’s salt and pepper set with tray, response from other 7 in. (18 cm) in height, porcelain. artists or art profes- sionals. And so we seek and continue to grow. I feel deeply about the generosity and pluck of the ceramics community, and its general willingness to share, whether that’s in technical problem-solving, discussion of intent and reading of works, or sending works off to a show so the rest of us can see, enjoy and think about skill, personal viewpoint, meaning and art. We are a strong, resilient group, maybe because we fail so often. Thanks to ev- eryone who has taken a risk in showing someone what you’ve made, helped someone in studio, talked to people about what you do, and continued the struggle (with some joys, I hope) to make satisfying, Tyler Gulden’s striped cup, 5 in. (13 cm) in height, porcelain, soda. personal work. To me, hand-made pottery in the 21st century is all

My appreciation to everyone who entered, sharing your enthusiasm for your work. There were more worthy works than I was able to in- clude in the show. As previous jurors have noted, jurying is interesting, inspiring, and in the later stages, full of difficult choices. One of the givens in any creative endeavor is that you have to take risks and make the unsuccessful works on the way to learning

Jennifer Lawler-Mecca’s butter dish, 4 in. (10 cm) in height, porcelain; at Wayne Art Center, Wayne, Pennsylvania.

about values. I think the clay community has some very good ones, although we are not a monolithic group. Hand-made functional work champions attention and engagement in daily life—that this really matters and makes a difference. It’s an optimistic thought. Thanks to all for the opportunity to see your work. It was a labor of love to assemble the show. Karen Swyler’s Softly, 6 in. (15 cm) in height, porcelain. Doug Herren: Industria how to make the distinguished works that communicate. This is true “Doug Herren: Industria,” a solo exhibition of new work by for the technical as well as the personal and conceptual expressions the artist, was on view recently at Kelly & Weber Fine Art in works. (www.myspace.com/201gallery) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In addition to taking risks in creating, artists take risks when “My current work derives from my training as a functional potter,” submitting work to peer review, such as juried shows. We all feel says Herren. “In my most recent work I create oversized vessel forms—

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 25 upfront

teapots, vases, plat- faces with steel wool to erode and distress planes and edges, exposing ters, etc.—that are under-layers of color. The result actually gives an extra punch to the infused with an in- overall color palette. While the work is about abandonment and dustrial sensibility. decay, the final result actually comes off as something more playful These are sectional and boisterous. The ambiguity of the work’s intended function and forms that must be purpose has less to do with nostalgia than to tease and prod the viewer pieced together be- into inventing their own story lines.” cause of their scale. The sources I use are Porcelain Now: The Alfred Connection utilitarian pottery “Porcelain Now: The Alfred Connection,” a group exhibition featur- forms; however, I ing the work of Kristen Kieffer, Andy Shaw and Albion Stafford, was have recast them to recently on view at The Artisan Gallery (www.theartisangallery.com) resemble industrial in Northampton, Massachusetts. detritus. While there is still an echo of function in these pieces, that function and purpose can

Doug Herren’s Compressor and Sea-foam Table Stand, only be guessed at 84 in. (213 cm) in height, stoneware fired to cone 5, and intuited. bronze overglaze, oil enamels and wood. “I depart further from my past work as a potter in the treatment of surfaces. Rather than the use of tradi- tional pottery glazes for finishing, I strive to replicate the surfaces of abandoned machinery. Here I employ sign-painter’s paints in multiple layers applied over a black-matt glazed surface. Then I scrub the sur-

Albion Stafford’s Vase Construction, 16 in. (41 cm) in height, slip cast, thrown and constructed porcelain, earthenware constructed grid work with terra sigillata; at The Artisan Gallery, Northampton, Massachusetts.

“My work is currently focused on an investigation into the ways in which we know, respond to and are affected by our environments,” said Stafford. “The characteristics present in this work are inspired by the elements of the modern world around us. ...Through the for- mat of functional ceramics, I urge the viewer to see a representation of our landscapes that investigates the balance between nature and construct, disarray and structure. From this vantage point, one may discover the beauty of the complex relationships that make up our surroundings.”

(In) Between

Doug Herren’s Pressure Cooker and Pink Tripod Stand, 70 in. (178 cm) in height, “(In) Between,” a group show featuring the work of Dirk Staschke, stoneware fired to cone 5, bronze overglaze, oil enamels and wood. Adelaide Paul, Damien Hirst, Randall Sellers, Tim Tate, Anne Siems

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 26 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 27 upfront and Joe Boruchow, will be on view through June 28 at the Wexler Gal- lery (www.wexlergallery.com) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Curated by Sienna Freeman, Associate Director of the gallery, the exhibition is based loosely on the idea of Vanitas, 16th and 17th century Dutch still-life paintings that included symbols of mortality, celebrating life’s pain and pleasures while meditating on their inevitable loss. “Working in two and three dimensions, these seven artists investi- gate the transitory nature of life and the contemporary human experi-

Kyla Toomey’s pattern mugs, 3 in. (8 cm) in height, porcelain, cone 9 oxidation; at Clay Art Center, Port Chester, New York.

lead a one-day demonstration workshop entitled “Patterns on Pots” on June 21. “My understanding of ceramics is based around the active process of creating,” said Toomey. “As a creator I have limitless possibilities to work with, and yet I have chosen to work with an intentionally restricted set of ideas and tools which in turn opens another realm of limitless possibilities. Pattern is the repetition and rotation of one or more shapes or lines to create positives within negative space. I use pattern to move through or around form, to break up the space and mark it as my own. The surface and decoration on the exterior informs the interior, defining the space, noting that they are directly connected, and yet read as inherently different.”

Love Your Figure “Love Your Figure,” a group exhibition featuring works by Hanneke Giezen, Clémence Van Lunen, Gitte Jungersen, Steen Ipsen, Louise Hindsgavl and Marieke Pauwels, was on view recently at Puls Con- temporary Ceramics (www.pulsceramics.com) in Brussels, Belgium.

Dirk Staschke’s Baroque 1, 26 in. (66 cm) in height, ceramic; at Wexler Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ence,” said Freeman. “Although their mediums and experiences in the art world are diverse, these artists are linked by a certain uncanny qual- ity possessed by their work. Often illustrated with imagery revolving around the passage of time, nature and earthly belongings, this quality begs the viewer to consider their own mortality and question their perception of reality. ...Dirk Staschke is a ceramicist and sculptor who Gitte Jungersen’s A Magic Moment, 6 in. (15 cm) in height, stoneware and found weaves subtle allegory into a timeless art form. Figurative, architectural object; at Puls Contemporary Ceramics, Brussels, Belgium. and ornamental in nature, Staschke’s work explores lines between the rational and irrational, the beautiful and the grotesque.” “The Danish artist Jungersen brings us underhandedly to child- hood in her mysterious landscapes,” said gallery director, Annette The Objects of My Affection Sloth. “These landscapes were earlier left unpopulated, but recently “The Objects of My Affection,” a solo exhibition of new works by Jungersen has introduced alien inhabitants to them. She joins ready- Kyla Toomey, will be on view through June 21 at the Clay Art Center made objects, often innocent toys, to her undefined bubbling, (www.clayartcenter.org) in Port Chester, New York. Toomey will also colored and brilliant mass. The interaction between the vigorous

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 28 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 29 upfront glaze and the found figures brings us back to everyone’s long ago and unspoken past.”

Jordi Marcet and Rosa Vila-Abadal New work by Jordi Marcet and Rosa Vila-Abadal will be on view recently at Loes & Reinier International Ceramics (www.loes-reinier.com) in Deventer, Netherlands.

Victoria Christen’s cream and sugar set, 7 in. (18 cm) in height, thrown and altered earthenware, colored clay slips, fired at Cone 04; at Margo’s Pottery and Fine Crafts, Buffalo, Wyoming. Photo: Courtney Frisse. the slip, revealing the red clay surface, in order to, as Christen puts it, “suggest the passage of time and the knitting of form and surface.”

Five Ceramic Artists A group exhibition of works by David Regan, Alev Ebüzziya, Beth Cavener Stichter, Akio Takamori and Kukuli Velarde was recently on view at Barry Friedman Ltd. (www.barryfriedmanltd.com) in New York City. A Peruvian artist with American citizenship, Kukuli Velarde’s work is shaped by what she terms a ‘continuous hybridization—a cultural con- text defined, redefined and tormented by the simultaneous influences of Jordi Marcet and Rosa Vila-Abadal’s Words, 13 in. (32 cm) in height, stoneware with pre–Columbian, post–Colonial and Republican eras.’ Choosing to work feldspar enamels; at Loes & Reinier International Ceramics, Deventer, Netherlands. with clay, historically a humble material rooted in folk traditions, her This artist couple has been making work together since 1969. Ini- sculptural aesthetic draws from pre–Columbian terra-cotta vessels and tially, their work followed the shapes and techniques of Catalan pop- figurines. However, Velarde recasts traditional iconography to address ular ceramics. Focusing on design and painting, they produce works a diversity of contemporary subjects, from post–Colonial identity and that are sold in art shops throughout Spain. Boxes, plates, bowls and gender relations to personal introspection. less functional stoneware shapes are rhythmically decorated with figurative or abstract motives or covered with comic book or ritual- looking figures.

Victoria Christen New work by Victoria Christen will be on view through August 9 at Margo’s Pottery and Fine Crafts (www.margospottery.com) in Buffalo, Wyoming. Victoria Christen has spent the last ten years in Portland, Oregon. Her work has become more spontaneous since she has been there. She views her plates as canvases for drawing, and tries to “capture a moment that I experience in the garden: the cherry blossoms floating on the surface of the pond, the wind in the branches.” She applies a slip with the consistency of milk quickly to the surface of her pieces when they are leather hard. The piece is in constant motion while the slip is being applied, to allow the slip to follow the throwing lines, and to cascade. She then lets the piece dry. Once the piece is bone dry, she applies color, using commercial underglazes, glazes and oxide washes. The next step is carving the surface of the clay using a variety of tools. Finally, she applies thin black lines of underglaze to areas of the surface. Once the piece is dry, she sands the raised areas of clay in Kukuli Velarde’s Chola de Mierda (Mocha, Peru, AD 200), 20 in. (51 cm) in height, a well ventilated area while wearing a mask. She also removes some of terracotta with engobes and wax, 2007; at Barry Friedman Ltd., New York, New York.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 30 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 31 upfront

Bente Skjøttgaard signature pieces, large thrown New work by Bente Skjøttgaard was recently on view at Køppe Gallery bowls with small feet, seem (www.koppegallery.com) in Copenhagen, Denmark. poised between stability and “The ceramics are elemental and chaste, but Skjøttgaard is not flight. Roehm has branched afraid of going to extremes,” said Erik Steffensen, Professor at the out with her sculptural wall Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. “The artist moves pods, highlighting a diver- wherever the clay happens to be pointing the way. Her ceramics look gence from utilitarian vessel like stones and tree stubs that have fallen here and there on the moun- based forms. Her theme of tainside, while we continue to move through the landscape; there are inside outside interactions brooks that are babbling and snows that are melting: white glazes in all and definition is persistent variations. There is proximity to moss and lichen, a feeling for snow, with her reoccurring finger soft forms and erosion that upturns the mud and uncovers exquisite punched holes. She continues to experiment with the juxta- position of black and white Mary Roehm’s Two Wall Pods, 40 in. (102 porcelain; and the effects of cm) in length, unglazed porcelain, 2008; at the wood-firing process.” Lacoste Gallery, Concord, Massachusetts.

Submissions to the Upfront column are welcome. We would be pleased to consider press releases, artists’ statements and images in conjunction with exhibitions or other events of interest for publication. Images should be high-resolution digital on CD. Mail to Ceramics Monthly, 600 N. Cleveland Ave., Suite 210, Westerville, Ohio 43082. click and collect pay a virtual visit to the galleries in this issue

American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California www.ceramicmuseum.org Barry Friedman Ltd., New York, New York www.barryfriedmanltd.com Clay Art Center, Port Chester, New York www.clayartcenter.org Drop City Gallery, Seattle, Washington www.dropcitygallery.com Gallery in-the-Field, Brandon, Vermont www.galleryinthefield.com Kelly & Weber Fine Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania www.myspace.com/201gallery Køppe Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark Bente Skjøttgaard’s White Rocks–n°0803, 26 in. (67 cm) in height, stoneware and www.koppegallery.com glaze, 2008; at Køppe Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark. Lacoste Gallery, Concord, Massachusetts www.lacostegallery.com mineral deposits: kaolin, quartz and feldspar. Geological phenomena: Loes & Reinier International Ceramics, ceramics is geology—on the sophisticated and refined level. Basis Deventer, Netherlands and element converge with human beings’ ideas and present-day www.loes-reinier.com experience. Skjøttgaard is working as a researcher; she writes down Margo’s Pottery and Fine Crafts, Buffalo, Wyoming everything that she carries out in meticulous detail and she works www.margospottery.com with an admixture of glazes, but when she tests out the substance in Puls Contemporary Ceramics, Brussels, Belgium www.pulsceramics.com the kiln and holds her creative productions up to the light of a final assessment, the systematics often break down. Here, it is only the rowlandcontemporary, Chicago, Illinois www.rowlandcontemporary.com aesthetic power and the expressive richness that count.” The Artisan Gallery, Northampton, Massachusetts www.theartisangallery.com Mary Roehm Solo Wayne Art Center, Wayne, Pennsylvania New work by Mary Roehm was on view recently at Lacoste Gallery www.wayneart.org (www.lacostegallery.com) in Concord, Massachusetts. Wexler Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania “Roehm is known for her gravity-defying, paper-thin vessels that www.wexlergallery.com wilt under their own weight,” said gallery owner Lucy Lacoste. “Her

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 32 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 33 yworkandplay workandplaywork The Potter’s Life

Jeff Oestreich Choosing Solitude

When I returned to America in 1971, there were only a few potters in Minnesota making a living solely from their work, so I attempted to model my pottery after the Leach Pottery. That meant spending half my time producing standware (production ware) and the other half one-of-a-kind pieces. This was a total flop and, when I look back, a blessing in disguise. My work had not developed to the point where I was satisfied with duplicating ideas. I was restless and wanted the ideas to be open-ended. I tried selling a range of tiles, again based on the Leach Pottery in the ’30s. This too fopped. There were few art fairs, and this was before the large trade shows of today. What sustained me was having open houses in my studio four times a year. These events built up a loyal customer base. Friendships developed, and even today many still return, sometimes with their grown children who have taken an interest in pots. This is one of the richest rewards of being a potter, and I am grateful. Jeff Oestreich constructs the body of a form at his studio in My initial reason for pursuing pottery as a livelihood cannot be Taylors Falls, Minnesota. explained easily. I wanted the work to mature and the only way I could achieve that was to devote my life to it. The by-product of this I have been making a living as full-time potter for 39 years. approach was a lot of work that needed homes. Also, the lifestyle of This includes my two-year apprenticeship at the Leach Pottery a potter is well suited to my temperament. It involves the ability to from 1969–1971. We were paid $15 a week and could live on work largely in solitude, confront many challenges, work cyclically this. five went for rent, five for groceries, and the remainder went through mixing clay, making, firing and selling the finished pots, to the pub! Coming from college, where money was tight, $15 as well as learning and growing through this process. sounded reasonable. For many years, studio time was play. This has changed. Since A wide ranging audience buys my work, from other potters I work and live on the same property, my private life and work life to neighbors, relatives and collectors. A third of my work is sold are intertwined. I have failed at keeping them separate. For me, play through galleries, a third during our annual studio tour in May, is leaving my everyday environment—going up north to a friend’s and the remaining from my showroom. My long-term goal was cabin, taking a trip overseas, helping a friend with a project or to sell mostly from my studio, but I came to believe that formal conducting a workshop. exhibitions prompted me to push ideas more and present my work I recharge creatively by visiting museums, teaching a class or to a wider audience. going to a residency at a clay facility. For the past several years, I

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 34 focus the potter’s life yworkandplay workandplaywork

Jeff Oestreich Choosing Solitude

Oval Boat, 5 in. (13 cm) in diameter, thrown stoneware, fired to Cone 10 in reduction.

