ang design blog

aRT chAT...

2012-01-26T21:17:00.003+10:30

ART CHATS...Tea Tree Studio crouch rd golden grove...

Tues night class welcome back this week...we have a great start to the year an informal chat with peeps from SA art Gallery and the HIVE youth space TTG
if you are interested, intrigued or just In come along it's free!!!

contact me for more details.... teatreestudio@gmail.com

web'n with weebly...

2012-01-20T14:24:00.002+10:30

Playing still, coz it is still January the official playing around month!!! look Hannah's been doing it...Ron posted a brilliant one today... so go ahead play!!!

My latest effort is with Weebly my experimental page just because i can!

These pages will be devoted to experiments with recipes and step by steps successes and blunders..

I do love grid format and blogger simply wont let me play that way.... I need columns people!
you know drag and drop stuff.. the ability to change my layout more, so this is where it's at...
I'll still link everything to my blog so i'm not going
anywhere blogger is so well connected that way
and after all it is free :))

local fauna and a studio rant...

2012-01-14T22:57:00.000+10:30

some local wildlife...... and a studio visit, come on over for a chat...

new year..new pots...

2012-01-08T23:59:00.000+10:30

new year, new pots, new stamps and new handles...

while contemplating my new clean studio space last week I took some time out to focus and make some new stamps.... while those guys are waiting to be fired I did a wee test run this wkd with some old stamps and new handle dyes...

and some chattering tests... I have plans to hunt out a few flexi tools for the job.. I hear that old clock springs and even thin hacksaw blades a quite the thing...

beatrice is back...

2012-01-06T11:21:00.002+10:30

How apt my first post for 2012... Beatrice Wood the moma of dada... you know as an illustrator she makes a great ceramist. The medium totally changed her style, her original illustrative works from 'dada time' were incredibly light and even tentative but her ceramic work later in life has quite primitive roots and is so 'bold' by comparison.... I love this film production and luckily it's back on the tube for you so catch it while you can, she truly remains an inspiration..

And as for me I'm still chillin.... the sun is out we had our first heatwave for the year, my first and hopefully last migraine on NYE grr.. It really is time to recharge and chill out in the garden and at some point finish the studio clean out.
I played with making some clay stamps in the studio the other day and lucky me did a wee back injury house cleaning that'll 'learn me'... I'm contemplating a weekend in the studio, we'll see tomorrow if I can move more!
Anyhoo I have some thoughts for new work and also some catching up to do finishing pieces from last year and getting lots of inspiration right now so i'm just going to store it for studio moments. And new music for the year...the Gossip, the Kooks, Gotye and just caught Adele live at the Albert Hall video what a laugh :)) getting my studio groove on...

the good, the bad and the just so wrong...

2011-12-20T18:13:00.000+10:30

Well finally Chrissy is cranking up to be a snug one 36C forecast and about time too!! it's been wet cold and rainy for too long..

The wkd was a washout and all plans for outdoor christmas events were foiled by wind, lighting and buckets of rain.. Unusually I have no market cheer photos, I looked like a drowned rat all day but thankfully Rose carries a wet weather pack and the shiny black mac got me through the day along with a lovely new scarf from our stall neighbours.. who sadly won't be joining us next year due to market policy about imported goods! boo on them!!

On an up note the tomatoes are looking red and shiny there will be a bumper crop this year, along with trees loaded with apples, apricots, plums and lemons...If the birds don't get to them this will be a great year..

So forget about all that cold and ice or even possibly snow... this is way more the way Christmas looks in Oz well maybe not coconuts or fig leaves just swimming attire and thongs...the feet kind :))

Merry Christmas Peeps here's hoping you have close friends and family to hang with this time of year :)) cheers ang

results...

2011-12-10T21:10:00.001+10:30

Well it's my 3rd firing in a week and the best one by far...all the changes I made to my kiln were worth while and she fired beautifully...I can't ask for anything more..

So Kathy if you're reading.. the wedding bowls are all lovely all 86 of them so you have a set of spares for yourselves :))

Today was the Wheaty Christmas sale for ceramics and glass and some beautiful pieces were on display the room was crowded for the first hour as predicted and as newbie to the room I did far better than I expected, thanks Charmain for the invite and to the Wheaty for such a great venue :))

I came home with a few treats yey!! 4 lovely pieces that will get used often!!