Where to See More Oestreich Pottery, Taylors Falls, MN Minnesota St. Croix River Tour (May) www.minnesotapotters.com Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, MT www.redlodgeclaycenter.com Teapot, 6 in. (15 cm) in height, thrown and assembled stoneware with wax-resist design, fired to Cone 10 in reduction.

have spent Novembers working in the studio of potter friends Pat happened. I realized that my work needed to be my primary focus. Burns and Andy Balmer in Portland, Oregon. It is through the rigors of making that I learn more about myself, The most difficult decision I had to make as a potter happened and spiritual growth is now central to my life. fifteen years ago. For a number of years, I traveled around the My advice to those interested in pursuing studio ceramics as a country teaching semesters at various universities, trying to decide profession is to link up with other potters. Share space and equipment if I should pursue teaching as a full-time career. I applied for a posi- in an attempt to keep expenses down. Keep the primary focus on the tion and did not get it, which was the best thing that could have health of the work, and band together for emotional support.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 35 Silvie Granatelli Deeply Invested

Of all my income options, traveling to teach workshops was perhaps the most gratifying and fulfilling. While standing in front of students, I was able to further articulate my ideas, work on new forms as dem- onstration pieces and visit wonderful places. Over the past ten years, I have developed a new and more stable source of income by working closely with a group of craftsmen who live in my community. Together, we started 16 Hands, an art collec- tive whose main approach to selling work is a self-guided tour of our studios. Through this tour, held twice a year, and through year-round sales in my studio gallery, I am able to generate most of my income. To make up the remainder, I still do workshops and participate in gallery shows around the country. In hindsight, I realize it was fortuitous that I settled in a location where the cost of living was affordable. I own a home and property near

Silvie Granatelli carves a large leather-hard bowl in her Floyd, a small river in southwest Virginia, and I have health insurance and a Virginia studio. retirement account. Health insurance is expensive for the self-employed. In fact, it is my largest yearly bill. I am also frugal and conscientious of my spending habits. I don’t take out loans to pay for more equipment, additions to the studio, or The FIrst time I touched clay was at the Kansas City Art Insti- advertising. Instead, I take on small teaching jobs, workshops, or make tute in 1966. From that moment on, my life revolved around figuring special order pottery. I also save 20–30% of my yearly income, which out how to make a living with ceramics. In the ’60s, there were not has provided a financial cushion. I consider this money fluidly available many contemporary examples of studio potters, but Ken Ferguson, for use throughout the year. And if it is not used, at the end of the year my professor, made his students aware that being a professional potter I invest it in something I need. I do my own bookkeeping but hire an was a real possibility. At that time, the many things I didn’t know were accountant for taxes, a habit I’ve kept from even my poorest days. This a blessing. I thought everything was possible. After graduate school, I financial plan has held me in good stead for years, allowing me to travel worked in several communal studios in and around my native Chicago and cook gourmet food, two of my favorite pastimes. before making my way to the South. I’ve been fortunate to undergo my professional maturation sur- As a young potter, my central goal was to make a seamless balance rounded by a group of potters in Floyd and the surrounding area. between my studio work and my domestic life. After many fits and starts, I ended up in Floyd, Virginia, where I set up a studio. I spent the first Happenstance has brought us together, connected by like-mindedness twenty years of my career doing craft shows and selling wholesale to gal- and mutual respect. After years of helping each other with technical leries. I also did workshops, which greatly supplemented my income. problems, sharing trips to craft shows, and giving each other advice It was initially difficult to figure out the perfect balance between on both business and personal issues, I can’t imagine a life without our the options. The upside of craft shows was the direct interaction close-knit community of artists. between my audience and myself. They were a great place to see how If I have a business philosophy, it begins with the fact that I chose people reacted to new work. Selling pots at a craft show is like handing this life for a reason and I am willing to invest in it deeply. I take my everyone your heart on a plate with a knife and fork. It can be a very work and my life seriously, and I believe this attention has given me a vulnerable experience. useful perspective and solid foundation. I’ve also learned that investing The real downside of doing craft shows was the amount of time in myself helps other people take me seriously as well. As a potter, all I had to spend away from the studio. In that regard, selling pots you have is your pots, the way you present them, and yourself. If you wholesale was a boon, allowing me to stay home and work. But the want to succeed, you have to seriously consider what it takes to get the equation worked only if I managed to spend the right amount of time presentation right. I have a web site, business cards and well-designed filling orders while still sustaining a large enough percent of my income brochures advertising the 16 Hands tour. These advertising tools help through this work. filling wholesale orders had its drawbacks, too—I make my work visible to the public. And, perhaps most importantly, I realized I just had to make too many pots! never say no to an opportunity that might help me grow in my field.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 36 focus the potter’s life

Over the past ten years, I have developed an assistantship program. advise getting a pug mill early in one’s career. At this stage of my career, Through this program, I give young potters a chance to test out a potter’s the studio looks a little geriatric. I do a great deal of carving on leather life before they make their own full investment. They work with me for hard clay and trimming with a Sureform (rasp) tool. In order to keep my two years and, during that time, they learn what it takes to develop a body head erect, I use a hydraulic banding-wheel table on casters, allowing me of marketable work and to start selling their work professionally. to easily move the table up and down while working on a form. My chair, As much as I love pots and collect them, I don’t actually derive also on casters, lifts up and down with the touch of a fingertip. My two most of my inspiration from pottery. I travel a great deal, spending potter’s wheels are set at different heights, one for throwing and one for time outdoors and, perhaps paradoxically, inside museums (which, of trimming. Also, whenever I am stiff, I hang from a pull-up bar wedged course, house so many representations of nature). The tension of the into a door frame, which loosens my shoulders and spine. natural world is inspiring to me—sensual and delicious. And I always To me, the combination of the need for physical strength, emotional hope to find ways to use it in the pots I make. investment and intellectual acuity to achieve success in pottery is always My life is also deeply connected to food culture, which is a direct a challenge, but it is one of unlimited reward. Before 1966, I never source of inspiration for me. Dining and food presentation, the body imagined a person could make a living working all day in a studio sur- of a fish, red peppers in a salad, color, texture—all aspects of the way rounded by clay. Today, I cannot imagine my life in any other way. we appreciate the look of food before we sink into the taste—inform many of the pots I choose to make. Ultimately, I have a lot of ideas, but to give meaning to my work, I have to think and read a great deal. I have to pay close attention to all aspects of the work that comes out of the kiln, to learn where it might lead me next. The pursuit of my vision is still nothing less than a fabulous adventure. This pursuit is one that, while not losing luster, has maybe grown a little slower. After 40 years in the studio, I realize how the body gives out. Things (tools, bodies) just wear out when you live a physical life. In fact, if I had one practical piece of advice for a young potter, I would

Right: Swan handle cream pitchers, 5 in. (13 cm) in height, thrown and altered stoneware with glaze. Below: Breakfast/lunch sets, 10 in. (25 cm) square, slip-cast porcelain with incised decoration and glaze.

Where to See More Granatelli Studio Gallery, Floyd, VA www.silviegranatelli.com 16 Hands Studio Sale and Tour, Floyd, VA (November and May) www.16hands.com Minnesota St. Croix River Tour (May) www.minnesotapotters.com The School at Old Church, Demerest, NJ (December) AKAR Design, Iowa City, IA www.akardesign.com Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, MT www.redlodgeclaycenter.com

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 37 Blair Meerfeld Small Rewards, But Who’s Counting?

So, 36 years with clay goes by in a hurry. Twenty-three of those years have been spent making pots full time for a living. Of course, there have been more than a few disappointments, but looking back on it all, it’s been a pretty good time. When it starts to become just a job, one has to realize this job is full of “little Christmases.” These can be a piece that turns out the way you wanted, a great firing or maybe just the best mug on the board. These small, consistent rewards aren’t really part of a lot of other professions. Making pots is simply one of my favorite things to do in life. Our business is quite simple. My wife, Marty Mitchell, is a landscape painter and we sell almost all of our work at our home studios and gallery. We sell directly to customers, form a relation- ship with these people and get to know most of them well. The upside to selling work this way is that I have the freedom to decide both what and how many pots I want to make before moving on to something else. This keeps my enthusiasm up, but every now and then I have to be pushed in another direction and start something new. I usually do this by changing environments and being around different shapes, whether they be landscape based, architectural or mechanical. After working with atmospheric firings for so long, one expects a Kitchen Bone Jars, 22 in. (56 cm) in height, thrown porcelain, wood fired few “faces” on a piece. I always found my glaze fired work to be a bit and salt glazed. monochromatic and uninteresting. Spending more time with potters who produce glazed work, and who know what they are doing, made me realize that I don’t! This is becoming a challenge that asks new questions. For example: Will my familiar forms stand up to this new surface? Is their current scale appropriate? What about clay bodies? And what about temperature (higher, lower or the same)? I’ll be building a new kiln for this journey. Nothing really large or beautiful; little, funny-looking kilns have always worked best for me as they seem to have to try harder! I’ve also learned to use what they’ll give me and not force them to do what they won’t or what they can’t. I’m getting kind of excited about all of this. Some of the more challenging issues of being a studio potter are health insurance (barely affordable and the biggest monthly bill), home maintenance and paperwork. And I’ve realized that most of our customers have more money and newer cars than we do! Who’s counting? Teaching workshops and making things that create a bit of joy and intimacy with food and people’s daily lives keeps me in the clay community. It’s a good community.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 38 focus the potter’s life

Where to See More AKAR design, Iowa City, IA www.akardesign.com Blue Dome Gallery, Silver City, NM www.bluedomegallery.com Boulder Arts and Crafts, Boulder, CO www.boulderartsandcrafts.com Harvey Meadows Gallery, Snowmass, CO www.harveymeadows.com Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, NM www.santafeclay.com

Left: Wood-fired oval teapot, 11 in. (28 cm) in height, thrown stoneware, wood fired.

Below: Porcelain vase trio, to 13 in. (33 cm) in height, thrown porcelain, salt fired.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 39 Mark Shapiro Hard Work, Soft Clay

wholesale, but somehow the pots find homes and bills eventually get paid. As a gallery artist, I find myself asked to spend more time on things that supplement the work—producing images, writing and speaking and attending events. All take time and energy. For a dozen years or so, I’ve been teaching workshops, and this continues to be a significant source of both income and community. While preparation, travel and the time away interrupt the flow of studio work, I love teaching, the way working with clay enlivens and brings people together. It’s always exciting to meet a student who feels the same urgency to make pots that I felt. I try to bring some pots to sell at workshops. Often, that makes it possible to teach at places that cannot afford my day rate. Along the way, I became interested in ceramic history, in particu- lar, the early American salt-glazed pots produced in the region where I live. This has led me to meet collectors, dealers, archaeologists,

Mark Shapiro dries a thrown form with a weed burner before shaping it further, at curators and historians—a wholly different community of clay en- Stonepool Pottery, Worthington, Massachusetts. thusiasts. I’ve become an advocate for this under-recognized ceramic heritage. This has opened up into other projects: documenting the I built my kiln in 1988. There was nothing I wanted more than thoughts and words of contemporary potters I admire and some to make pots every day, to work in the studio without interruption. critical writing. These activities take time away from the studio too I quit my carpentry day job a few years later, after my first Ameri- (and are often even less remunerative), but they engage and expand can Crafts Council (ACC) wholesale show. It seemed an incredible other dimensions of the mind and bring different information into privilege that I could make a living doing what I loved. my pots. Thinking about excellent pots and trying to articulate what Each generation responds to and shapes the evolving environment it is that makes them compelling challenges me to reach for a higher through which they move. I started doing juried retail craft shows at standard in my own work. a time when they had fairly consistent energy and profitability. I had One of the reasons why I am able to continue without an outside a string of lucky years in which I did some of the best of them, while job is that our—now I have a family—overhead is fairly low. I bought keeping a dozen or so wholesale accounts that I’d take each year at a house that was like a shipwreck before all this real estate inflation the ACC show in Baltimore. I was always trying to balance ordered and began my slow salvage operation. Like the ad for that brokerage wholesale pots with pots that I’d make for shows. My income has firm says, I renovated this place one mug at a time. I have always been supplemented by annual studio sales and occasional purchases tried to stay away from debt, except for the mortgage. I buy used from visitors to a small showroom I built. (I have no signage and do equipment and spend a lot of time maintaining it—sometimes this not advertise, so people have to seek me out.) At one point, I had is pound foolish. The initial kiln, kiln shed and studio renovation ambitions of focusing on showroom sales, being the local potter, but were completed with the help of Sam Taylor and Michael Kline, I think I lacked some of the sustained sociability for that role. I was with whom I worked for a dozen years, trading a variety of in-kind single then, and put all my profits into renovating my house, improv- services for use. While not always simple, pooling resources worked ing my studio buildings, and buying and fixing equipment. on many levels to boost initially weak prospects. Not only were there At a certain point, I wanted to make pots that would be seen enough hands, but there was plenty of energy, encouragement and together as a coherent body of work. I was also beginning to make needed criticism—plus a larger group of friends and relations who larger work and, as my relationships with galleries developed, I felt couldn’t refuse to show up for our early sales. I had to choose between representing myself (at craft shows) and de- So much physical work takes a toll. Throwing is repetitive and veloping relationships with galleries that were investing in my career. asymmetric on your joints—so many potters have lower back issues, I stopped doing craft shows around 2000 and have since been selling especially on the side of their dominant hand. I have been throwing work through gallery exhibitions, my studio and at special venues standing—and seated on a treadle wheel for trimming and throwing such as the Old Church pottery sale in Demarest, New Jersey. My off the hump—for the last twenty years, which has helped my back. income has become even less predictable than when I did shows and I also try to use the softest clay possible for the pot I’m making. The

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 40 focus the potter’s life softer the clay, the less resistance it has to shaping and the less stress the other hand, the Internet, the trend toward local artisanal products, there is on the body. For small bowls and the like, the clay I use is so and a general reconsideration of the human and environmental costs soft it feels like you only have to look at it to move it. Of course, for of corporate production and consumption, plus the movement of taller and thinner forms I use the harder stuff, but I’ve taken to using some craft galleries into the higher end of the market, are changing a powerful propane torch—a weed burner, in fact—that I think of as the context in which handmade pots are perceived and opening up fixative, enabling me to use softer clay, but adding stiffness where I need new, diverse opportunities for potters to make a living. it. This has also opened up new possibilities of form and scale. This vocation has always demanded extraordinary skills, energy and For the last fifteen years, I have worked with a series of apprentic- tenacity. More than once, a customer has commented that it must be so es—another form of pooling resources. He or she helps with the heavy much fun to be a potter. I hope that is due to a sense of playful wonder lifting around the studio and brings in a shot of youthful energy. I have that they see in the work. Making things, especially out of a material the satisfaction of sharing my knowledge and watching them develop as sensual as clay, evokes fantasies of a kind of pleasant messing about. as potters and people. But words like fun or play, to me imply a social dimension; studio We all have to contend with the higher cost of being alive— work, in spite of its many pleasures, is fundamentally something else, increased housing, health care, energy and even food costs, not to something more solitary, sustained and rigorous. I am reminded of a mention (for those recently out of school) big student loans. Permits response by the painter Chuck Close to the question, “Where do you for kilns and buildings are becoming the norm and can be difficult and get your inspiration?” “Inspiration is for amateurs,” he quipped, “The expensive to get. It’s all harder to do without institutional support. On rest of us just show up.” It is hard work, but I still love showing up.

Clockwise from bottom left: Faceted vase, 14 in. (35 cm) in height, 2007. Teapot, 7 in. (18 cm) in height, 2007. Bottle, detail, 12 in. (30 cm) in height, 2007. All pieces are woodfired saltglazed stoneware.

Where to See More Stonepool Pottery, Worthington, MA www.stonepoolpottery.com Ferrin Gallery, Lennox, MA www.ferringallery.com Lacoste Gallery, Concord, MA www.lacostegallery.com

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 41 John Glick Foundation Stones

of working has formed itself around allowing “surprises” to occur on a regular basis and the playful pursuit of things that are born out of the question “what if?” This leads to color changes, shape variables, turning things around to see other options, surprises, changing the rules—having no rules. So, the e-mail exchange above speaks to the reasons why I con- tinue to work this way; it feeds my enthusiasm. It is tempting to consider trying to lay out a plan about how to survive creatively in a career in clay. I could list a series of “must do” things that would help ensure survival both financially and emotion- ally. Frankly, I didn’t do that during those heady days in 1964 when

John Glick slip decorating 26-inch plates at Plum Tree Pottery, I rented a building and began Plum Tree Pottery. I wonder if anyone Farmington Hills, Michigan. really does such strategic planning at the outset? From the safety of hindsight, there have been things that have helped knit together my sense of wellbeing as an artist over the past Dear Mr. Glick, 43 years. Here are some for consideration: I had loved your work and purchased a 16-inch plate about 25 years ago. Workers in my home accidentally broke it and I am devastated. I Having a Showroom need to determine the value of this plate and I wonder if you can help My studio showroom has been my window to an ever-growing with this problem. and changing cross-section of supportive clients. Some families have Sincerely, Gloria Smith been using my work for over three decades, meaning that at special times I may see family members from all three generations during Dear Mrs. Smith, one visit. My heart is often melted by the goodwill felt during such Such a plate today would be approximately $450 to replace. visits. Seeing folks sitting on the floor of my showroom poring over John Glick choices, chortling over discoveries and passing pots back and forth Dear Mr. Glick with one another—great moments for the soul! Countless times, I Thank you for your feedback. At your suggestion, I have asked for re- have returned to work reassured that this way of interacting with my imbursement of the amount you stated. I do hope I can find a plate as supportive clientele has a wonderful impact on my life. wonderful at your gallery. Consider the almost daily feedback from a wide range of clients Best regards, Gloria Smith over so many years. This has been a wonderful, ongoing, real-world education, since I am privileged to observe people reacting to the Dear Mrs. Smith, evolutions in my work year in and year out. Naturally, not everyone Any plate from this phase of my work will be notably different than one is uniformly pleased with the changes that occur in some aspects of from 25 years ago. But, then, that is why I am still at work making my work. But, almost to a person, I sense an acceptance and respect things—the fun of exploring new ideas! for the fact that in my studio, the work will evolve and old favorite Thanks, John Glick phases of work a client recalls will not be revisited. That was an e-mail exchange that took place recently (I have changed the name of the client for privacy reasons). It struck me Gallery Involvements as I began this task of writing about core issues in my beliefs about For wider community involvement, I have worked with galleries potting for a living that what mattered to me was to keep my focus throughout my career. But I have kept the numbers of such involve- on things I have come to think of as the foundation stones in my ments low so that I never feel driven or tempted to make work aimed professional life. One thing is for sure; having been at this for 43 at satisfying an external demand, which could potentially diminish years, I know that what keeps me interested is exploring ideas that the feeling of inner commitment to my natural working process motivate me. and the resultant pots. So, I do have a desire to be in good company So, if I were to say where my artistic recharging comes from, I with other artists whose work I respect in clay gallery settings, but would say it comes every day that I work. I feel blessed that my way only in moderation.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 42 focus the potter’s life

Working Rewards; Daily Experiences I think the hardest feelings for any artist to engender and protect John Glick When I know I am on the right path in my work process, I notice are those of joy and discovery while working. I have observed the clues that have become like old, welcome friends showing up during long careers of many colleagues in the arts and what fascinates me Foundation Stones the quiet moments, when I am alone in the studio. I especially love is how different artists keep their creative spirits alive. Some seem the pre-dawn moments when I re-encounter pots from the previous to do it on what I think of as a microcosmic level; I observe tiny workday, perhaps waiting for further resolution. Magical. explorations carried out over a long span of time. Other times I see A recent session produced a large series of constructed floral huge leaps of discovery make their way into the workflow. arranger vessels. (See the image below of raw vessels and a fired All this is good, all worthwhile for moving along a path where example.) They were engaging to do and surprisingly effortless in pleasure in the making for the artist is encouraged—and in the eye the making, which is exactly what I want to happen since it is my and soul for the viewer/user who can find their own rewards in work instinctive way of working. The pots seem to make themselves. that comes from a challenged and evolving maker.

Clockwise from top left: Handbuilt plate, 14½ in. (37 cm) square, stoneware, with imprinted clay detailing and multiple glazes, reduction fired, 2007. Unfired floral arrangers. Floral arrangers, to 12 in. (30 cm) in height, thrown and handbuilt stoneware, with multiple glazes, reduction fired, 2007.

Where to See More Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, MT www.redlodgeclaycenter.com The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA www.theclaystudio.org Pewabic Pottery, Detroit, MI www.pewabic.com AKAR Design, Iowa City, IA www.akardesign.com The Works Gallery, Philadelphia, PA www.snyderman-works.com Plum Tree Pottery, Farmington Hills, MI http://johnglick.com John’s photography blog, “Fresh Plums,” in- cludes advice and resources for digital imagery: http://web.mac.com/johnglick/Site/Fresh_ Plums_/Fresh_Plums_.html

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 43 Ayumi Horie Pots in the Real World

Intense work periods in the studio are sandwiched between six or seven work-related trips each year. Getting out of the studio often re- ignites my desire to work. About every eight years, I travel to Japan and am fed for the next eight by my complete fascination with its visual culture. My recent trip has made me wonder how I can use abstract devices, like the red text boxes used in ukiyoe (a genre of Japanese woodblock prints), together with literal images to underscore the fact that the surface of a pot is an acknowledgment of the time and way Ayumi Horie works at the wheel in her Cottekill, New York studio. in which it was made, rather than an illusion of the world. Six years ago, I bought an old church and attached building and spent the next three years doing a full-time major renovation. Mak- The FIrst time it occurred to me that I could actually be a ing daily aesthetic decisions about objects and details (i.e., fixtures, potter was as a twenty-one-year-old, visiting a friend in Spain who shingles, gutters) unrelated to clay increased my awareness of my was staying with a potter. At five in the morning, when I would start own aesthetic in a way that would never have happened by solely her kiln, the air was still cool and the lemon tree in the yard fed the working in the studio. idealism I had about what my life could be. While it’s not a lemon When, at twenty four, I finally decided that clay was the right tree in my back yard now but dogwoods and lilacs, I have managed medium for me, it was because I realized that doing what made me to hold on to some of the idealism I felt then, and it encourages me happiest was my only option for making a living. I used to think to keep making a living doing this. with cynicism that marketing was crucial in a competitive art and Being a studio potter is a much more challenging and compli- design world, but recently I’ve come full-circle back to the conclu- cated job than I imagined then, mostly because of the many different sion that there is no substitute for making good, interesting work. skills required for running a small business. Bookkeeping, computer My advice to people getting into ceramics is to take the time to make and teaching skills are all necessary, on top of the demands of devel- their best work, to raise the bar on quality, to discard seconds and to oping the work. What suits me best about this job is the chance to not sell anything before it has integrity. Cultivate your work above set my own schedule and goals; every morning I make a list of the all else and find a way to keep working every single day, even if the different projects I have going and what needs to happen in order studio situation is not ideal. Residencies like those at the Archie Bray to move them along. Foundation and the Watershed Center are great places to help focus I have had an operation for tendonitis in my wrist, and this has intention in work. Over the past year, I have consciously made less made me acutely aware of the limitations of my body. I no longer work in order to more carefully tend to the making of each pot. work twelve straight hours, making pots for days on end like I The burgeoning interest in a handmade aesthetic, relating to used to. Typically, I work six or seven ten-hour days per week, with the quirkiness of individual, intuitive decision-making is a great anything less making me feel like a bit of a slouch. opportunity for potters to bring their work into the consciousness The fact that my living room and kitchen open into my studio of a new generation of buyers and collectors. The slow food move- blurs all lines between work life and non-work life, creating a daily ment’s emphasis on quality of experience, as well as food, is a model struggle for balance. I break up my work sessions with trips to the that could serve potters very well. I think potters could even take computer, woodstove, garden, laundry, kitchen and to the couch to over the world if we cooked as well as we made plates and bowls visit my couch-potato dog. At times these things are distractions, but (and many do!). mostly they allow me to bring my world back into my work. Because When I think about how to make this a viable business for all of my strongest work comes out of time when I am intensely focused in us, given the reality of material costs and land values, I think mainly the studio, I am protective of my private time. Apart from my assis- about desire, value and pricing. Choosing to support individual art- tant, who comes in a day or two a week, I’m content to pass my work ists has become a political choice, as is choosing to value their work days alone. My solitude has been balanced over the years with a ceram- by paying higher prices. We ought to challenge people about why ics community that is the warmest, most generous community I’ve they will balk at a $50 cup, yet spend $50 on a meal or $200 on a known. My assistants are also indispensable to steady production and factory-made sweater. As it should be, this puts more responsibility good company, doing everything from preparing clay, mixing glazes, on the artist to put their best work out there and in turn, this will glazing work and loading kilns, to photographing and shipping. then create desire and a new market for handmade pots.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 44 focus the potter’s life

The smartest business decision I ever made was setting up my sale makes it worth the effort. An e-mail management company has website about six years ago at a time when most potters hadn’t yet also helped to expand my database by allowing customers to sign up created an online presence. As people became aware of the Internet for notification of new postings online, better targeting customers. as a research tool, I put effort into updating my website by using Selling online makes me less dependent on the local market and Dreamweaver and Photoshop and, as a consequence, I have saved makes my work more accessible to a wider audience, from New quite a bit of money and time. I now have an amazing web designer, York to Australia. Kelly Curtis, who does the more complicated coding for me, so I My postcards are lenticular (3D) images of pots in real world can give my energy to other projects. situations, like a cowboy drinking steaming coffee out of my cup and Two years ago, I started selling pots online and I now earn about winking at you, rather than the standard convention of shooting a half of my income from website sales. (The balance comes from my pot in front of a value-graduated background. My philosophy about annual studio sale, group and solo shows, and through teaching this has been twofold; to create a beautiful object (and sometimes workshops.) Photographing and reformatting images of a piece funny) for its own sake so that people will want to keep it and to takes time, as does uploading information, but having 100% of the remind people how pots exist in the real world.

Clockwise from top left: Cup, 4 in. (10 cm) in height, earthenware with sgraffito decoration and glaze, fired to cone 02, 2008. Postcard image of a cowboy drinking coffee out of a mug by Horie. Photo: Chloe Aftel. Plate, 10½ in. (27 cm) in diameter, earthenware with sgraffito decoration and glaze, fired to cone 02, 2008.

Where to See More www.ayumihorie.com Greenwich House Pottery, New York, NY www.greenwichhousepottery.org Harvey Meadows Gallery, Aspen, CO www.harveymeadows.com High Falls Merchantile, High Falls, NY www.highfallsmercantile.com Variegated, Catskill, NY www.variegated.etsy.com ReForm School, Los Angeles, CA www.reformschoolrules.com

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 45 Painful Truths The Art of Greg Penner by Braden Frieder

Trust, 15 in. (38 cm) in height, slip-cast ceramic with commercial glazes and decals, multiple low firings to Cone 06 and 018, 2006, $600.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 46 First, you come closer. Greg Penner’s small ce- ramic sculptures pull you across the room with their bright, shiny surfaces and saturated colors, which the artist calls luscious, as if he were de- scribing candy. Memories waft up, of porcelain dolls kept safe behind glass doors in grandma’s kitchen, or wallpaper images in a room where you slept as a child. Hovering somewhere between fine art and kitsch, Penner’s images seem cute, comical and playfully absurd. Then you realize all is not well here. Psychological self-portraiture has a long established place in the history of art. Renais- sance masters left confident, positive images of themselves to posterity. Modern artists, begin- ning with Oskar Kokoschka and Egon Schiele, produced more disturbing (or, at least, more honest) self-portraits. Much of recent feminist art is concerned with women’s bodies and self- image, though relatively little contemporary art addresses the barrage of media images aimed at men, and the negative effects they have on male self-esteem. Expression of self in ceramic art, Penner notes, is still more limited. Penner explores fallibility and self-contempt regarding masculine self-image through ceramic sculpture and found objects. “Popular culture, especially through mass media like television and film, is sending ever stronger messages to men regarding their appearance, or subsequently, their deficien- cies in appearance,” says Penner. “An efficient means to explore issues involving social and popular contemporary culture is the integration of found objects into art—objects produced for mass consumption.” Penner’s work is catching on fast. Begin- ning with regional exhibitions in his native Kentucky, Penner has shown in fourteen group exhibitions throughout the Appalachian region, Ohio and Missouri last year alone, including the “21st Greater Midwest International Ex- hibition,” a major venue featuring the work of contemporary ceramics artists from around the world. Penner’s recent work recalls Canadian potter Wendy Walgate’s glossy assemblages of toylike animals and the illustrated ceramic mannequins of Anita Powell (another emerging artist on the ceramic art scene), though Penner’s Sugar and Spice, 10 in. (25 cm) in height, slip-cast and handbuilt ceramic with aesthetic goals are more offbeat. Penner’s work commercial glazes and decals, multiple low firings to Cone 06 and 018, 2006, $600.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 47 Punch Me I Am a Liberal, 16 in. (41 cm) in height, slip-cast, thrown and handbuilt ceramic, multiple low firings to Cone 06, 2005, $600.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 48 cast-offs and slip casts

As a trained craftsman, Penner knows how to mix glazes, a Giffin Grip and turned to create collars, disks, and so forth. clay bodies and slip bodies, but he prefers to use premade Penner also buys commercial molds for some of his projects, or manufactured materials wherever possible. This, he though he will often manipulate these to achieve a desired asserts, is an integral part of his current aesthetic, which effect. He estimates he makes about fifty percent of a figure is shaped by commercial objects and mass production. himself, with the other fifty percent obtained from commercial The next step is to find objects from which to make sources, depending on his needs for a particular project. His molds. These are then cast and assembled into a figure. ultimate goal is to create a series of collectable multiples, Penner is an avid collector of bric-a-brac, and browses suggesting industrially manufactured objects. auctions or the listings on eBay until he comes across a suitable object: a doll’s head, body part or some other shape that intrigues him. monthly methods For his latest series, the bodies of the dolls were made from highway emergency cones. The lower sections were removed, and an ordinary kitchen bowl was attached to the bottom. Penner uses Bondo (used by vintage auto enthusiasts to repair car bodies) to smooth over the joint, then fills the bowl with sand or a type of spray-foam insulation called Great Stuff. From these he makes a regular two-part mold for slip casting. The bodies of the Punch Me dolls were first thrown on a wheel using low-fire clay, then mounted on

also suggests the Neo-Pop sculpture of Jeff Koons, whose “hands off” designer approach to making art interests Penner. Like Koons, Penner is inspired by vernacular objects made for commercial consumption, though Penner will typically produce a series of smaller figures based on a central idea. The Punch Me series combines handmade bodies with slip castings of found objects for heads and feet. Short snip- pets of text relate each sculpture to a separate and painful personal experience. The figures seem to invite masochistic abuse, though the prickly spines are a warning to keep away, like ancient talismans against the evil eye. Penner’s latest series introduces a set of childlike figures who unmask themselves, as if in response to personal experiences involving conflict, and ultimately resolution. Penner’s self examina- tion, though painful, compels male viewers to confront roles we are often forced into, but seldom comfortable with: vulnerable, petulant I Eat Meat, 15 in. (41 cm) in height, slip-cast ceramic with commercial glazes and decals, multiple low or accident-prone. firings to Cone 06 and 018, 2006, $600, by Greg Penner, Morehead, Kentucky.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 49

The Eight-Month

Workshop A Journey of Discovery by Steven Hill

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 50 The gestation period between the conception and the first incarna- maneuvering through personal discoveries. There were many tears tion of the “Journey Workshop” was several years. Monique Giard, shed during an emotional two weeks at MISSA, but acknowledg- the director of Centre de céramique Bonsecours in Montreal, planted ing emotion always led to work that was more personal. It is said the seed of an idea in 2002, but it was not until the summer of 2007, there is nothing new in the field of ceramics. However, when we with the help of Meira Mathison, the director of the Metchosin travel our own path, letting inspiration flow through us, our spirit International Summer School of the Arts (MISSA), in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, that I was able to bring the concept to fruition. The premise was straightforward: Bring together a group of ceramics artists with at least rudimentary technical skills and help them find their personal voice. After two weeks of exploration at MISSA, students would return to their respective studios to do the hard work of applying what they had learned to their body of work, with the understanding that we would reconvene in eight months at my studio, Center Street Clay in Sandwich, Illinois, for a gallery exhibition of the group’s work. In retrospect, the original subtitle to the workshop, “Throwing… Personal Style… Developing a Body of Work,” seems so pragmatic and linear. I intuitively knew the workshop had to develop spontaneously, but what surprised me most was how deeply the class delved into the realm of self-discovery. Most ceramics artists want to make work that is personal, but it’s not always easy to figure out how to do that. For some it is simply a matter of refining techniques, tweaking designs and training the eye to be more discerning during self-critique. For others it involves a near reincarnation.

What I liked most is that we did not focus as much on the technical aspects of pots but on the personal side of who we are and how that can relate to our work. Trezlie Brooks: Thrown Cone 6 porcelain with underglaze inlay, oxidation fired, 9 in. (23 cm) in height. —Trezlie Brooks, Crestion, BC, Canada infuses the things we make. Our work might not be “new,” but it is uniquely ours and this honest quest has the potential to sustain us through a lifelong career. It is tempting for an artist to look externally for ideas, direction We used Robert Piepenburg’s book Treasures of the Creative and purpose. In the field of ceramics, there are countless work- Spirit as a basis for group discussions. Piepenburg says “…the shops taught by potters willing to share their techniques, forms human spirit is the inspirational source of all that is creative.” and surfaces with eager students. In school, teachers all too often Many of us have built a wall to protect our spirit. This attempt to emphasize technique at the expense of creative expression. Looking protect our spirit actually limits access to our own creative energy. inside for personal expression involves sailing in uncharted waters; Through class discussions and group exercises, we attempted to

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 51 May Wong: Thrown and altered Cone 10 porcelain with incised design and Barb Barrs: Thrown and altered Cone 6 stoneware with sprayed glazes, oxidation fired, sprayed glazes, reduction fired, 15 in. (38 cm) in height. 12 in. (30 cm) in height.

liberate this spirit. Our discussions sometimes felt like group therapy, other times they were simply exercises for the imagination. M.C. Richards says it best in her introduction to Paulus Berensohn’s Finding One’s Way With Clay; “The feeling of our lives will be awake in our fingers. We befriend the clay. The clay befriends us.” I have never heard of a ceramic workshop that involved a follow-up session and exhibition. Making participants accountable after the initial workshop, however, turned out to be key to the group dynamic. We knew we were going to meet again and there was a lot of work to do before that time. The gallery exhibi- tion gave us a common goal to work toward. When the workshop ended at MISSA, each student wrote and signed a contract that included a broad outline of what they planned to accomplish. The contract made them accountable, both to themselves and to the group. One student created a Wikispace so the group could stay Susan Martin: Thrown and altered Cone 6 porcelain with sprayed glazes, connected. I planned to set up a webcam to conduct oxidation fired, 3 in. (7.5 cm) in diameter. critiques over the Internet. The show at Center Street

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 52 Clay was on the calendar. We each had our marching orders and had accepted the challenge. As you might expect in a group of fifteen students, there was a vast array of approaches to the task at hand. Some went right to work and some didn’t. At Center Street Clay, my partner Kim Miner and I were deeply involved in kiln building and finishing our ceramic studio. This, along with my personal tendency to procrastinate, kept me from pur- chasing a webcam and organizing critiques. Just as my lack of planning sabotaged my goal, many of my students would tell a similar story. Some had worked diligently from the beginning, but many were just beginning to fire as dead- lines approached. Only a few students met the deadline for promotional material. Panic started to set in as the deadline slipped by. Two students dealt with it directly by dropping out. One just seemed to disappear. Some asked for more time or sent images of bisque or green pots. We had to assume that the three who dropped out weren’t ready for a program like this and focus on those who met the challenge and fol- lowed through in spite of the difficulties. The students who participated in the gallery show at Center Street Clay are the courageous ones. Meira Mathison: Thrown and altered Cone 10 porcelain with slip design and sprayed glazes, reduction fired, 8 in. (20 cm) in height.

JoAnn Peters: Thrown and assembled Cone 6 stoneware, oxidation fired, 9 in. (23 cm) in length.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 53 Life being messy, juicy, often intense and always full to overflowing, many of us struggled... but ten of us made it to the end. It may sound corny, but we had become a family, and the reunion was pure inspiration.

—Carol Smeraldo, East Preston, NS, Canada

Tarra Wedman: Thrown and altered Cone 10 stoneware, incised drawing, overglaze lusters, reduction fred, 11 in. (28 cm) in height.

The final session at Center Street Clay was all Kim and I could have hoped for. Our new dormitory was filled to capacity, and everyone squeezed around our dining room table to share meals and stories. The studio was filled with meaningful conversation during the day, laughter and live music at night. Students were happy to reunite with their classmates and share experiences. The ensuing critiques and discussions, as intense and connected as they had been the prior summer, helped students understand the implications of what they learned about themselves during the last eight months. We had the benefit of seeing the work displayed together in a gallery setting for the final group critique. The turn out for the opening was smaller than we hoped for, but the group was proud, as was I, to show the work and explain the premise to the public. So the big questions now are: Did the process work? If so, what did we learn that could be applied to the next Journey Workshop? Did this group get what they wanted from the process? Does this represent a new direction for ceramic workshops? Is this kind of workshop a viable alternative to higher education? This was by far the most satisfying teaching experience of my Carol Smeraldo: Thrown and altered Cone 6 porcelain with sprayed glazes, career. I have taught many workshops in which I relied on my “bag oxidation fired, 12 in. (30 cm) in height. of tricks” to make the workshop engaging. I show students how I

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 54 Evan Garber: Thrown and altered Cone 10 porcelain with sprayed glazes, reduction fired, 9 in. (23 cm) in height.