So here's a few picks from the unload...

All of the raw pieces held up well..

and a surprize the nuka glaze threw up purple from the copper brushwork I think it would make it to cone 10 quite stunning for such an easy recipe... the vases, small shino bowls with ash sprinkles and the pouring bowls were all raw glazed...

oooh and the pendants MFQ clay with shinos, ash and soda sprinkles all came out well with some nice crystals forming...

thrown, trimmed and glazed...

2011-12-07T16:46:00.001+10:30

Thrown, trimmed and glazed...
Had a fun time in the studio today whipping up a few extra pieces for the kiln load on friday...I'm not sure that they'll all fit but anyway throwing a few bowls and leaving them out in the lovely sunshine to dry off before trimming then glazing the insides...I've sprinkled some ash and some soda ash for good measure inside and will glaze the outsides tomorrow.

Yep all in one afternoon I just had to check in on Alan's Blog again about raw glazing and so glad to see it's all still there!! Its been 3 years since Alan's fatal motor bike accident.. I have dropped in occasionally on his blog and so glad today when i thought about raw glazing that his blog is still up and still an amazing resource.. Just catching up on some of his antics today made me chuckle like trying to trim a branch off a tree overhanging his pottery sign and mud stomping at a music festival....anyhoo still miss him..

So a crazy week in my studio.. we fired the small gas kiln at the club on saturday, preparations to get that happening are still a challenge, as is group firing but great as a learning environment for our club members.. 7am call til 4pm on saturday followed by an amazing stage show that night with Sade on centre stage at the entertainment centre, I honestly haven't seen that kind of production in years!! so enjoyable even if my sis double booked herself and couldn't make it so I got to take one of my besties instead!!

Sunday glazed and loaded my gas kiln fired on Monday yey the gas delivery turned up!!! 9am - 1.30am at which point I turned the baby off.. I suspect my kiln is going into early reduction with flames leaping out of the bung around 700C.. so tomorrow i'll be finishing glazing the wedding commission bowls and make a few adjustments to the air intake around the burners and the exit flue.. that's the good thing about a fibre kiln, out with the exacto knife and quick alterations will be done... and firing again on friday gas willing!

And on another note ....note to self... leave a light on at 1.30am to see where I'm going in the dark!!! I took a slide on the large pebbles next to the garden path that I was supposed to be walking on and yep went flying, as did my favourite glass which bounced nicely.. I however didn't and a wee bit sore today, why does it take aches a day to appear!!?? anyhoo enough whinging here's some pics...

the commission

raw pouring bowls

sweet spot

a couple of raw vases

some ash and soda sprinkled inside raw pourer bowl

a few small raw bowls with shino treatment

slippetty slipware video...

2011-11-24T10:21:00.001+10:30

I've been trying to source a simple way of getting this video out to you guys but it seems digital is going to be the easiest....so here on youtube you can access a reasonable resolution of the movie it's way better full size but unfortunately will cost way too much to store online full size so here you have it....the long awaited, sorry Robert and others that have been waiting for way too long for this :P

This is the slipware tour video of USA April 2011 workshops starring Doug Fitch and Hannah McAndrew.. the tour covers 3 workshop in Cape Cod Mass, Fredericksburg Virg, and Shelby North Carolina.. Doug and Hannah travelled from the UK to do these workshops and I travelled from Australia to catch up again with these guys and meet some super new blogging friends in the States a big thankyou to all who put us up!!! gave us coffee and all the amazing potters we met!!!

When I have some time this holidays there's plenty more short vids to make... :))

So settle in this one is about 45 mins... well hey I had a lot to squeeze in!! hope you like it.. cheers ang

ang's open studio...

2011-11-15T09:54:00.001+10:30

Yes it's that time of year again...

This saturday 19th november is my open studio day from 10am - 4pm.... drop on by if you're in town have a coffee and a chat and purchase that small gift that you're looking for...something handmade and local

The verandah will be set up full of this years new work and a few favourites too.. The garden is looking green and lush and there will be plenty of seats to stay and chat for a while, see ya saturday :))

email me if you need directions angelawalford@gmail.com ...it's pretty easy just off Hancock Rd Fairview Park

print on clay 2 vid...