Diane Burt: Thrown and altered Cone 6 porcelain with sprayed glazes, chatter marks, reduction fred, 6 in. (15 cm) in height. make my pots and discuss my philosophy. This is an appealing process and I enjoy it very much, but it often leads to students emulating Steven Hill pots. In this workshop, I never made my own pots; any demonstrations were generic, as opposed to personal. As you can tell from the photographs, no two students made similar work. For me, this represented success! Did the process work? As I write this, we are in the midst of the first Journey Workshop to be held entirely at Center Street Clay. This group includes two local potters who came to the opening of the MISSA group. They talked to the participants and, in less than one month, they took time off work, found the money and they are here beginning their own journeys! I can say with confidence that for some at least, the process worked. What did we learn that could be applied to the next Journey Workshop? Planning and fol- low up has to be a priority. Schedule everything from menus to critiques. Schedule it, make it public and then stick to it. For some participants, the procrastination then panic cycle is probably inherent in a long-term workshop. Understand- ing this cycle will help us manage it. Does this represent a new direction for ceramic workshops? It certainly represents a direction we will pursue at Center Street Clay! Ultimately, attendance and support by the ce- ramics community will decide. Is this kind of workshop a viable alternative to higher education? I am tremendously excited about this concept and certainly believe it has great potential as continuing education to aug- ment an undergraduate/graduate degree, or for some, even a viable alternative to graduate school. A ceramic artist/potter need only answer one simple question. What is my goal? If the goal is mentorship, community, structure and direction; then it makes sense to try it. Why would someone with the humble goal of making pots infused with their spirit go deeply into debt attending graduate school? The money might be better spent setting up a studio and moving forward with a group of like-minded individuals who share similar goals.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 55 Reinve nting Onese lf by Hollis Walker

Connectivity, 8½ in. (22 cm) in height, thrown, altered and assembled clay, raku fired with ferric chloride fuming, 2007.

After many years of assisting with his wife’s skyrocketing art career, Michael Lancaster returns to his own work and takes it in a brand new direction.

The last twenty years of Michael Lancaster’s life represent a reversal his wife would later ornament, packing and shipping her creations of sorts of the traditional American tale in which the wife puts aside to galleries across the country, and helping represent her at major her career in order to support her husband’s. Lancaster, now 52, put craft fairs. And then there were the large adobe house, guest house his own career as a ceramist in a holding pattern while that of his and studio the couple built on their Cerrillos, New Mexico, property wife, Barbara Harnack, soared for the last two decades. south of Santa Fe: Lancaster was chief builder and contractor on It was 1987 when the two left their successful pottery in Malden the job for twelve years, although Harnack did her share of adobe- Bridge in upstate New York and moved to New Mexico. Soon, building as well. Lancaster said, “Barbara’s career was so hot, really all I could do The house was completed in 2005, and perhaps Lancaster would was be her assistant.” soon have begun to refocus on his own work, but life has a way of He never stopped making ceramics; it’s just that much of the changing swiftly. In the fall, Harnack and their seventeen-year-old time, he was wedging and pugging clay, throwing raw vessels that daughter were in a serious car accident. Though neither suffered

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 56 Push Pull, 19 in. (36 cm) in width, thrown, altered and assembled clay, raku fired with ferric chloride fuming, 2007.

Relic, 19 in. (36 cm) in width, thrown, altered and assembled clay, raku fired with ferric chloride fuming, 2007.

major injuries, Harnack sustained serious soft-tissue damage and minating in the back of his mind. He picked up an idea he had simply couldn’t keep up her previous pace. explored many years ago, and began developing it into the Habitat At the craft shows in 2006, the couple purposely took fewer Series. These nonfunctional vessels, essentially cylindrical forms wholesale orders for Harnack’s work to ease her work load. “But with added feet and funnel-shaped tops, reference ancient forms of then we couldn’t pay the bills,” Lancaster recalled. “She needed to residence ranging from lighthouses to Navajo hogans. slow down, and I needed to come up with something of my own One evening, he found himself thinking of his former mentor again,” Lancaster said. “I saw that as an opening.” with whom he had apprenticed, stoneware potter Douglas Conkling. He recalled the thought processes that accompanied the eco- Conkling had Lancaster make thousands of pieces, cut them into nomic demand: “So here I am, at age 51, I’m pretty proficient in parts, and reassemble them into different functional forms. “So at clay—I can make what I set out to do.” But he didn’t want to make one point when I was really struggling, I grabbed this bow saw and his old favorites—soda-fired vessels and Asian-influenced raku tea cut one piece [of leather-hard greenware] in half,” Lancaster recalled. bowls in a soft organic palette—or other common ceramic forms He reconfigured the two halves at a 45-degree angle to each other and at which many other people are talented. reconnected them. He liked the results and kept experimenting. Unbeknownst to Lancaster, the influences of building their He discarded some of the early split pieces. “They were really home, both the engineering and the construction, had been ger- bad; they didn’t work visually,” he explained. But as he continued to

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 57 Split Canister, 7½ in. (19 cm) in width, thrown, altered and assembled clay, raku fired with ferric chloride fuming, 2007. bisect his ceramic forms, Lancaster intuitively recognized the echoed Lancaster throws his forms on the wheel, then slices them into influences of the chopping and cutting of ceramists Paul Soldner and segments and rejoins them, or attaches other pieces to them. He Peter Voulkos: “These are the people who really influenced me.” leaves the cut surfaces rough. “I want people who are into ceramics Soon Lancaster became inspired by the scrap metal pieces leftover to know it’s a wheel-thrown object that retains its clay qualities,” from the nineteenth and early twentieth-century mining activities he said. The strong New Mexico sun speeds the making process; he near his home. Friends and neighbors often discover the old rusty often places the pieces outdoors to dry them faster so he can cut them fragments of machinery on their property or on hikes, and place up. Once they are reconstructed, bisqued and glazed, he preheats the them in their yards as lawn ornaments. Lancaster saw them as mys- works to 300°C (570°F) before putting them in the large outdoor terious sculptures. “You don’t know what it did... but you know it raku kiln he and his wife share. Of late, he’s been using brilliant did something,” he said. glazes—lavenders, blues, greens and yellows—and iron-fuming the Those heavy hunks of steel led to Split Cans, Split Canisters and pieces to make them look old. On top of the glazes, the iron fuming Ancient Industries, ceramic sculptures based on the forms he saw; creates a luminous, age-polished patina. One of his latest favorites things that looked like old cam shafts, or automotive mufflers or is Push-Pull, a long cylinder that appears to have a smaller, longer giant gears. Suddenly, he realized, his works had ceased being ves- cylinder pushed through it at an angle. sels at all and had become purely sculptural. The new works weren’t Lancaster’s new works have more in common with the sculptures replicas of the forms but were inspired by them. of Mark di Suvero, whose work he admired during several visits “I don’t want to make something that’s a reproduction of something to Storm King Art Center in Mountainville, New York, than with else; I want the viewer to get engaged the same way I do with the stuff contemporary ceramic sculpture. Juxtaposing his rounded forms in the salvage yards,” he explained. “Wouldn’t it be ideal if you could get with the geometric planes of their sliced surfaces, the new works up every day, and look at something and question its history? If things appear authoritative and weighty, a sensibility that is balanced by like the yard scraps aren’t always beautiful, they’re always intriguing.” their playful colors. Though the impulse to bisect his forms shares

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 58 an affinity with the practices of Soldner Raku Safely and Voulkos, Lancaster’s pieces lack their by Michael Lancaster organic messiness, instead favoring a sleek, contemporary aesthetic. I look back to 1977, the first year I ever fired American raku. I think, secretly, Lancaster comes by his creative passions “It’s a miracle any of us have survived this long!” We were fuming with petrochemicals, smoking with sawdust, newspaper, pine needles, straw and naturally. His mother, Betty Warren, was even unknown combustible garbage. Working with clay can, for a potter or a well-known portraitist, and her father, a sculptor, be a romantically “macho” sort of thing, especially when it comes Alonzo “Jack” Warren, was the co-creator to dancing with fire. of the cartoon character Pecos Bill. Lan- In this age of online videos, the ceramist can view many different approaches caster’s great-grandfather on his paternal to firing and safety. I have seen some that are downright scary. For example, side was Charles Ringling, of Ringling wearing paper dust masks for lung protection, wearing nylon jackets, synthetic jogging outfits, shorts, sandals and rarely do I see a fire extinguisher in the

Brothers fame. In addition to making ce- Monthly Method s background. From experience I have found that clothes can ignite, hair gets ramic art, Lancaster is an abstract painter, burned off, hands burn, and lungs and mucous membranes can be damaged selling his paintings through galleries —even permanently! I have come up with a few simple items that can help separately from his clay works. make raku more safe. But the return to creating in clay has First, to protect eyes, face, mucous membranes and lungs, I recommend been exhilarating and profitable as well. Color Code Olive/Magenta P100 Defender respirator cartridges from North, “I’m having a blast. I have all the passion I or another company using the same codes, in a welder’s clear plastic face and respirator shield. The cartridges will arrest the fumes and smoke from welding had in that first year I made ceramics, 1976, and will help for most of the smoke from Raku. The plastic lenses generally but with a sense of confidence,” he said. “I are not fireproof, however will shield from some flame up and will keep the draw all my new pieces on newsprint—big smoke and fumes from your eyes. At a minimum, care should be taken to be or bigger than life-sized—and then execute sure all clothes are cotton. We also wear split-hide welders jackets. Some of what I have drawn. Sometimes I wake up my colleagues wear full-hide aprons that go all the way to the shins. This can in the morning and imagine an invention, be helpful for extended moments reaching with mits into the kiln. We also wear different gloves for different tasks. I wear Kevlar gloves for a new machine or an old industrial relic. general work and they last about three firings (that’s about five to six firings each Usually I try to make them within a day time from a 30-cubic-foot kiln). I use a higher-temperature Kevlar combination or two. They don’t always work, but each fiber mitt for hand lifting works that are too big for the tongs. Boots with more is an exercise in growth. Lately, they are leather and less plastic are helpful as I have had boots burst into flame. selling as fast as they arrive in galleries, When fuming, it is an absolute must to wear good lung protection. It is so I don’t feel pressured—just the thrill of extremely important that anyone within a 30-foot circumference also be keeping up.” protected. Fuming ingredients such as ferric chloride, ammonium chloride, copper sulfate, etc., make caustic gases which can burn sinuses, throat, esophagus In the meantime, Harnack’s health has and lung tissue and can cause permanent damage. Finally, always keep a fire much improved, and the two are both extinguisher on hand. It could save a life. Raku should be fun, passionate, and, working steadily in their favorite medium. with a calm approach, safe. Lancaster has gained a new perspective on the revival of his career, one he feels is worth sharing. “Sometimes, when we’re 25 or 35 years into our career, we have to reinvent our- selves,” he said. When the couple needed money, he realized he could have gone into construction and safely met the bills. Instead, he took the bigger risk. “I decided to stay home and do what I love to do,” he said. “And it worked.” the author Hollis Walker is visual arts critic for the Albuquerque Journal North. She is Standing next to the 30-cubic-foot raku kiln, While this is a dramatic image, Lancaster inhaled the author of Zink: The Language of En- Lancaster demonstrates full respiratory a large quantity of smoke during this firing, chantment, about Taos–based ceramist and protection. The blue mits are for removing large resulting in Bronchitis. This was his last firing works from the kiln. In his hands, he is holding without respiratory and eye protection. mixed-media artist Melissa Zink. Kevlar gloves, which are used for turning the hot pieces over in the reduction barrels.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 59 call for entries Deadlines for Exhibitions, Fairs and Festivals Submit online at www.ceramicsmonthly.org

international exhibitions incorporating a historical theme, trend, application or Fee: $35 for three entries. Juror: Patti Warashina, Archie technique. Fee: $25 for three images. Juror: Linda Sikora. Bray Voulkos Fellow. Contact Archie Bray Foundation for June 1 entry deadline Contact Kate Whorton, Genesee Pottery, 713 Monroe Ceramic Arts, 2915 Country Club Ave., Helena 59602; New York, New York “14th Annual International Ave., Rochester 14607; [email protected]; www.archiebray.org; (406) 443-3502, ext. 18. Exhibition” (July 17–August 13), open to all media. www.geneseearts.org. September 19 entry deadline Juried from digital and slides. Fee: $30 for three en- July 7 entry deadline Pennsylvania, Wayne “Craft Forms 2008” (De- tries. Juror: Chakaia Booker. Contact SOHO20 Chelsea South Carolina, Rock Hill “19th Annual Juried cember 5–January 22, 2009), open to contemporary Gallery, 511 W. 25th St., Suite 605; New York 10001; Competition” (August 20–September 21). Juried from craft. Juried from digital and slides. Fee: $40; online http://soho20gallery.com/juried.htm. digital or high-quality photographs. Fee: $30. Contact submission, $30. Contact Wayne Art Center, 413 New York, New York “Stories We Tell Ourselves” (July Arts Council of York County, 121 E. Main St., Rock Hill Maplewood Ave., Wayne 19087; www.wayneart.org; 12–August 2), open to all media. Juried from digital. Fee: 29732; www.yorkcountyarts.org; (803) 328-2787. www.craftforms.com. $45 for three entries; $5 each for additional entries. Con- July 10 entry deadline November 26 entry deadline tact Rhonda Schaller Studio, 547 W. 27th St., Suite 529; Spain, La Rambla (Córdoba) “Exposition of Pottery Montana, Missoula “International Cup” (February New York 10001; [email protected]; and Ceramic.” Juried from digital or photographs. No Fee. 6–28, 2009), open to ceramic cups from around the http://rhondaschallerchelsea.com; (212) 967-1338. For prospectus, visit www.ceramicadelarambla.com. world. Juried from digital or slides. Fee: $20 for one en- June 2 entry deadline July 15 entry deadline try; $25 for two entries. Juror: Patti Warashina. Contact Illinois, Chicago “1st Annual Lillstreet International” Colorado, Estes Park “12th Annual Lines into The Clay Studio of Missoula, 1106 Hawthorne St., Unit (September 1–October 1), open to functional porcelain. Shapes” (September 19–October 4), open to all me- A, Missoula 59802; [email protected]; Juried from digital. Fee: $30 for three entries. Juror: dia. Juried from digital or slides. Fee: $13/entry. For www.theclaystudioofmissoula.org; (406) 543-0509. Sam Chung, Assistant Professor of Ceramics, Arizona prospectus, visit www.artcenterofestes.com; or send February 1, 2009 entry deadline State University. For prospectus, send SASE to Lillstreet SASE to Art Center of Estes Park, PO Box 3635, Estes Kansas, Pittsburg Call for Solo, Two Person or Group Art Center, James Mitchell, Gallery Director, 4401 N. Park 80517; (970) 586-5882. Exhibition Proposals. Juried from digital or slides. No Fee. Ravenswood, Chicago 60640; [email protected]; August 1 entry deadline For information, visit www.pittstate.edu/art/exopp.html. www.lillstreet.com. California, Graton “Fourth International Biennial Contact Pittsburg State University, 1701 S. Broadway, June 7 entry deadline Ashes to Art/Scattered” (September 26–November 30), Pittsburg 66762; [email protected]; (620) New York, New York “Home: The Planet Dreams open to non-traditional funerary urns, scattering vessels, 235-4303. of Survival” (September 5–October 2), open to reliquaries, biodegradable and ritual objects. Juried all media. Juried from digital. Fee: $45 for three from digital and slides. Fee: $35 for three entries; $5 united states exhibitions entries; $5 each for additional entries. Contact each for additional entries. Jurors: Adela Akers, Nadine Rhonda Schaller Studio, 547 W. 27th St., Suite 529; Jarvis and Sylvia Seventy. For prospectus, send SASE to June 1 entry deadline New York 10001; [email protected]; Funeria, PO Box 221, Graton 95444; [email protected]; Maryland, Largo “Juried Sculpture Exhibition” http://rhondaschallerchelsea.com; (212) 967-1338. www.funeria.com; (707) 829-1966. (August 24–October 9). Juror: Kristen Hileman, Associ- June 14 entry deadline August 15 entry deadline ate Curator of Contemporary Art, Hirshhorn Museum New York, Rochester “History in the Making Montana, Helena “Beyond the Brickyard” (January and Sculpture Garden. Contact Marlboro Gallery, Attn: III” (September 26–October 31), open to all works 2009), open to artists working in clay. Juried from digital. Sarah Wegner, Prince George’s Community College,

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Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 60 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 61 call for entries

301 Largo Rd., Largo 20774; [email protected]; for three entries; $5 each for additional entries. Juror: July 16 entry deadline www.academic.pgcc.edu/artandmusic. Amanda Cooper, Curator of Exhibitions, The Arts Center, Indiana, Indianapolis “University of Indianapolis Oregon, Corvallis “6th Around Oregon Annual” St. Petersburg, FL. Contact Gertrude Herbert Institute 2008–2010 Fifth Third Sculpture Walk” (September (October 2–30). Juror: Nancy Lindberg. Contact The of Art, 506 Telfair St., Augusta 30901; [email protected]; 25, 2008–August 29, 2009). Juried from digital and Arts Center, 700 SW Madison Ave., Corvallis 97333; www.ghia.org/exhibit.html; (706) 722-5495. slides. For prospectus, send SASE to Dept. of Art and www.theartscenter.net; (541) 754-1551. Maryland, Baltimore “Platters and Pourers” (Sep- Design, University of Indianapolis, 1400 E. Hanna Ave., Mississippi, Biloxi “George E. Ohr National Arts Chal- tember 17–November 6). Fee: $25 for five entries. Juror: Indianapolis 46227; or visit http://art.uindy.edu. lenge 2008” (September 19–November 7). Juried from John Glick. Contact Baltimore Clayworks, 5707 Smith July 18 entry deadline digital. Fee: $20. Juror: James Tanner. For prospectus, Ave., Baltimore 21209; www.baltimoreclayworks.org; Michigan, Hamilton “Artful Drinking Vessels” visit www.georgeohr.org. Contact Ohr-O’Keefe Mu- (410) 578-1919. (October 3–November 1), open to cups, mugs, goblets, seum of Art, 1596 Glenn Swetman St., Biloxi 39530; July 11 entry deadline tea bowls, teacups, tea services and glasses. Juried [email protected]; (228) 374-5547. Illinois, Chicago “Object of Desire” (Septem- from digital and slides. Fee: $30 for three entries; June 6 entry deadline ber 5–November 13), open to all craft media. $40 for five entries. Contact Pottworks Gallery, 3765 Georgia, Augusta “28th Annual National Juried Contact Woman Made Gallery, 685 N. Milwaukee Lincoln Rd., Hamilton 49419; [email protected]; Fine Art Competition: A Sense of Place” (September Ave., Chicago 60622; [email protected]; www.pottworks.com; (269) 751-5839. 19–October 17). Juried from digital and slides. Fee: $25 www.womanmade.org; (312) 738-0400. August 1 entry deadline Illinois, Warrenville “Clay³: National Juried Ceramics Exhibition” (October 24–November 21), open to func- tional and sculptural ceramic art that fits within one cubic foot. Juried from digital. Fee: $25 for three entries. Juror: Simon Levin. Contact ClaySpace Ceramic Studio, 28 W. 210 Warrenville Rd., Warrenville 60555; [email protected]; www.clayspace.net; (630) 393-2529, Montana, Missoula “Soda National IV” (No- vember 7–28). Juried from digital or slides. Fee: $30 for three entries. Juror: Jim Koudelka. For prospectus, send SASE to Hannah Fisher, The Clay Studio of Missoula, 1106 Hawthorne Unit A, Mis- soula 59802; [email protected]; www.theclaystudioofmissoula.org. New Hampshire, Manchester “Ceramics Biennial 2008” (October 8–November 7), open to works made predominantly in clay. Juried from digital. Fee: $25 for two entries. For prospectus, send SASE to Ceram- ics Biennial, Attn: Alison Williams, 148 Concord St., Manchester 03104; or visit www.nhia.edu/upload- cache/2008_CeramicsBiennial.pdf. October 15 entry deadline Kansas, Pittsburg “The Feast: About Food, Made from Food, Including Food” (February 2–March 5, 2009) open to all media. Juried from digital or slides. Fee: $20. Juror: Liz Hickok. For prospectus, visit www.pittstate.edu/art. Contact Pittsburg State University, 1701 S. Broadway, Pittsburg 66762; [email protected]; (620) 235-4303. December 31 entry deadline Missouri, St. Louis Call for Solo/Collaborative Installation Artists Proposals. For more informa- tion, contact Craft Alliance, Attn: Exhibitions Coordinator, 6640 Delmar Blvd., St. Louis 63130; [email protected]; www.craftalliance.org; (314) 725-1177, ext. 323. regional exhibitions

June 1 entry deadline Texas, Houston “3rd Annual ClayHouston Festival” (December 5–7), open to artists within a 150 mile radius of Houston, TX. Juror: Lisa Orr. Contact ClayHouston, PO Box 667401, Houston 77401; [email protected]; www.clayhouston.org. June 15 entry deadline Colorado, La Veta “Clay Continuum III” (July 29–August 23), open to artists residing in Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico. Juried from digital and slides. Fee: $25. Contact Clay Continuum, Attn: Polly’s Pottery, 1849 County Rd. 521, Walsenburg, CO 81080; [email protected]. Texas, Houston “2008 For the Table Show” (August 2008), open to artists residing in Texas and Louisiana. Fee: $10 for five entries. For prospectus, visit www.18handsgallery.com. Contact 18 Hands Gallery, 249 W. 19th St., Ste. B, Houston 77008; [email protected]; (713) 869-3099. July 3 entry deadline Kentucky, Lexington “KY7 Biennial” (October 18–De- cember 21), open to residents of IL, IN, KY, MO, OH, TN, VA and WV. Juried from digital and slides. Contact Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 62 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 63 call for entries

Lexington Art League, 209 Castlewood Dr., Lexington 40505; www.lexingtonartleague.org; (859) 254-7024. August 8 entry deadline Indiana, Indianapolis “Clayfest 2008” (September 5–October 3), open to former and current residents of Indiana. Juried from digital. Fee: $25 for three entries. Contact Abbey Pintar, c/o Basile Center, Herron School of Art and Design, 735 W. New York St., Indianapolis 46202; [email protected]. December 5 entry deadline Massachusetts, Lexington “The State of Clay 6th Bi- ennial Exhibition” (March 30–April 25, 2009) Juried from digital. Fee: $30 for up to three entries. Juror: Jim Law- ton. For prospectus, visit www.lexingtonma.org/lacs. Contact Lexington Arts and Crafts Society, 130 Waltham St., Lexington 02421; [email protected]; (781) 862-9696. fairs and festivals

June 1 entry deadline Colorado, Manitou Springs “Commonwheel Artists 34th Annual Labor Day Arts and Crafts Festival” (August 30–September 1), open to fine arts and craft. Juried from slides. Contact Commonwheel, 102 Canon Ave., Manitou Springs 80829; [email protected]; www.commonwheel.com; (719) 577-7700. New Jersey, Montclair “Spring Brookdale Park Fine Art and Crafts Show” (June 14–15), open to all arts and crafts. Juried from slides/photos of work, plus one of booth. Booth fee: $325 for 10×12-foot space. Contact Rose Squared Productions, Inc., 12 Galaxy Ct., Hillsborough, NJ 08844; www.rosesquared.com; (908) 874-5247. June 28 entry deadline Massachusetts, Worcester “Festival of Crafts” (November 28–30), open to craftspeople from throughout the Northeast. Juried from digi- tal. Application fee: $35. For prospectus, visit www.worcestercraftcenter.org/events/festival.php. Contact Caitlin O’Connor, Worcester Center for Crafts, 25 Sagamore Rd., Worcester 01605; [email protected]; (508) 753-8183, ext. 3019. August 1 entry deadline Connecticut, Westport “33rd Westport Creative Arts Festival Juried Fine Arts Craft Show” (November 22–23), open to craft artists. Juried from digital images of work, plus one of booth. Application fee: $40 for online application; $75 for mail-in applications. Booth fee: $400 for 10×10-foot space. For prospectus, visit www.wywl.com/caf/caf.html. Contact Westport Creative Arts Festival, Attn: Selection Chair, Westport Young Woman’s League, 44 Imperial Ave., Westport 06880; [email protected]; (203) 222-1388. September 1 entry deadline New Jersey, Cranford “Fall Nomahegan Park Fine Art and Crafts Show” (October 4–5), open to all arts and crafts. Juried from slides/photos of work, plus one of booth. Booth fee: $325 for 10×12-foot space. Contact Rose Squared Productions, Inc., 12 Galaxy Ct., Hillsborough, NJ 08844; www.rosesquared.com; (908) 874-5247. New Jersey, Upper Montclair “Fine Art and Crafts at Anderson Park” (September 20–21), open to all arts and crafts. Juried from slides/photos of work, plus one of booth. Booth fee: $325 for 10×12-foot space. Contact Rose Squared Productions, Inc., 12 Galaxy Ct., Hillsborough, NJ 08844; www.rosesquared.com; (908) 874-5247. October 1 entry deadline New Jersey, Montclair “Fall Brookdale Park Fine Art and Crafts Show” (October 18–19), open to all arts and crafts. Juried from slides/photos of work, plus one of booth. Booth fee: $325 for 10×12-foot space. Contact Rose Squared Productions, Inc., 12 Galaxy Ct., Hillsborough, NJ 08844; www.rosesquared.com; (908) 874-5247. Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 64 This book is about a truly remarkable transformation: how the simplest of materials–clay or mud–can be used to make tools for producing one of the most complex human expressions–music. With a history reaching back to ancient times, creating ceramic musical instruments is a vibrant pursuit for many innovative artists today. Written by Barry Hall, From Mud to Music explores the vast array of ceramic musical instruments, from their historical traditions in world cultures to their modern variations and innovations. $59.95 Includes a 43-track CD!

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Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 65 book review

Firing: Philosophies ideas of the novel and John Cage and various Within Contemporary French philosophers—pressing at the range of Ceramic Practice thought, making everything relevant to pottery by David Jones and pottery relevant to everything. Reviewed by Mark Shapiro The heart of the book consists of sections What is it that makes us human? Is it lan- about individual artists whose work illustrates guage, tool use, our opposable thumbs? The various firing methods: wood (oddly limited control of fire? Prometheus stole it from the to anagama kilns), salt and soda, electric and gods; Lévi-Strauss argued that cooking mediates less traditional approaches. Jones has built the between nature and culture. David Jones’ Fir- book by soliciting responses from artists to a set ing: Philosophies Within Contemporary Ceramic of questions, so each part reflects the answers Practice looks at this primordial activity in its he received. Many are lively and illuminate the many manifestations in the clay world, exploring correspondences between philosophical perspec- kilns, firing practices and our ideologies about tives and firing practices. Others read more like them. He sets out with the interesting premise standard artist statements. Unfortunately, the that firing not only finishes the clay object, but result is that some of the most significant artists “acts as a metaphor for a philosophically ques- have the least presence (as in the case of Nina tioned existence.” Hole, one of the pioneers of site-built sculptural lizing quotations from many sources. The quality Firing is something between a technical kilns). Others are quoted at length without any of the work illustrated is also somewhat incon- primer (some basic information, some glaze framing commentary. sistent, and the quality of the images themselves recipes), a picture book, a gathering of artists This at times haphazard feeling is reinforced even more so. Most do not include dimensions, and a broadly considered analysis of the layers by the way that Jones comes in and out of the making them difficult to read. of cultural meanings of fire. His offerings are text: sometimes writer, introducing and explaining In short: it’s best not to read Firing as we’ve wide-ranging and eclectic; his reading broad chapter headings, sometimes compiler, patching been taught to read: starting at the beginning and and lively. He talks about Margaret Atwood’s together commentaries and statements and tanta- moving toward the end, entrusting ourselves to

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ceramicartsdaily.org/books • 866-721-3322 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 67 book review the conventions of the book (both written and his students and colleagues that “Wolverhampton evinced in the chapter on site and fire, which graphic). What promises to be a wide-ranging University” (where he teaches) rivals “wood,” includes wonderful images of John Roloff’s perspective becomes unwieldy and collapses “salt,” and “reduction” for the item in the index self-firing structures, such as the Humboldt inward. Sources are unevenly cited (and from with the most references. Ship, and the hilarious Peter Lange’s Mercedes the bibliography we can learn the vintage of the So it’s best read in the spirit in which Jones Mazdagama (“when the tyres burst, you know edition in Jones’ hands of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of writes: eclectically and personally. Leaf through that the firing’s pretty much done”). In this Darkness but not when he wrote it). A parenthetical the pages: stop at the images that excite you, section, conventional ideas of ceramics and and petty aside, perhaps, yet it unlocks something and chase down those artists; read the epigraphs firing are, literally at times, blown up. of the book’s ahistorical and self-referential quality. and quotations and then go read Bachelard or Jones’ generous willingness to engage with Jones includes many images of his own raku pots, whoever grabs you. Jones has refreshing intel- such a range of work and ideas is admirable and process and installations, and features so many of lectual openness and curiosity, perhaps best just what we need; the shaping of that into a book equal to his ambitions calls for a matching rigor. That kind of scholarship requires substantial support—the time to research, editorial over- sight, production—and I wonder if some of the weaknesses of the book are not symptomatic of the perennial marginalization of clay and lack of sufficient funding for such projects. 205 pages. 274 color photographs. Hardcover, £25(US $50). ISBN 978-1-86126-935-5. Published by The Crowood Press, The Stable Block, Crowood Ln., Ramsbury, Marlborough, Wiltshire SN8 2HR; www.crowood.com; or tel 44 1672 520 320. new books Surface Decoration Finishing Techniques edited by Anderson Turner A recent addition to the Ceramic Arts Hand- book series, Surface Decoration covers techniques at all stages of the ceramic process, including forming, leather-hard, bisque and even after the final glaze firing. Selected from a wide range of Ceramics Monthly and Pottery Making Illustrated articles, the book presents a variety of artists and techniques. “We who work in clay have all struggled with sur- face decoration,” states Turner in the preface. “I don’t think it ever gets fully resolved, be- cause if you are trying to express an idea, often you have to step outside of your comfort zone. It would seem that the only thing that changes is the opportunity to keep learning more about our chosen material. In a very real sense, knowledge is power when it comes to surface decoration.” 136 pages. 287 color photographs. Softcover, $29.95. Published by the American Ceramic Society, 600 N. Cleve- land Ave., Suite 210, Westerville, OH 43082; www.ceramicartsdaily.org/books. Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 68 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 69 calendar Conferences, Exhibitions, Workshops, Fairs submit listings at www.ceramicsmonthly.org

conferences Seelig and Kim Stafford. Fee: $310. Contact Haystack Tennessee, Gatlinburg September 10–13 “Utilitar- Mountain School of Crafts, PO Box 518, Deer Isle ian Clay V: Celebrate the Object National Symposium.” Indiana, Indianapolis September 19–21 “Surface, 04627; www.haystack-mtn.org. Contact Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, 556 Form and Substance: Potters Council Regional Confer- Michigan, Grand Rapids October 2–4 “Sculpture Parkway, Gatlinburg 37738; [email protected]; ence” includes presentations and demonstrations with in Public: Part 2, Public Art,” includes special exhibition, www.arrowmont.org; (865) 436-5860. Debra Fritts, Ovidio Giberga, Susan Kemenyffy, Eva panel discussions and trade fair. For more information, New Jersey, Garden City June 27–29 “Island Kwong, Jeffrey Nichols and Lana Wilson. Fee: $330; mem- visit www.sculpture.org. Clay,” includes lectures and demonstrations on bers, $285. Contact Potters Council Amaco/Brent, 6060 North Carolina, Asheboro March 13–15, 2009 alternative firing methods with Jeff Shapiro, Bill Guion Rd., Indianapolis, IN 46254; [email protected]; “North Carolina Potters Conference–Form and Shillalies, Anti Liu, Mena Romano and Hugh McElroy. www.potterscouncil.org/surfaceformandsubstance; Function,” includes lectures and panel discussions Keynotes by Aurthur Goldberg and Judith Schwartz. (866) 721–3322. with Phil Rogers, Mark Pharis, Allegheny Meadows. Fee: $330; members, $285. Fee after June 4: $380; Maine, Deer Isle July 13–17 “The Language of For more information, contact the Randolph Arts members, $335. Contact the Potters Council, 600 Craft,” includes lectures and panel discussions with Guild, Moring Arts Center, 123 Sunset Ave., P.O. Box N. Cleveland Ave., Ste. 210, Westerville, OH, 43082; Paulus Berensohn, Akiko Busch, Charles Garoian, Ja- 1033, Asheboro 27204-1033; [email protected]; www.potterscouncil.org/islandclay. net Koplos, John McQueen, Margo Mensing, Warren www.randolphartsguild.com; (336) 629-0399. solo exhibitions

Arizona, Tempe through August 2 “Susan Beiner: Synthetic Reality”; at Arizona State University Art Museum, 10th St. and Mill Ave. California, Los Angeles July 5–August 30 Z Jacob- son; at Del Mano Gallery, 11981 San Vicente Blvd. California, Oakland July 7–20 “Beauty and Power: New Work by Misty Gamble” at Cricket Engine Gallery, 499 Embarcadero Ave., Bldg. #3. D.C., Washington through June 18 Hyun Kyung Yoon; at Cross Mackenzie Ceramic Arts, 1054 31st St. Idaho, Coeur d’Alene July 11–August 9 Beth Cavener Stichter; at The Art Spirit Gallery, 415 Sher- man Ave. Illinois, Chicago through June 7 Tyler Lotz, “Cul- tured Cleaning”; at Dubhe Carreño Gallery, 1841 S. Halsted St. June 2–30 Trey Hill; at Lillstreet Art Center, 4401 N. Ravenswood. June 6–August 1 Frank Saliani, “Abstractions and As- sociations”; at Function+Art, 1046 W. Fulton Market. Maryland, Bethesda through June 7 “Beauty and the Beast: Ceramic Vessels and Sculptures by Liz Lescault”; at Waverly Street Gallery, 4800 East- West Hwy. Massachusetts, Boston through June 9 “Ceramics by Sung Jae Choi.” June 14–July 14 “Ceramics by Ken Matszuaki”; at Pucker Gallery, 171 Newbury St. through June 15 “Inspired by Japan: Pottery and Textiles by Susan Kotulak”; at Vessels Gallery, 8 Union Park St. Massachusetts, Northampton through June 29 “Tom White: Wood, Salt and Soda.” August 8–Septem- ber 14 “Aysha Peltz: Stolen Moments”; at The Artisan Gallery, 162 Main St. Massachusetts, Pittsfield August 23–October 4 Sergei Isupov, “Androgyny”; at Ferrin Gallery, 437 North St. Minnesota, Minneapolis through July 20 “The Cosmic Collection by Josh Blanc”; at Clay Squared to Infinity-Infinity Gallery, 34 Thirteenth Ave. Montana, Helena through June 1 “Jennifer Allen Farewell Exhibition”; at Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts, 2915 Country Club Ave. New Mexico, Santa Fe through June 1 “FracShard: New Works in Clay by Patrick Crabb”; at Patina Gallery, 131 W. Palace Ave. New Mexico, Taos through June 21 Caroline Douglas; at Wilder Nightingale Gallery, 119-A Kit Carson Rd. New York, Alfred June 4–September 26 Chris Miller; at The Schein-Joseph International Museum of Ceramic Art, Alfred University. New York, North Salem through June 7 Pak-hing Kan, “Palm Treasures”; at Hammond Museum and Japanese Stroll Garden, 28 Debeau Rd. New York, Port Chester through June 21 “Kyla Toomey: The Objects of My Affection”; at Clay Art Center, 40 Beech St. New York, Rochester July 4–27 Bethany Krull, “Signal”; at Genesee Pottery, 713 Monroe Ave. Ohio, Zanesville June 6–August 10 “Charles Lakofsky: Ohio Modernist Master”; at Zanesville Art Center, 620 Military Rd. (continued) Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 70 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 71 calendar solo exhibitions