2011-11-13T21:39:00.001+10:30

Here we go a lil printing display action from saturdays workshop....

A big thankyou to those who came out for the day and making it such a cool day.... Lunch again was an amazing time of chatting and getting to know folks and yeh yummy gluten free chocolate cake thanks Ali..

and a big thankyou also to Alison Arnold for being our special guest for the day.... we learned heaps, made some screens and picked up on some printing applications and got Connie started with her new printing kit too....all round a super day...enjoy the clip!!

print on clay2...

2011-11-05T13:38:00.003+10:30

Print on Clay 2 ... This is the next workshop out at Tea Tree Studio there's still room if you want to come..
Saturday November 12th 10am - 2pm BYO shared lunch... just give me a call to book or email teatreestudio@gmail.com

It should be another great workshop!! Alison Arnold is special guest at this one..we'll be showing all manner of techniques from printing to stencilling.. Bring leatherhard tiles, plates wares anything you wish to print on about 4-6 pieces should be enough for a play.. We have video clips on making your owns screen plus we'll be making some on the day screens are $16 each. All this for $15 a head..

Tea Tree Studio is located at Lot 6 Crouch Road Golden Grove, in the green sheds next to the church..

stirling idea...

2011-10-25T00:04:00.000+10:30

Yep it's that time of the year!! the sun is shining and the marketeers are out enjoying it...It was a beautiful day in the hills yesterday, some very balmy weather brought out the crowds, some of whom have realised it's time to start shopping... others more reluctant

Waldorf Spring Fair had been moved to next saturday so luckily this wkd wasn't a double header market wise.. The usual events of grannies taking a stumble down the giddy ramp that is between the lower level where our stall is and the high road.... dogs taking a dislike to each other, kiddies in despair!! usually about being stuck in a pusher they would rather be steering and of course the lovely peeps that come into our stall and talk pots!!! they're cool!!

Music wise we had a couple of extremes with the buskers yesterday, we had the teen who played everything a bit too anxty!! and our friend Raj and his buddy who thumped out a good tune or three!! pity about my poor head after Johns' 50th up the road the night before... I was a tad doofed out.

The Story of Clay...

2011-10-22T19:11:00.001+10:30

UNFORTUNATELY THIS VIDEO LINK HAS BEEN REMOVED!!
But you should still hunt for it.... it's a really cool 3 part series by the BBC..

One video that has made the rounds this week on facebook is The Story of Clay.... Ceramics A Fragile History 1 from the BBC, I spotted it on Friday night and bookmarked it for future reference..

Some stand out moments watching Mary Wondrausch sliptrailing, The Sculptures of Lydia Dwight, the daughter of John Dwight who died at the age of 6.... and austerely trailing right at the end THE LOOS!! 'The Crapper'!!

This one just has to be shared!! enjoy if you haven't seen it already :))

BBC Series in to the history of Ceramics from early beginnings to modern day

studio stuff...

2011-10-20T14:38:00.002+10:30

It's time for my weekly catchup...

Last week was grab a few hours here and there in the studio but it really seemed to work well...my head was uncluttered considering the amount of multitasking going on and the end result a bisque kiln load just finished this lunch time!!

Lots of lovely jugs and mugs that I got really carried away with scrolls and textures on the handles.. A couple of testers for watercolour tile illustrations I used MFQ which is just like porcelain when you wedge it...mmm lovely...

Theres a bunch of cat feeding bowls on my ware racks, some raku waiting to happen and some wee seasoning bowls for the table..

And last but not least if you're a fan on facebook you get to see whats been cooking for lunch!! but if you don't happen to be a facebooker here's todays cook up gluten free pasta, tomato based sauced with red capsicum, zucchini, mushroom, chilli and some grilled chicken...mmmm

I'm getting sorted now for all the spring sales and markets plus the really crazy ones leading up to christmas...

Ali and I are squeezing in a print on clay workshop next month ..

Plus I have my open studio on the 19th of November ...

get in touch with me if you need any more info for my open studio or the workshop...so that's about it, I hope you're up to your elbows in the good stuff if you choose :P

shino's plus...