Oregon, Portland through July 23 “Generations: through June 1 Jun Kaneko; at Traver Gallery, 110 Surface,” works by members of the Associaton of Clay Ken Shores”; at Museum of Contemporary Craft, 724 Union St. #200. and Glass Artists of California; at the Association of Northwest Davis St. Texas, Houston August 29–November 30 “Warren Clay and Glass Artists, 212 D St. Pennsylvania, Philadelphia through June 1 MacKenzie: Legacy of An American Potter”; at Houston through June 6 “19th Annual California Clay Com- Heather Mae Erickson, “The Industrial Hand: Table- Center for Contemporary Craft, 4848 Main St. petition”; at the Artery, 207 G St. ware Design.” through June 29 “Shu Mei Chan: If Wyoming, Buffalo through August 9 Victoria Chris- California, Pomona through July 12 “Pueblo Clay: By Chance, A Rock.” June 6–29 Jenny Mendes. July ten; at Margo’s Pottery and Fine Craft, 1 Main St. America’s First Pottery.” July 26–August 16 “Diversity 3–July 27 Guy Michael Davis. August 1–24 Shawn in Clay”; at American Museum of Ceramic Art, 340 Spangler. Albion Stafford; at The Clay Studio, 139 group ceramics exhibitions S. Garey Ave. N. 2nd St. through July 19 “Mata Ortiz­—Generations,” works Arizona, Tempe August 23–February 28, 2009 through June 15 “Ron Meyers: Animal Dance”; at by second-generation ceramic artists from Mata Ortiz; “Midstream: New Ceramics from the Heartland”; at Works Gallery, 303 Cherry St. at Armstrong’s Gallery, 150 East 3rd St. Texas, Alpine through June 5 Marie Blazek, “Des- Arizona State University Art Museum’s Ceramic Research California, Sacramento August 7–October 18 ert Flowers and Clay”; at Catchlight Gallery, 117 W. Center, 10th St. and Mill Ave. “Soaring Voices: Contemporary Japanese Women Holland Ave. California, Davis through June 1 “Exploring the Ceramic Artists”; at Crocker Art Museum, 216 O St. California, San Diego July 1–31 “Tea × 40,” works by San Diego Potters’ Guild; at San Diego Potters’ Guild, Spanish Village, Studio 29, Balboa Park. California, Tracy through June 14 “Dualis: Ceramics Invitational”; at Grand Galleries, Grand Theater Center for the Arts, 715 Central Ave. Colorado, La Veta July 29–August 23 “Clay Con- tinuum III”; at Gallery in the Park (Spanish Peaks Art Council), 132 W. Ryus. D.C., Washington June 20–September 17 “Trompe L’œil: The Artist’s Studio,” works by David Furman, Victor Spinski, Lilianne Milgrom, Sylvia Hyman, John Brickel, Linda van der Linde; at Cross MacKenzie Ceramic Arts, 1054 31st St. Georgia, Decatur through June 21 “American Masters”; at MudFire Clayworks, 175 Laredo Dr. Georgia, Watkinsville August 30–September 17 “Sixth Annual Perspectives 2008: Georgia Pottery Invitational”; at Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation, 34 School St. Indiana, Fort Wayne through June 30 “Just a Bunch of Potters”; at The Orchard Gallery of Fine Art, 6312 Covington Rd. Iowa, Iowa City through June 20 “Peter Beasecker and Mark Shapiro.” June 27–July 18 “Recent Ceram- ics: Bede Clarke, Jil Franke, J. Daniel Murphy.” July 25–August 22 “Michael Kline and Jenny Mendes.” August 29–September 19 “Sequoia Miller and Sam Talyor”; at AKAR, 257 East Iowa Ave. Maine, Deer Isle June 8–July 5 “It’s Pouring.” July 6–August 9 “Go Green.” August 10–September 6 “Duets”; at Dowstudio Gallery, 19 Dow Rd. Maryland, Baltimore August 9–September 18 “Symbiosis.” “Ceramics from Wales,” works by Duncan Ayscough, Sam Bakewell, Melanie Brown, Lowri Davis, Morgen Hall, Catrin Howell, Walter Keeler and Claudia Lis; at Baltimore Clayworks, 5707 Smith Ave. Massachusetts, Boston through July 27 “Political Craft.” August 9–October 19 “SAC Artist Awards Exhibi- tion”; at Society of Arts and Crafts, 175 Newbury St. Massachusetts, Cambridge through June 30 “A Taste of Power: 18th Century German Porcelain for the Table”; at Harvard University Art Museums, Busch- Reisinger Museum, 32 Quincy St. Massachusetts, Monson June 21–22, 28–29 Fourth Annual Teapots and Things Exhibition”; at House of Art, 200 Main St. Michigan, Detroit through July 6 “Six Ceramic Artists: Pioneers of the German Studio Craft Move- ment,” works by Beate Kuhn, Georg Hohlt, Ursula and Karl Scheid and Gotlind and Gerald Weigel. July 11–August 29 “32nd Annual Pewabic Staff, Student and Faculty Exhibition”; at Pewabic Pottery, 10125 E. Jefferson Ave. Minnesota, Minneapolis through June 29 “Ar- chitecture and Ceramics: Material, Structure, Vision,” works by Dan Anderson, Lidya Buzio, Nora Naranjo- Morse, Robert Winokur, William Daley and Thomas Daley. July 11–August 24 “Six McKnight Artists,” works by Joseph Kress, Mike Norman, Hide Sadohara,

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 72 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 73 calendar group exhibitions

Lisa Marie Barber, John Utgaard and John Lambert; at Northern Clay Center, 2424 Franklin Ave. E. Missouri, Kansas City June 5–28 “A Show of Cups.” July 3–26 “Resident Artist Exit Show,” works by Ginny Sims, Nathan Caris Carnes, Andrew Gilliatt. August 1–30 “The Body in Pots”; at Red Star Studios, 821 W. 17th st. Missouri, St. Louis through June 30 “Infusion 10×10: 11th Biennial Teapot Exhibition”; at The Craft Alliance, 6640 Delmar Blvd. Nevada, Reno through June 22 “Subtle Beauty: WORKSHOPS Modern Japanese Ceramics from the Collection of New Woodstock, NY Joel Barish”; at Nevada Museum of Art, 160 W. (315) 662 – 7346 Liberty St. New Jersey, Clinton through June 15 “Uncommon VISIT US ONLINE: Clay,” works by Bennett Bean, Ruth Borgenicht, Jim www.mysticmountainart.com Jansma, Ka Kwong Hui, Taesik Song and Mikhail Zakin; MARGIE HUGHTO at Hunterdon Museum of Art, 7 Lower Center St. CERAMICS: July 14 – 18 New Jersey, Lincroft June 8 “Thompson Park Creative Arts Center Spring Exhibit”; at Thompson Park Creative Arts Center, Monmouth County Park System, 805 Newman Springs Rd. New Mexico, Albuquerque June 6–27 “Celebra- tion of Clay 2008”; at Arts Alliance Gallery, Courtyard Shopping Center, 1100 San Mateo Blvd., Suite 10. New Mexico, Santa Fe through June 21 “Bling”; at Santa Fe Clay, 1615 Paseo de Peralta. New Mexico, Silver City through July 30 “Elaine and Tom Coleman”; at Blue Dome Gallery, 307 N. Texas St. New York, New York through June 21 “Annual Members Showcase”; at Greenwich House Pottery, Jane Hartsook Gallery, 16 Jones St. New York, Water Mill June 27–July 8 “Serving Art,” works by Julia Galloway, Posey Bacopoulos and Barbara Karyo. August 1–September 1 “Masters of the Art,” works by Sam Taylor and Toni Ross. September 5–October 5 “Objects,” works by Stephen Heywood, Brian Jensen and Lai Montesca; at Celadon Gallery, 41 Old Mill Rd. North Carolina, Bakersville through July 24 “POTR3: Potters of the Roan in Triplicate”; at Crimson Laurel Gallery, 23 Crimson Laurel Way. North Carolina, Charlotte June 13–August 13 “Fourth Annual Teapot Exhibition”; at RedSky Gallery, 1244 East Blvd. North Carolina, Creedmoor June 6–September7 “National Teapot Show VII”; at Cedar Creek Gallery, 1150 Fleming Rd. North Carolina, Raleigh through July 6 “Pamela and Vernon Owens: Potters of Jugtown”; at Gregg Museum of Art and Design, 3302 Talley Student Center, 2610 Cates Ave. North Carolina, Seagrove through August 30 “Contemporary Pottery from North Carolina’s Ameri- can Indian Communities”; at North Carolina Pottery Center, 250 E. Ave. Oregon, Lake Oswego June 20–22 “Painting with Fire: Wood Fired Ceramics;” at Lakewood Center for the Arts, 368 S. State St. Pennsylvania, Philadelphia through June 1 “Co- lonial Philadelphia Porcelain: The Art of Bonnin and Morris.” through July 27 “Turned and Thrown: English Pottery, 1660–1820”; at Philadelphia Museum of Art, 26th St. and the Benjamin Franklin Pkwy. June 6–29 “Student/Members Exhibition.” July 5–27 “The Fifth Annual Marge Brown Kalodner Graduate Student Exhibition.”“Associate Artists Group Exhibition.” August 1–24 “Made at The Clay Studio”; at The Clay Studio, 139 N. 2nd St. Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh through June 7 “Voices, 2008 NCECA Invitational Exhibition”; at Society for Contemporary Craft, 2100 Smallman St. Pennsylvania, Wayne through June 27 “16th Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 74 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 75 calendar group exhibitions Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National”; at Wayne ceramics in multimedia California, San Rafael June 19–August 1 “Think- Art Center, 413 Maplewood Ave. exhibitions ing Green”; at Association of Clay and Glass Artists of Texas, Houston through June 5 “Women in Ceram- California, Art Works Downtown, 1337 4th St. ics, Three Voices,” works by Loes Berendschot, Janice Arizona, Scottsdale June 5–25 “The Creative World California, Santa Ana May 18–October 12 “Terra Sweeney Joplin, Carol Schwartz and Nancy Susaneck; of Justin”; at LKG Contemporary, 7171 Main St. Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China’s First Emperor”; at 18 Hands Gallery, 249 W. 19th St, Ste. B. California, Oakland July 2–August 8 “Together & at Bowers Museum, 2002 N. Main St. Virginia, Arlington June 6–July 31 “Art Exchange: Apart,” including ceramics by Peggy Forman and Jan Florida, Naples through October 31 “International Arlington–Cwmbran”; at Lee Arts Center, 5722 Schachter; at the Oakland Museum, 1000 Oak St. Inspirations,” including ceramics by Margaret Chevalier, Lee Hwy. California, Penryn through August 24 “One Piece”; Alexandra McCurdy, Gabrielle Nappo and Richard W. Virginia, Richmond through June 29 “Ceramic at Penryn Art Gallery, 1994 Orange Hill Ln. Rosen; at Rosen Studios, 2172 J&C Blvd. Portraits: Selections from the Georganna Yeager Johns California, San Francisco June 26–July26 “You Illinois, Chicago June 27–August 9 “Sugarcraft”; at Collection of Royal Doulton Character Jugs”; at Lora Can’t Make Them Stay,” including ceramics by Michael Kasia Kay Art Projects, 1044 W. Fulton Market St. Robins Gallery of Design from Nature, University of McConnell; at Braunstein/Quay Gallery, 430 Clementina through June 6 “Beginnings”; at Beacon Street Gal- Richmond Museums, 28 Westhampton Way. (between 5th and 6th Streets). lery and Theatre, 410 S. Michigan Ave., Ste. 732. Kentucky, Louisville June 6–August 23 “Tradition and Innovation: American Masterpieces of Southern Craft and Contemporary Art.” “Painted Clayworks: Ceramics and the Graphic Arts”; at Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, 715 W. Main St. New Jersey, Demarest June 20–July 18 “The Tacit Object,” including ceramics by Jennifer Viola; at Mikhail Zakin Gallery, 561 Piermont Rd. New York, New York through July 6 “Rococo: The Continuing Curve, 1730–2008”; at Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, 2 E. 91st St. North Carolina, Creedmoor June 7–September 7 “National Teapot Show VII”; at Cedar Creek Gallery 1150 Fleming Rd. Ohio, Columbus through June 22 “Best of 2008,” including ceramics by Julie Byrne, Janis Mars Wunder- lich, Carrie Longley and Kaname Takada; at Ohio Craft Museum, 1665 W. Fifth Ave. Oregon, Cannon Beach through June 4 “Spring Unveiling,” including ceramics by Jeanne Henry; at White Bird Gallery, 251 N. Hemlock. Oregon, Portland August 28–January 4, 2009 “Manuf®actured: The Conspicuous Transformation of Everyday Objects”; at Museum of Contemporary Craft, 724 NW Davis. Pennsylvania, Philadelphia through June 28 “(In) Between,” including ceramics by Adelaide Paul and Dirk Staschke; at Wexler Gallery, 201 N. 3rd St. July 11–August 23 “Goblet Show”; at Works Gal- lery, 303 Cherry St. Texas, Houston through August 17 “Craft Texas 2008”; at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, 4848 Main St. Wisconsin, Hudson through June 1 “Mystery and Myth,” including ceramics by Susan Feigenbaum; at The Phipps Center for the Arts, 109 Locust St. Wisconsin, Racine through August 10 “New, Novel and Never Shown Before 2008: Recent Gifts to the Collection (Part I)”; at Racine Art Museum, 441 Main St.

fairs, festivals and sales

California, Los Altos July 12–13 “Los Altos Arts and Wine Festival”; at Main and State. California, Los Angeles June 6–8 “The Contempo- rary Crafts Market”; at Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St. California, Palo Alto July 12–13 “16th Annual Palo Alto Clay and Glass Festival”; at the Palo Alto Art Center, 1313 Newell Rd. California, San Carlos October 11–12 “San Carlos Art and Wine Faire”; at Laurel St. and San Carlos Ave. California, San Diego June 14–15 “Biannual Sale of Works by San Diego Potters’ Guild”; at Balboa Park’s Spanish Village, 1770 Village Place Studio #29. California, Santa Monica June 6–8 “Contemporary Craft Market”; at Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St. (continued) Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 76 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 77 calendar fairs, festivals and sales

Colorado, Glenwood Springs June 20–22 “Strawberrydays”; at Sayre “Strawberry” Park, 1798 Grand Ave. Connecticut, Guilford July 17–19 “Guilford Art Center Craft Expo 2008”; at Guilford Green, 411 Church St. Connecticut, Milford September 20–21 “46th Meet The Artists and Artisans–Fall Show”; at Milford Green, Broad St. Connecticut, Mystic July 19–20 “46th Meet the Artists and Artisans Summer Show.” For more informa- tion, visit www.meettheartistsandartisans.com. Florida, Clearwater October 4–5 “American Con- temporary Fine Furniture and Art Expo”; at Harborview Center, 300 Cleveland St. Florida, St. Petersburg July 19–20 “20th Annual Cool Art Show”; at the St. Petersburg Coliseum, 535 4th Ave. N. Georgia, Watkinsville June 7–8 “Wolf Creek Pot- tery Sale”; at Wolf Creek Pottery, 1500 Tappan Spur Rd. For more information, visit www.brookecassady.com. Illinois, Decatur August 1–3 “Decatur Celebra- tion”; in downtown Decatur. For more information, visit www.decaturcelebration.com. Illinois, Geneva July 26–27 “Geneva Arts Fair”; at S. Third St. For more information, visit www. genevachamber.com/artfair.html Illinois, Skokie July 12–13 “Skokie Art Guild 47th Annual Art Fair”; at 5211 W. Oakton. Illinois, St.Charles June 14 “15th Annual Raku Day and Open House”; at The Fine Line Creative Arts Center, 6N158 Crane Rd. For more informa- tion, visit www.fineline.org Kansas, Salina June 13–15 “Smoky Hill River Festival–Fine Art/ Fine Craft Show and Four Rivers Craft Market Show”; at 730 Oakdale Park in Salina. Maryland, Baltimore June6–8 “ClayFest! 2008”; at Baltimore Clayworks, 5707 Smith Ave. Massachussets, Lincoln June 8 “Art in the Park Festival and Art Sale”; at DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park, 51 Sandy Pond Rd. Michigan, Kalamazoo June 7 “57th Annual KIA Art Fair”; at Bronson Park, downtown Kalamazoo. For more information, visit www.kiarts.org. Minnesota, Minneapolis September 5–7 “2008 American Pottery Festival”; at Northern Clay Center, 2424 Franklin Ave. E. Missouri, Kansas City June 5–28 “A Show of Cups”; at Red Star Studios, 821 W. 17th St. New Mexico, Santa Fe July 12–13 “Santa Fe Inter- national Folk Art Market”; at Milner Plaza on Museum Hill, Camino Lejo off Old Santa Fe Trail. New York, New Paltz August 30–September 1 “Woodstock-New Paltz Art & Craft Fair”; at Ulster Co. Fairgrounds, 249 Libertyville Rd. New York, Port Chester June 5–8 “Hot Pots: Clay Art Center Annual Summer Sale”; at Clay Art Center, 40 Beech St. For more information, visit www.clayartcenter.org. New York, Tarrytown September 19–21 “Fall Crafts at Lyndhurst”; at Lyndhurst Estate, 635 S. Broadway. New York, West Hampton Beach August 2–3 “The Mary O. Fritchie Outdoor Fine Arts Show”; at The Village Green, Mill Rd. and Main. North Carolina, Charlotte September 18–21 “Festival in the Park”; at Freedom Park Lake. Pennsylvania, Kutztown June 28–July 6 “The Kutztown Folk Festival”; at Kutztown Fair- grounds, Rt. 222. For more information, visit www.kutztownfestival.com/information/news. Pennsylvania, Philadelphia August 2–4 “Phila- delphia Buyers Market of American Craft”; at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, 1101 Arch St. Washington, Bellevue July 25–27 “2008 Bellevue Arts Museum Arts Fair”; at 510 Bellevue Way NE and at Bellevue Square.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 78 calendar workshops workshops

Arizona, Prescott August 7–9 “Rio Grande PMC Certification” with Tonya Davidson. Fee: $425. Contact Rio Grande, 2057 Heavenly Place, Prescott 86303; [email protected]; www.riogrande.com/pmc/rio_rewards.htm; (866) 346-2698. California, San Diego July 8 Demonstration workshop with Ecuadorian Kichwa potters. Contact San Diego Potter’s Guild, Spanish Village/1770 Village Place Studio #29, San Diego 92101; [email protected]; www.sandiegopottersguild.com; (619) 239-0507. Colorado, Denver June 28 “Studio Work- shop” with Annie Chrietzberg. Fee: $75. Con- tact Earth to Annie, 2955 Glenarm Pl., Denver 80205; [email protected]; http://earthtoannie.com; (303) 241-1191. Georgia, Decatur October 4–5 “Functional Delica- cies: Handbuilding in Porcelain” with Annette Gates. Fee: $245. October 17–19 “Image Transfer Techniques” with Paul Andrew Wandless. Fee: $295. November 7–9 “Dreaming in Clay with Metal” with Lisa Clague. Fee: $295. Contact MudFire Clayworks 175 Laredo Dr., Decatur 30030; [email protected]; www.mudfire.com; (404) 377-8033. Maine, Portland June 14 “Image Transfer from Copier Image” with Kelly Donohoe. July 12 “Slip and Resist Decorating Techniques” with Maureen Mills. July 26 “Moving Beyond the Jar: Glaze Formulation at Cone 5/6” with Chris Archer. August 9 “Sagger Firing and Terra Sigillata” with Tacha Vosburgh. Fee/session: $60. Contact Portland Pottery, 118 Washington Ave., Portland 04101; [email protected]; www.portlandpottery.com; (207) 772-4334. Maryland, Baltimore October 3–5 “Ornately Functional: Form and Surface” with Kristen Kieffer. Fee: $220; members, $200. October 3 lecture free and open to the public, please RSVP. October 17–19 “Gesture, Expression, Narrative: Bringing Life into Sculpting the Head” with Tip Toland. Fee: $220; members, $200. October 17 lecture free and open to the public, please RSVP. Contact Baltimore Clayworks, 5707 Smith Ave., Baltimore 21209; www.baltimoreclayworks.org; (410) 578-1919. New Jersey, Demarest June 7,14 “A Personal Ap- proach to Glazing” with Beatrice Bloom. Fee: $115. Contact the Art School at Old Church, 561 Piermont Rd. Demarest 07627; [email protected]; www.tasoc.org; (201) 767-7160. New Jersey, Lincroft June 22 “Tribal and Character Mask” with Pete MacConnell. Basic handbuilding skills required. Fee: $38. July 17 or August 14 “Throwing Large Forms” with Bryan Quincannon. Fee: $40/session. July 26 or August 9 “Raku at Night” with Christina Carlson. Fee: $32/session. July 27 “Aluminum Foil Saggar” with Chris- tina Carlson. Fee: $45. Contact Barbara Zarella, Mon- mouth County Park System, 805 Newman Springs Rd., Lincroft 07738; [email protected]; www.monmouthcountyparks.com; (732) 842-4000. New Mexico, Abiquiu July 14–20 “Handmade Tiles: Images of the Southwest” with Susan Martin Serra. Fee: $385. Contact Ghost Ranch, Highway 84 N., Abiquiu 87510; [email protected]; www.ghostranch.org; (505) 685-4333. New York, Cross River June 22, August 24 “Raku Firing” with David Hughes. Fee: $125. Contact Katonah Art Center, 131 Bedford Rd., Katonah 10536; [email protected]; www.katonahartcenter.com; (914) 232-4843. New York, Nassau June 27–29 “Slip Decoration on Ornamental and Utilitarian Earthenware—1650–1850,” includes lectures and demonstrations. Fee: $465. Contact Don Carpentier, Eastfield Village, Box 465, Nassau 12123; [email protected]; (518)766-2422. (continued) Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 79 calendar workshops

New York, New York June 6–8 “PMC Con- nection Artisan Certification.” Fee: $510. June 7–8 “Techniques in Precious Metal Clay.” Fee: $285. Contact Vera Lightstone, 347 W. 39th St., New York 10018; [email protected]; www.silverclay.com; (212) 947-6879. North Carolina, Little Switzerland August 25–29 “Sculpting the Figure in Clay at Wildacres Retreat” with Melisa Cadell. Fee: $525. Contact Judy Mooney 220 E. 46th St., Savannah, GA 31405; [email protected]; (912) 443-9313. North Carolina, Wentworth June 7–9 “Maiolica Workshop” with Matthias Ostermann. Fee: $225; Carolina Clay Guild members, $200. Contact Molly Lithgo, Carolina Clay Guild, PO Box 5656, Greensboro, NC 27435; [email protected]; (336) 275-1202. Oregon, Eugene June 23 Workshop with Robert Barron. Contact Tom Rohr; [email protected]; (541) 463-5417. Pennsylvania, Philadelphia June 14 “Sig- nificant Surfaces: Creating Meaning Through Pat- tern and Layers” with Naomi Cleary. Fee: $135; members, $125. Contact The Clay Studio, 139 N. 2nd St., Philadelphia 19106; [email protected]; www.theclaystudio.org. June 28–29 “It’s Pouring Pots!,” handbuilding teapots, pitchers and small pouring pots with Sandi Pierantozzi. Fee: $200, includes materials and lunch. Contact Neil Pat- terson and Sandi Pierantozzi, Neighborhood Potters, 2034 Fairmount Ave., Philadelphia 19130; (215) 236-1617; [email protected]; www.sandiandneil.com. Texas, Weatherford June 20–22 “Attention to Surface Excellence” with Vee Chin, Bridget Hauser, Gary Huntoon and Jim Bob Salazar. Fee: $125. Contact Orbry Chamblee, 1819 E. Lake Dr., Weatherford 76087; www.lmrapotterystudio.com; (817) 732–7731.. Vermont, Shelburne June 14, July 12, August 9 Raku Workshop with Adam Conway. Fee/session: $55. Contact Shelburne Art Center, 54 Harbor Rd., PO Box 52, Shelburne 05482; [email protected]; www.shelburneartcenter.org; (802) 985-3648. Virginia, Norfolk June 6–8 “Using Colored Clay and Colored Slips” with Chris Campbell. Fee: $135; members, $105. Contact Susan Yager, 121 Terrell Rd., Newport News, VA 23606; [email protected]; (757) 595-3185. Wyoming, Jackson June 12–13 “Tile: Making, Decorating, Marketing” with Paul Lewing. Fee: $300; members, $275. Contact Sam Dowd, Ceram- ics and Sculpture, Art Association of Jackson Hole; [email protected]; www.artassociation.org; (307) 733-6379. international events

Australia, Adelaide June 7–July 13 “Breeding Ground”; at Jam Factory, 19 Morphett St. Belgium, Brussels through July 12 Morten Loebner Espersen and Kaat Pauwels; at Puls Contemporary Ceramics, Kasteleinsplein 4, pl. du Châtelain. Canada, British Columbia, Burnaby July 26–30 “Handbuilding and Tricks of the Trade” with Vince Pitelka. Fee: CAN$225.41 (US$219), barcode 157591. Contact Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, 6450 Deer Lake Ave., Burnaby, BC V5G 2J3; [email protected]; www.shadboltcentre.ca; (604) 205-3042. Canada, Nova Scotia, Halifax July 2–August 19 “Ceramics Workshop: Using History as Inspiration,” with Julia Galloway and Margaret Bohls. Contact Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, 5163 Duke St., Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3J 3J6; [email protected]; www.nscad.ca; (902) 494–8123. Canada, Ontario, Burlington June 28–August 31 “East Coast Potters”; at Burlington Art Centre, AIC Gallery, 1333 Lakeshore Rd. Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 80 calendar international events

Canada, Ontario, Toronto through June 6 “My Bowl Runneth Over.” through August 17 “Indepen- dence and Ingenuity: Freelance Porcelain Decorators in 18th Century Europe.” August 25–January 4, 2009 “Postmodern Porcelain”; at Gardiner Museum, 111 Queen’s Park. August 10–14 “Canadian Gift and Tableware As- sociation Fall 2008 Gift Show”; at Toronto International Center, 6900 Airport Rd., Mississauga and the Toronto Congress Center, 650 Dixon Road, Etobicoke. For more information, visit www.cgta.org. Canada, Québec, Mystic June 21–July 1 “Céramique sur l’herbe”; at Ceramystic, 248 Chemin Mystic. Denmark, Copenhagen June 19–August 16 “The Danish Vessel”; at Køppe Gallery, Bredgade 66. Denmark, Skælskør September 10–12 “To Write About Ceramics Workshop” with Love Jönsson. Fee: 1500 DKr (US$314). September 22–26 “Cross Draught Kiln Collaborative Firing.” Fee: 500 DKr (US$105); additional individual firing expenses. October 13–17 “Plaster Workshop” with Richard Saaby. Fee: 2300 DKr (US$478). Contact International Ceramic Research Center-Guldagergaard, Heilmannsvej 31A, Skælskør DK-4230; [email protected]; www.ceramic.dk; 45 5819 0016. England, Cornwall, Penzance through July 18 “This Fruitful Earth,” works by John Maltby and Annie Hewett; at Yew Tree Gallery, Keigwin, Morvah. England, Devon, Bovey Tracey June 6–8 “The Contemporary Craft Fair”; at Mill Marsh Park, opposite the Devon Guild. England, Leeds through July 31 Ken Eardley. August 1–October 31 Judith Davies; at The Craft Centre and Design Gallery, City Art Gallery, Calverley St, The Headrow. England, London June 11–July10 Betty Woodman; at Galerie Besson, 15 Royal Arcade, 28 Old Bond St. England, West Country through June 6 “Pottery and Archaeology Tour of UK SW.” For more informa- tion, visit www.portmoodytravel.com. Contact Alan or Gillian McMillan, Port Moody Travel, 2214 St. George Street, Port Moody, British Columbia, V3H 2G2 Canada; [email protected]; [email protected]; (604) 937-7696. England, Worcester through June 1 “Kiln to Table.”June 7–June 29 “New Work,” including ceramics by Antonia Salmon. July 5–August 31 “Decoration,” including ceramics by Jean-Paul Landreau, Mark Dally, Bridget Drakeford, Jim Robinson and Richard Phethean. September 6–28 “Ceramics by Takeshi Yasuda”; at The Gallery at Bevere, Bevere Ln. France, La Borne through June 23 Maria Bosch. June 8–August 5 “Keramikgruppe.” August 9–September 22 Stéphanie Raymond; at Centre de Création Céramique, 18250 Henrichemont. France, Nançay through July 6 “Noir et Blanc”; at Galerie Capazza, Grenier de Villâtre. Germany, Fürstenberg September 26–March 11, 2009 “Adventures with Crystalline Glazes”; at Fürstenberg Porcelain Manufactory Museum, Mein- brexener Straße 2. Germany, Mettlach through June 8 “Adventures with Crystalline Glazes”; at Villeroy and Boch, Ceramic Museum, Alte Abtei, Saaruferstrasse. Germany, Selb June 12–September 21 “Adventures with Crystalline Glazes”; at Museum Porzellanikon, Werner Schürer–Platz 1. Italy, Florence through June 8 “China: At the Court of the Emperors–Unknown Masterpieces from Han Tradition to Tang Elegance”; at Palazzo Strozzi, Piazza Strozzi. Italy, Florence, Certaldo August 31–September 13 “Salt Firing” with Jane Hamlyn and Pietro Maddalena. Fee: $2100. Contact Pietro Maddalena, La Meridiana, International School of Ceramic Art in Tuscany, Loc. Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 81 calendar international events Bagnano, 135, Certaldo 50052; [email protected]; www.lameridiana.fi.it;(39) 0571 660084. Italy, Fondi through June 1 “Medieval Town– Italian Maiolica Workshop,” includes day trips to Rome and Vietri. Fee: $1015/week, includes lodging, most meals and materials. For more information, visit www.workshophostel.com. Contact Workshop Hostel, PO Box 2003, Newport Beach, CA 92659; [email protected]; (714) 600-9535. Italy, Tuscany July 3–17 “Wood Fired Terra-cotta in Italy” with Don Davis. Fee: $2700. Contact Don Davis, Associate Professor, Dept. of Art and Design, ETSU; [email protected]; [email protected]; www.dondavispottery.com; (423) 439-7864; (423) 207-1228. Laos and Angkor Wat, Cambodia February 2009 “Village Pottery Experience,” includes work and fire with village potters. Limit of 12 persons. Contact Denys James, Discovery Art Travel, 182 Welbury Dr., Salt Spring Island, British Columbia V8K 2L8 Canada; [email protected]; www.denysjames.com; (250) 537-4906. Morocco, Marakesh, Ouarazate, Zagora, Mer- zouga and Casablanca November 8–27 “Ceramics and Cultural Excursion,” includes Berber traditional pottery, adobe architecture and tile art in Southern Morroco. Limit of 12 persons. Contact Denys James, Discovery Art Travel, 182 Welbury Dr., Salt Spring Island, British Columbia V8K 2L8 Canada; [email protected]; www.denysjames.com; (250) 537-4906. Myanmar (Burma), Mandalay, Bagan, Inle Lake, Yagon January–February 2009 “Burma: Ceramics and Cultural Excursion,” includes pottery making and fir- ing in traditional villages, cultural and historical tours. Limit of 12 persons. Contact Denys James, Discovery Art Travel, 182 Welbury Dr., Salt Spring Island, British Columbia V8K 2L8 Canada; [email protected]; www.denysjames.com; (250) 537-4906. Netherlands, Amsterdam through June 15 Anne van der Waerden; at Galerie Carla Koch, Veemkade 500. Netherlands, Delft June 7–August 9 Evelyn van Baarda; at Galerie Terra Delft, Nieuwstraat 7. Netherlands, Deventer June 22–July 19 Catherine Soldner Clay Mixers Vanier. September 14–October 11 Claude and Pierre by Muddy Elbow Manufacturing Dutertre; at Loes and Reinier International Ceramics, EASY.Aslowly revolving Korte Assenstraat 15. concrete tub forces clay through Netherlands, Leeuwarden through August 31 a stationary plough bar, turning, “Expressionist in Art Nouveau: Henri Breetvelt.” through blending and spatulating the September 28 “Arnie Zimmerman: Inner City”; at Prin- mixture to a throwing cessehof Ceramic Museum, Grote Kerkstraat 11. consistency in minutes South Korea, Gimhae through July 20 “The Shin Sang Ho Exhibition.” August 9–February 2009 call or email for a demo video “Architectural Ceramics (Historical)”; at Clayarch 310 W. 4th • Newton, KS • 67114 Gimhae Museum, Gimhae Foundation for Arts and Phone/Fax (316) 281-9132 Culture, 358, Songjeong-ri Jillye-myeon Gimhae-si, [email protected] Gyeongsangnam-do, 621-883. For more information, soldnerequipment.com visit www.clayarch.org. Spain, Barcelona August 3–6 “International Ceramic and Pottery Fair.” For more information, visit www.museucantir.org/fira_ang.htm. Sweden, Brösarp July 6–August 26 “Kaja Witt and Thomas Hirschler”; at Studio 1919, Eljaröd 1919. Turkey, Istanbul, Cappadocia and Ankara Sep- tember 18–October 9 “Turkey Ceramics Excursion,” includes hands-on workshops including handbuilding, colored porcelain and decals with Mehmet Kutlu and Erdogan Gulec. September 22–26 Workshop with Mehmet Kutlu. Limit of 12 persons. Contact Denys James, Discovery Art Travel, 182 Welbury Dr., Salt Spring Island, British Columbia V8K 2L8 Canada; [email protected]; www.denysjames.com; (250) 537-4906. Wales, Cardiff through June 15 “Coast2Coast.” July 4–August 24 “Porcelain:Ritual and Process”; at The Makers Guild in Wales, Craft in the Bay, The Flourish, Lloyd George Ave. Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 82 Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 83 classified advertising