2011-10-12T11:16:00.000+10:30

I spent the most part of yesterday doing a photo shoot of the last gas firing and here's a few results... It was indeed a great firing, I ran out of redgum chips and ended up using some pine bits but that was ok just not as much lustre as I would normally see. Now I have a few pieces to keep for exhibitions next year..

On the kiln side of things the exit flue has some damage.. It got pretty hot back there and now needs some repairs but all in hand!

So here's a few pics...

Created with flickr slideshow.

my PORT festival wkd...

2011-10-10T21:05:00.001+10:30

The Port Festival Wkd has been and gone and yes still recovering...I do love these big events but they are exhausting, Saturday was open 11am - 9pm and Sunday the same we did however start packing up at 8pm when it felt like a ghost town :P

Saturday evening was 'cool' we traversed the Port end with the street animations and all kinds of character and wandered the dock a little before piling in our cars and heading home.. Sunday despite the forecast showers was lovely and a different crowd came out which was also lovely... the music kept the day humming again.. a big yey to the event organisers and our friend Sharon who kept us in touch and was the person with all the info throughout the event, it really was well organised and sweets in the afternoon you guys have the touch :))

here's a wee vid of the wkds events... of course the obligatory analysing and discussing of work and what works and what doesn't at these type of markets but all in all very enjoyable!!! but will we be back.....

Mondays Firing vid...

2011-10-05T08:53:00.003+10:30

Monday being a public holiday gave me extra time last wkd to glaze load and fire my gas kiln and again she roared!!

I'm getting used to the super large bung hole its great you can see 3 shelves in one peep!

I unloaded last night after unloading the bisq at the club...all good... everything survived, although i did steam overnight the most amazing thing was the mug shrinkage...So back to the gas kiln a good solid firing throughout, the different chun on my dk celedon has a much higher melt time so its a tad underdone but everything else is yummo and my raw glazed mountain survived ..

I'll take some better photos friday hopefully...happy firing :))

today's studio...

2011-10-01T22:19:00.001+09:30

A quick peek at todays studio work, the first of a long wkd's worth with a sweet introduction by a honeyeater hanging around my back door today munching on the Lime tree nectar :))

slipware movie teaser pt2...

2011-09-27T09:36:00.000+09:30

After some final tweaking the Slipware Movie will be on it's way, a lil post out to England, Scotland and the US will see it pop up in your mail boxes very soon!!The movie content is all about the three workshops in Cape Cod, Virginia and North Carolina....Lots of Video some with pertinent techie info, question answering, loads of throwing demos, handle attachments and an immense amount of stills all blended into one film..I still have copious amounts of video from travelling to put together and that will take some time...I'm so glad I put together short vids as we went along the east coast otherwise this could really be a nightmare sorting out!! anyhoo enjoy the teaser pt 2...

slippety slip slop...

2011-09-26T09:35:00.001+09:30

The workshop on Saturday went down a treat the only part of videoing that the peeps wanted to see more of was Hannah's Platter slip decorating....

unfortunately my flip decided to flip out and didn't record the enormous platter at the Cape Cod workshop...which was an amazing piece!! so I only have stills...

So I got the universal remote to tune in to the TV and we now have a vid channel on the old box woohoo!! only took me and hour to tune the beast in :P

I had prepped plenty of pots and slip in the week prior so the day ran pretty smoothly after sussing out thickness of the slip issues....The slip trailing was a hit so most of the deco that will come out of the kiln will consist of that...I really enjoyed doing finger wipes and marking the wet slip with dabs...so I have a few of those plus the old black over white pours...mmmm

I think a couple of things have cracks in them prob from messing with them too much it's a do the marks and leave the pots alone process really...

The weather was great on saturday quite cool and really good for slip trailing into wet slip, I think the warmer months will be no good for this process unless we have some humid days..otherwise spring activity it will be... we have a good size turn out about a dozen of us and a great lunch spread and plenty of time to play....so thanks to everyone that made this day a success!!

the next workshop is a printing one see you in november for that one...

where to start!!!

nice start to the marbling

sandy started us all going dotty

judiths sliptrailing

annas slip trailing

alis kingfisher

sallys houses

belindas slip trailing

pam about to do surgery

a couple of my dotty pieces

the slipware invasion tour... teaser 1

2011-09-23T14:11:00.001+09:30

the slipware invasion tour... teaser #1

just ahead of the workshop at the club tomorrow here's a lil teaser!!