Ceramics Monthly welcomes classifieds in the following categories: Buy/Sell, Employment, Events, Opportunities, Per- Pottery West in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pottery sonals, Publications/Videos, Real Estate, Rentals, Services, Travel. Accepted advertisements will be inserted into the classes: six weeks of classes and open studio time, first available print issue, and posted on our website (www.ceramicsmonthly.org) for 30 days at no additional charge! $150. Attend as many classes as you’d like during See www.ceramicsmonthly.org/classifieds.asp for details. the six weeks. Studio fees, $25, includes 25 lbs of clay, glazes and firing (Cone 10 gas reduction). For information and directions, call Amy Kline at (702) 987-3023; www.potterywest.com. BUY/SELL Pennsylvania, Little Meadows July 19–20 “A Taste for Tea” a hands-on throwing workshop with Kevin Crowe. Fee: $275. July 26–27 “Wood-Firing Work- shop” with Kevin Crowe. Fee $165. Contact MUD PRODUCTS For sale 750 pounds original “True Albany Slip.” AND FIRE POTTERS; www.mudandfirepotters.com; Well kept stash from 1980s. Some still in original (570) 623-3335. brown bags. Must pick up COD middle Tennessee. Albany Slip. It’s the real thing! The last load from the No shipping. $4500 OBO. Must put “Albany” in Tom Turner’s Pottery School. For details, see original mine. Make those great Albany slip glazes subject line: [email protected]. www.tomturnerporcelain.com; or call (828) again, from Cone 6 to 11. At Cone 10–11, it fires a 689-9430. deep glossy brown. For further information, contact Mitchfield clay for sale (also known as Auman Pond) the Great American Wheel Works, in New York, at from historical Seagrove, North Carolina. Shipping (518) 756-2368; e-mail [email protected]. available to any area. Minimum 4-ton load. Contact Arthur at Kim’s Pottery Clay; (336) 873-7317; (336) OPPORTUNITIES 963-5143; (336) 963-5149. PUBLICATIONS/VIDEOS DIAMOND FOOT GRINDER 15” diamond grinding system that attaches to potters wheel like a throwing Ever wanted to understand more about glazes bat. Rapidly grind and flatten hard porcelain and and firing? A variety of workshops specializing stoneware. Ideal for finishing rough, chipped, jag- in glazes, glaze chemistry and firing available at PotteryVideos.com – DVD’s with Robin Hop- ged or warped foot. It can also be used to flat-grind www.johnbrittpottery.com/wks.htm; or call John Britt per, Gordon Hutchens and Graham Sheehan. bisque to prevent high-fire warping, sharpening at (828) 688-6615. Video Workshops for Potters at all levels of ex- tools, and grinding kiln posts, stone, metal, wood perience. Choose from 21 titles. (800) 668-8040; [email protected]. or glass. Industrial quality with long working life, EDINBORO UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA. patent pending, designed by a potter for potters. Volunteer Position (Technical Assistant in Ceram- Tom Turner’s 2-day workshop, 4-disc DVD set. Send e-mail to [email protected]; or call ics) starting August 2008. Excellent opportunity to (559) 542-2321. To order, see www.tomturnerporcelain.com; or call build a portfolio in a comprehensively equipped (828) 689-9430. ceramics program. Studio space, materials and firing privileges in exchange for ten hours of work EMPLOYMENT per week. QUALIFICATIONS: BFA in Ceramics or equivalent. Demonstrated ability to mix glazes, fire REAL ESTATE kilns and assist with keeping studios orderly. E-mail [email protected] for application procedure Apprentice / Internship. Small production pottery and deadline. Pottery for Sale, storefront 2-story frame bldg. 7500 in northwest Montana seeks motivated individual for sq. ft., apt., studio, showroom, garage, kiln shed, one-year position starting end of August. 40 hours/ Canton Clay Works (Connecticut) has intern- car kiln, soda kiln, clay mixer and more. $130,000; week in exchange for studio space (includes materi- ships and residency positions available im- (319) 848-4963; [email protected]. als and firing), room and board, monthly stipend, mediately. Job includes 15 hours unpaid studio gallery sales. Check www.whitefishpottery.com for work—generous hourly rate for teaching. Ac- 2 Houses/Studio for Sale, 6BR/4BA combined. more details about applying. cess and use of studio kilns (wood/salt, gas, Kiln, 2 fireplaces, multi-tiered concrete loft, raku electric, raku and saggar) included. Materials kiln, hoist, solar panels, beautiful grounds. Close Seeking Artist-in-Residence. Benefits include and firing fees are complimentary (within rea- to PSU http://www.pittstate.edu/ in Pittsburg, KS; 24-hour studio space, use of electric and gas kilns, son). Visit www.cantonclayworks.com/intern.pdf http://www.pittks.org/index.php?pageid=359. For studio equipment and gallery representation in a vi- for more details and/or an application. Questions to photos, contact [email protected]. For ad- brant arts community. Responsibilities include work- [email protected]; or (860) 693-1000. ditional information, e-mail [email protected]. ing in the gallery, studio and café. Opportunity for paid employment for hours exceeding trade agree- House and Studio for Sale on six acres along New ment. For information, contact Stephanie at (727) Mid-Coastal Maine Potter’s Retreat. Beautiful York’s beautiful Hudson River minutes from Saratoga 323-ARTS; or [email protected]. ceramics studio/living space on 110 acres. Woods Springs. Two studios, kiln room, gallery and storage, trails, swimming pond, private lessons and critiques/ 1500+ sq.ft. Passive solar & radiant heat. House is Production Potter Wanted. Central PA. 10 miles group workshops. Nearby ocean and sailboat. 1500 sq.ft., 3 bedrooms, 1 bath. Handyman special. from Penn State University, State College, PA. www.starflowerfarmstudios.com; (207) 525-3593. Studio has been an active pottery for 33 years, on an Minimum three years experience. Call Danny at organized Pottery Trail and Fine Art Tour. Excellent (814) 321-8225. Extend your academic training in a professional name recognition. Waterfront access. $180,000. studio environment. Instruction, materials, firings, [email protected]; www.bluemoonclay.com; Excellent opportunity for exploring wood firing (518) 692-7742. in a natural Ozark forest setting. Studio assistant techniques, philosophy and opportunity to sell your desired in exchange for room, board, small stipend, work at Eckels Pottery and Fine Craft Gallery in Bay- field, WI. Openings starting in spring 2008. For more For Sale 3BR/2BA House & 1300 Sq. Ft. Shop studio space and kiln space–anagama, noborigama. on 12.5 Acres in Seagrove, NC in the heart of For details, contact Joe Bruhin at (870) 363-4264; information, e-mail [email protected]; or call (715) 779-6517. pottery country. $192,000. View MLS #45338 at or [email protected]. www.soldbyjudy.com. (336)953-4805.

Idyllwild Arts Summer Program offers week-long Working Studio/Home; rent to own; log and stone; EVENTS workshops in ceramics including Hot Clay: 6 Work- 4 bdrms, 2½ baths, 2 acres, great room fireplace. shops with Ingrid Lilligren, Esther Shimazu, Eduardo Olsen gas and 2 electric kilns; Soldner mixer; Brent Lazo, Richard Burkett and Estella Dagua (Kichwa, wheels; slab roller; TLC needed. $160k; Bowling Ecuador); general Ceramics; and traditional Native Green, KY; (270) 781-4031. 2008 Hands On Workshops / Raku Dreams: American Pottery (Hopi-Tewa and Mata Ortiz). All skill “Raku Kiln Building with Harry Hearn” on June levels. Other courses available in sculpture, painting, Electric-kiln studio, gallery and residence in 28–29 and “Raku with Steven Forbes de Soule” metals, textiles, mixed media and more. Campus historic Madrid, New Mexico on scenic Tur- August 16–17 at the Oak Ridge Art Center in Oak located in the mountains of Southern California. For quoise Trail tourist route. Zoned commercial. Ridge,TN. See www.oakridgeartcenter.org for information and course catalog, call (951) 659-2171, Anagama nearby. 2000+ sq. ft.; $ 340,000. View more information; or call (865) 482-1441; or e-mail ext. 2365; or e-mail [email protected]; at www.santafestoneridge.com. Residential listings, [email protected]. website: www.idyllwildarts.org. MLS ID # 703241. Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 84 For Sale: Pottery Store consisting of retail, Design services, molds, models, tooling for slip Craft & Folk Art Tours. SW Balkans, Romania classroom and studio. Established 1986 in a casting, jiggering, hydraulic pressing. Samples Winter Festival, Ecuador, Chiapas (Mexico), Mo- shopping complex consisting of 20 shops and 2 and small production quantities. Ceramic De- rocco, South Africa, Central Asia, Burma, India. restaurants. Enjoy year round tourism and local sign Group, Jonathan Kaplan; (303)909-5488; Small, personalized groups. CRAFT WORLD business. www.sunrisepottery.com. Doug Oian, www.jonathankaplanceramics.com. TOURS, 6776CM Warboys, Byron, NY 14422; (585) (210) 494-8633; San Antonio, TX. 548-2667; www.craftworldtours.com. Master Kiln Builders. 26+ years experience de- signing and building beautiful, safe, custom kilns OVERSEAS CERAMIC WORKSHOPS & TOURS for universities, colleges, high schools, art centers —TURKEY, Istanbul and Cappadocia: September SERVICES and private clients. Soda/salt kilns, wood kilns, raku 19–October 9, 2008 Workshops with Mehmet Kutlu kilns, stoneware kilns, sculpture burnout kilns, car and Erdogan Gulec. MOROCCO November 8–27, kilns and specialty electric kilns. Competitive prices. 2008 Berber traditional pottery, adobe architecture, Donovan. Phone/fax (612) 250-6208. tile art in Southern Morocco. BURMA, Myanmar: Molds custom made for potters, ceramics manu- Custom Mold Making—Increase your productivity January/February 2009 Ancient potteries; Man- facturing companies and hobby ceramics. Contact and profits with quality slip-casting molds of your dalay; Yangon; Inle Lake; Bagan temples. LAOS & Reach Molds, 20 Camp Rd. 41, Ogdensburg, NY popular designs! Petro Mold Co. offers a complete ANGKOR WAT, February 2009. OAXACA, MEXICO, 13669; (315) 393-6065. range of mold-making services, including sculpt- November 2009. Small, culturally sensitive groups ing and 3-D models, master and case molds, and using local translators and experts. Discovery Art POSTCARDS FOR ARTISTS: Quick, Custom, Af- production mold manufacturing to thousands of Travel, Denys James, Canada; (250) 537-4906; fordable. Postcards are the best way to promote your satisfied customers. Visit www.custommolds.net; www.denysjames.com, [email protected]. work! Use for exhibitions, marketing, sales, class or call (800) 404-5521 to get started. schedules and more! [email protected] ; HAWAII—COME PLAY IN THE CLAY ON THE www.postcardsforartists.com; (970) 274-1239. Accept credit cards in your ceramics retail/whole- BIG ISLAND! EARTH MATTERS Pottery Studio is sale/home-based/Internet and craft-show business. an Alternative Vacation Destination for Clay Lovers Ceramics Consulting Services offers technical No application fee. No monthly minimum. No lease and Adventurous Travelers. Located at the Most information and practical advice on clay/glaze/ requirement. Retriever/First of Omaha Merchant Southern Point in the USA. Raku/Volcanoes/Yurts/ kiln faults and corrections, slip casting, clay body/ Processing. Please call (888) 549-6424. Beaches. www.earthmatterstravel.com; e-mail glaze formulas, salt glazing, product design. Call [email protected]; (808) 939-7510. Greg and or write for details. Jeff Zamek, 6 Glendale Woods Gail Smith. LIVE ALOHA. 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Written for Studio Potters, this book will help you have more control over the outcomes of your glazing techniques by explaining the science behind the nature of glazes. The companion book of Out of the Earth, Into the Fire by Mimi Obstler, Understanding Glazes will show you how to have the results you want in glazing, every time. Topics include: • Formulation of Glazes • Raw Materials for Ceramic Coatings • Batch Calculations • Mill Additives and Slip Rheology • Color in Glazes • Mixing and Milling Understanding Glazes • Application Techniques By Richard A. Eppler, Mimi Obstler • Decoration ISBN: 978-1-57498-222-0 • Firing US $63.95 • Adherence and Fit • Chemical Durability • Surfaces: Gloss, Satin, Matte • Defects and Their Control

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Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 85 Undergraduate Showcase to appear in the September 2008 issue of Ceramics Monthly

Open to all undergraduate students enrolled in ceramics classes at accredited post-secondary educational institutions, including 2008 graduates.

To be considered, please submit the following by June 30: • Up to five professional-quality digital images (300 ppi resolution on CD, plus a color print of each image), with complete descriptions of works. Images should be at least five (5) inches in the smallest dimension. • Full contact information including e-mail • Artist’s statement and résumé • Instructors’ name(s) and contact information • Institution at which you study

Mail to: Undergraduate Showcase | Ceramics Monthly | 600 N. Cleveland Ave. | Suite 210 | Westerville, OH | 43082

Arrival deadline: June 30

Do not submit materials in binders or folders. E-mailed submissions and submissions of more than five images will not be considered. Materials will be returned only if a padded envelope with appropriate postage is included.

Due to the volume of submissions, we are unable to acknowledge receipt of materials. Notification via e-mail will be sent by the end of July. Please, no phone calls.

Do you know a deserving undergraduate? Do they need a nudge? Pass this along and help them get the recognition they deserve.

Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 86 Comment (continued from page 88) looking at the methods or approaches that The point of all this is to purposefully tion, to encourage “deepening” and to “stoke the others have attempted. The assignment place ourselves in a position to encounter the fire.” What might be the applications/ for the last half hour is to appropriate from what is unfamiliar to us, to work outside implications of such an encounter with the someone else a method or approach that they our areas of comfort, to counteract stagna- unfamiliar for the larger community of ce- utilized, which is also new to us. ramics artists? How does all this make Here is a list of some of the chal- sense for the production potter, the lenges we have tried, or plan to try: artist potter, the sculptor? Platters over ten pounds; five- How we each approach the necessity minute teapots (completely thrown of deepening, seeing with new eyes and and assembled); faceted and expanded avoiding stagnation will likely depend on (while on the wheel) cups; facetted, our temperaments and the complexities textured and expanded (while on the of our lives. Each one of us, undoubtedly, wheel) cups; altered bowls; divided already has sound intuitions about what dishes; pitchers with spouts guaran- we need to do to take the next step. The teed not to drip; thrown and altered only real question is whether we will plates; extruded trays (using existing discipline ourselves to move forward in dies in new ways); flattened bottles; ways that are deeply unique and inti- a pot thrown upside-down; two-part mately personal. assembled pots under three pounds total; two-part assembled pots over the author Dick Lehman works at the fifteen pounds total; handleless pour- Lehman-Goertzen Pottery in Goshen, ing pieces; high-footed cups requiring Indiana. The 100 cup assignment was trimming; textured and expanded completed on February 23, and can be One of Dick Lehman’s “Thursday Night Challenge” cups, during (while on the wheel) vases; left-handed which everyone in his studio completes assignments that take found in the “ceramics for sale” link at cups; handleless lidded jars. them outside of their comfort zones. www.dicklehman.com.

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Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 87 Comment the thursday night challenge: stagnation, deepening and stoking the fre within by Dick Lehman Recently, I sent an e-mail note to a friend of Each week, I set aside at least one day requirements of productivity, commodity mine telling her how much I was enjoying a to work in ways that are not production- and salability. little cup that she’d sent me. What I didn’t tell oriented. So what does that mean? For me, Another way that I try to stoke the fire her was this: her cup was different from any one who spends most of his life working is to give myself assignments. Recently, I as- I’d ever used, and my particular enjoyment with several key employees producing a line signed myself the task of creating 100 cups of the piece caused me to stop and attempt to of 100 different production pieces, it means for under $100 in 100 days, and loading identify the elements about the piece that felt rejecting the production demands of success them on the “ceramics for sale” portion of so “right.” It was interesting for me to notice and salability. I give myself permission to my web site. An additional requirement that how her piece nudged me to see a little more explore a new teapot design, or a new pitcher I gave myself was to try to make cup forms deeply, imagine with a bit more creativity and or baking dish, without the requirement that that were largely new to me, or that utilized hatch some ideas for new ways that I might the work I create will produce something that our existing glaze materials in ways that I had like to approach cup-making. How interest- will make its way to the kiln, much less be never attempted before. ing to me, then, when The remarkable speed her reply e-mail included of development, progress this paragraph: and newness within this “Do you ever find 100-piece series sur- yourself feeling a bit prised even me. The stagnant or in need of a “assignment” allowed deepening? I’m curious me the freedom to take what other clay artists do risks, try the improbable to stoke the fire. Good and stretch myself. The books, talking with oth- results expanded my ers, travel, meditation, visual literacy, my tech- personal assignments? nical acuity, and enabled I suppose the process is me to see beauty in new unique and personal to ways. What a gift! A gift each of us.” only surpassed by my Her question caused collectors’ willingness to me to reflect, with a little see and enjoy my works more purpose, on just in new ways, as well. what it is that I do to Finally, I want to tell “stoke the fire” within. you about the “Thurs- Of course, there was the day Night Challenge”— obvious: how important obviously named, as you it is to surround oneself will see. I employ two with good work—the other full-time potters best of one’s own work, who work with me, but and a fine collection who also make their own from other makers from works and pursue their across the span of his- own careers. Once each tory. This, most all of us This cup was made by Dick Lehman during one of his studio’s “Thursday Night Challenge” assignments. week, on Thursdays, do, whether through our an hour before closing own personal collections, trips to museums, something that I can sell. It is freedom from (schedule allowing), we stop the “regular” international travel or simply a trip to a fine any sense of commodity being attached to work. The employees stay on the clock, but museum collection, compliments of our local the efforts of these work days. Such inves- work on their own pieces. What guides our broadband connection. tigations always produce some work that time together is an assignment to which we But what else can be done to stay fresh— ends up in the re-work barrels. Yet without have all agreed. Deciding the nature of the to stoke the fire? And is this “freshening” fail, there is some idea or component of this assignment is a task that is passed around different for production potters, or sculp- exploration that informs my visual literacy among all the studio mates. Our most recent tors, or those who never tie themselves into and sets aflame some new understanding of challenge was altered cups. The rules are sim- a pattern of production or repetition? I’m not composition, balance or utility. And these ple: during the first half hour, we each com- sure I know. But as I thought more about it, understandings are eventually utilized in mit to pursue the challenge-piece in a way I noticed that I utilize at least three regular future work, creating new ideas that I would that we have never tried before. At the end patterns in an attempt to keep things fresh: not have come to without setting aside the of the first half hour, we spend five minutes (continued on page 87) Ceramics Monthly June/July/August 2008 88