'slipware the movie'...

2011-09-21T11:23:00.001+09:30

I'm excited about this last batch of clay....

it continues to inspire me when I should be making summery bright work I can't seem to drag myself away from the grunge!! I still want to make some heavy cooking ware before I leave it totally for the summer and who knows if I will :P

Anyhoo Ali and I did a small market at the Wheaty on Saturday and the first hour was busy and my show piece for the day sold with lots of interest in it plus a couple of orders for them so I guess that will keep me distracted for a while... these lil beakers I made sunday arvo after trimming the grunge wares, so off to the club today with them get a kiln loaded and then finishing off the pots I threw last night for saturdays workshop!! 'slipware the movie' is finally done and gets it's first run on saturday so i'll be looking for feedback on it and no doubt tweaking it a tad before I send it overseas to my fellow trippees...

So on to Saturdays Slipware Workshop... I still have some spaces if you're thinking about coming over ...it's 10am - 2pm ...Movies...pots... links.. blogs...BYO shared lunch and BYO leatherhard terracotta pots all that for $15...

so come on over to TEA TREE STUDIO lot6 Crouch Rd Golden Grove

contact me ANG if you get lost!!!!! 0412 848 878

angela walford ceramic artist

2011-09-10T17:38:00.002+09:30

Hey i'm still here, just had a break post SALA ( South Australian Living Artist ) it was quite the whirlwind month with 5 shows on my list and a mixed response from peeps really.. Ali's, Rose and my show up in the Hills had moderate successes and we all sold so that's a great start!
Other shows such as my local ones were great for exposure but no sales and one of my favourites this SALA was the St Igantius Art Show admittedly it's a well oiled machine that's been running for quite a few years and so well supported by local artists. Some of the paintings were just amazing and the sculpture garden was one of my fav places and the best thing selling my raku pieces.

Anyhoo this post is about my latest project.. I'm not moving just adding another location angelawalfordceramics it's my new wordpress page. This one will replace the mac page I set up last year Angela Walford website that didn't prove to be as user friendly as I would have liked, for one the ridiculous web address they gave me!! And since it looks like iweb will not be continued it was write off time for this software..

I'll be bringing over parts of what I like from that page to my new site and keeping solid ol blogger here as my centre point, the only thing missing is a decent gallery page but that's no biggy as my new page has plenty of opportunity for this.

So that's what I've been up to, you'll notice in my sidebar there's new shows coming up and with spring much nicer weather to work outside in and a great workshop at the club coming up...we're going to dabble in some slipware so bring along your terracotta pieces with some nice surface to decorate on!!

Saturday 24th September 2011 10am $10 to members $15 to visitors.. BYO shared lunch and some leatherhard terracotta 'red clay' wares.. email me for more details.

I have of course plenty of videos to show from the US trip and more than a few tools of the trade from Doug and lovely slip trailed pieces from Hannah too, I also have a couple of Paul's pieces that will make quite a nice selection of work to drool over.. so this one should be fun..

art art and more art...

2011-08-20T11:53:00.000+09:30

Friday night was the opening for St Ignatius Art show at Norwood.. this is the first year I've been invited to participate and what a cool night.. I bumped into Judith Rolevink who has 2 bronzes in the show, wandered around checking out the amazing pieces in this show and wow some brilliant art..

On entry we got a goodie bag complete with programme and a voucher for wine, very spec :))
And a brass band made up of the senior school kids nothing like a bit of jazz at an opening...this one ticked all the boxes for me.. amazing munchies, wine, great lighting and the work was set out so well..yey team!!

I met some amazing artists who generously talked about their work, there's a gorgeous painting in the silent auction, which apparently went for 7K last year!!

The 'outdoor room' was a flutter of red dots when I left and quite a queue of peeps at the sales desk waiting to buy some amazing art. Anyhoo enjoy the vid it's just a sample of what's on display..

The show continues through the wkd with a string section playing and cupcakes. It's gold coin entry for the wkd and friday night was ticket only entry. It's a brilliant show, so if you're in town get and see it and buy some original art..

day at the museum...

2011-08-19T15:29:00.001+09:30

This lil trip was organised by Mellie @ Mt Barker TAFE thanks for putting the call out for this visit ... we had Jam Factory folks, TAFE, SA UNI plus extras and that would be me :)) Wednesday's trip was wet and windy what a great day to walk from the central market to the Art Gallery, the pots were just next door in the basement of course complete with Harry Potter cupboard under the stairs..

I'd heard about this stash when I was back in college but really never got around to finding it so super call M, cheers! Although unable to touch these guys it was great just to check out the pots that we have in town hiding out in there glass cupboards.. So check em out, complete with some tunes by Bjork 'It's oh so quiet' and Ian Dury and The Blockheads 'This is What We Find'...

Tonight is 'St Ignatius Art Show Opening' SALA show which continues across the wkd, so check it out Queen St Norwood tonight is ticket only entry and a gold coin entry for the wkd and then Sunday arvo I'll be at Q Gallery for our '3 Seasons Show' @ Barristers Block Winery, Onkaparinga Valley Rd Woodside so drop in for a chat and buy some art and wine peeps, see ya there :))

raku back yard style...

2011-08-07T19:46:00.000+09:30

A bit of quick Rakuing to top the week off.... enjoy some Ian Dury and the Blockheads beats :))

really nice drop...

2011-08-05T10:55:00.002+09:30

I don't know why but I was pleasantly surprised with the Sauvignon Blanc we had at the opening last night!! Anyhoo a few piccies just as we finished setting up after the usual dramas up to the very last minute...yey for opening night nerves :P but the team stayed amazingly calm and all went swimmingly. Along came 7pm and cars started rolling down the driveway I still think some Bali torches or lanterns would have been lovely out by the entrance but the wind and rain kinda would have hampered that idea!!

So yey team and peeps that came out on a cold and wet night in the hills to celebrate with us launching our very first '3' of us exhibition together!! It was lovely to se folks I haven't seen in ages and buddies from the clay collective and bloggers too!! If you didn't make it you missed my tag you're it ang doing the speech tonight!!! ha that was fun hope I remembered to thank everyone and again a Big Thanks to Bec @ Q Gallery and Jan of Barrristers Block Winery for such a great venue.. and a great drop of wine!! and also a big thankyou to Mt Barker Council for the SALA rebate that went towards registering our exhibition with SALA..

So check it out a great night topped off by a soft drink at the Woodside pub and yep we got the gas fire working outside.. c'mon we are potters :P and some very wet feet as I tried to jump the torrent flooding down the road to get into my car for the trek home lastnight and a 15 minute pitstop as I waited for a tow truck to pull a car out of the fence just passed cudlee creek!! what and adventurous night we had..

So '3 Seasons in One Day' exhibition is up for the whole month of SALA, please check it out and buy some great Art, check out the winery and sample a drop we'll be out there some time during the month again on a Sunday probably...if you want to stay in touch drop me your email to angela@angdesign.com.au or find us on facebook 3 Seasons in One Day or Ang Walford Ceramics

happy SALA month Adelaide!!

A few tiles...

2011-08-04T14:36:00.000+09:30

Just a few pics before I head off to the Gallery... these are of 'lil birdie on the corner' and One of my new landscape tiles which I've decided to interplace with the the printed tiles...I think they make for a great cohesive story about my current work exploring landscapes and my inside out prints bringing imagery that would usually be on the inside of our dwellings to the outside and on the street corner Edward Hopper was a major influence on the workings of these tiles...

I just ran off some more prints this morning too...it really is great to be visiting printmaking again...I haven't ventured it's way since early college days and all the processes are so much more user friendly now...although i still have black fingernails after this mornings effort...

Anyhoo hope to see you tonight if you can make it 7pm @ Q Gallery Barristers Block Winery 151 Onkaparinga Valley Rd Woodside just down from Melbas Chocolate Factory!!

3 Seasons show sneak peek...

2011-08-02T16:21:00.001+09:30

A quick peak from my kitchen shoot this afternoon this is one of the tiles for the '3 Seasons in One Day' Exhibition at Q Gallery Barristers Block Winery Woodside SA.... and just a peak I'll take a couple of set up shots tomorrow at the Gallery...

Some came out better than I expected and some are a learning curve and thats ok because otherwise I'd be bored!! and this way I have a few interesting things to learn from and more things to try out on the next batch of tiles..... but for now some rest is in order and hopefully more healing time for my elbow :))

pre spring has hit...

2011-08-02T10:48:00.000+09:30

The pre spring has hit nicely this week and heading for 22C today what more could you ask for!

Yesterday was plinth painting day at Q Gallery, Rose and I headed out to the club to pick up a few extra plinths and after greeting the Plover that has taken residence in the roof again this year we loaded up our cars and headed up into the hills...

Woodside is a very picturesque spot for wkd drives and it's this that we're hoping having a show in the hills will be an added bonus with peeps dropping in on the wkds... Yesterday was stunning up there the sun was out and the Barristers Block Wineries Loos are something to shout about :))

So anyhoo the plinths are all painted up and Wednesday we head up for setting the gallery after a good tidy up and a clean I think it will look great...

Very soon I'll be cracking the kilns for my tile work...so here's hoping that my really slow firing has paid off...and a sneak peek later perhaps....

Anyhoo below is Mud on deck keeping watch this morning at the top of the steps and below a great portrait from my friend Derek...I just love this one!

SALA preview...

2011-07-27T23:14:00.002+09:30

A sampling of some of the work that will be out for SALA month in Adelaide....

yep this falls within my philosophy that 'you can never have too many SHINOS!!' Some of the shows I'll be at Golden Grove Sala show Golden Grove Arts Centre, '3 Seasons in One Day' Q Gallery At Woodside, St Ignatius Art Show and SALA on SALE.. hope to see you out and about it's a busy month and the catalogue is full of great shows! must get my calendar out :))

spectacular dunt action...

my fav...

and a big yey for zyg this is 'his' chun recipe that he posted a short while ago over my darkest celedon glaze

she passes!!!

2011-07-25T20:03:00.000+09:30

My baby kiln gets full marks for firing, reduction and all round nice shino producer....

So happy with this load of work considering there was quite a bit of pressure to produce a good kiln load for SALA month and she passes!! woohoo!

Settle in it's a good 10 minutes long.... of just about all shino glaze wares and yep teapots!

a smaller bung perhaps...

2011-07-23T11:42:00.000+09:30

So post firing day headache again but it was a long day I started up the kiln at 8.30am and finished this morning at 12.30am.... I can see some mistakes a long the way where I assumed I would have no probs getting to temperature...oh how wrong can ya be?!!

I backed off the gas pressure when flames were gushing out of my bung at 800C...I can fairly assume now that there was not enough air in the kiln and any escape route was taken. So when ever I took out the bung flames gushed out!

I'll unload maybe later today or tomorrow if I can resist the sneak peek. Lessons learned don't back off the pressure on the gas line and 2 hours now means 2 hours added at the end of the firing :P
To be fair it was a very cold night and iced up tanks are hard to de-ice in very chilly conditions prob about 6C last night..

Anyhoo a new smaller bung I think is called for and check the aperture of the exit flue and prob the air intakes around the burners too.. I didn't think there would be that much change to the firing conditions of my modified kiln but there ya go always stuff to learn hey!!

oh just workin it....

2011-07-11T19:22:00.000+09:30

Tea Tree Studio's Tuesday class is on a two week break

after which we switch teams.. Kevin will be taking the drawing class and I will taking a throwing class so come on down if your a beginner or intermediate at either we'll happily have a chat and a coffee..... on these chilly nights the core are still showing up ....yeh!!!!!

AND more from me this is part of my SALA work tiles for 3 Seasons in One Day and teapots for Golden Grove SALA and On Sale SALA too... just finished up there tonight in the studio and still trying to dry out the studio floor after the flood last week..... I had the Gas Kiln on again in hopes to dry out the atmosphere, it's getting better but still very damp out there tonight...

Anyhoo the curry is on and smelling rather good right now so catch ya soon with exhibition info for the month of SALA.....

oooh side note... a little doug fitch sprig on the front of this one :P

slipetty doo dahh...

2011-07-06T22:10:00.000+09:30

What started out as a head down get stuck into it moment in the studio ended up in a flash flood after a down pour tonight... Most of the slip work was done when I looked down and I was standing in a massive puddle.. which rapidly became a river running through my studio floor. Hmmm a slight issue with drainage coming from the neighbours property which tomorrow will take some trench digging and extra drainage no doubt..

Anyhoo enjoy the vid lots of tile deco and trying out of stencils, which are made from old xrays and if the slip is the right consistency work very well..

studio sneak...

2011-07-05T09:35:00.000+09:30

Well the Sala catalogue is out and it's crunch time. Over the next 3 weeks I need to get work together for 4 shows and luckily one firing is already under my belt and some very nice pieces came out of that kiln. So onward into the exhibition work, I did manage to get some studio time yesterday even though I had 8 white fingers a freezing start to the day.... Well things warmed up finally and by 4.30pm had a good start into the tiles underdeco... 3 different slips plus on bisque printing and some glaze additions of colour too will complete the layering..

my chalkboard side of the fridge is a great place to sketch out ideas..

Some of the teasets underway and teapots in production..

my new bung for the kiln door..

So back up to the studio for another stint today and hopefully prep my new silkscreens that I put together on saturday.. I have the photo emulsion and just need a dark box to keep them in while getting ready to expose the screens. I grabbed an outdoor halogen worklight last week and just need to test the exposures with the wattage of the light... fingers crossed!

colour...

2011-07-02T10:46:00.002+09:30

hue test

100 HUE TEST

So cool I had to share it... those of us who have done colour studies will score on this one..

It's fun give it a go!!!!

photo-ie day...

2011-06-23T20:46:00.001+09:30

ahhhhh nothing like a lurgy to keep me inside in the warm and a great excuse to shoot some new pics... most of these guys are from the last firing in fact all but the green mug!! i managed to iron out some of the bugs in my setup and apart from the occasional glare really happy with the setup.. I also had a bash at making a gif animation for the header but blogger wont run it anyone have any ideas about gifs?? the test ran perfectly in photoshop, just playing around and putting a fresh face on things here, enjoy the gallery :))

a bit sketchy...

2011-06-21T12:20:00.001+09:30

It's incredibly chilly up in the studio even with my little heater on...so the last of my bowl-a-thon bowls are trimmed and cleaned up the pots for rakuing for the St Ignatius show in SALA month I had white fingers and numb hands, so back inside and after some warming soup my fingers are back, yey!!!!

I thought I'd share some of the sketches I did while away...not many really I was battling jetlag most of the time so didn't do as many as I would have liked ...anyhoo The canoe is in the foyer of the Indigenous Museum at Washington DC just amazing the amount of reed that must be in this piece and very beautiful with the textures running in circular formation..

The second sketch is on ron's porch i started drawing him literally got half way and off he darted so doug sat in for the rest of the sketch, rather fun really I just kept going with the lines going all over each other...

And a sketch of the soda kiln i'd like to build eventually.. It may still happen this year I'm not sure at least I have seen heaps of kilns now and have a pretty good idea of what i need to do now..

So lot's happening and firing the big club kiln this wkd and rakuing too...so catchup then and feel free to drop by the club on saturday Crouch rd Golden Grove if you're nearby..

renovators delight...

2011-06-13T18:05:00.001+09:30

well, mine anyway!!!

the beast had a major facelift today with capacity for two more sets of shelves depending on the work of course.. A massive thanks to kevin, mr super welder.. I kept the cups of tea coming amongst warnings to sheild my eyes.. to which i complied while pointing and shooting from my phone :)) I'm amazed pretty much kept him in the frame for all of said pics and vids...

All that is left is the fibre work, I'll be cutting up my old door to use as much as possible of the old stuff and making a square to round collar for the exit flue that should be fun making that fit and as soon as possible as SALA is looming near and lots of work to be fired...

and now for some very sad news, my flip died....oh dear after running the tech gauntlet and trying everything to remedy the prob I think it has to be said that it served me well for 3 years and now the search for a replacement...hello eb#y

welding by kevin capaldi, tea by me, tunes by bellowhead 'little sally racket' ;) thanks H

firing just cracked...

2011-06-12T18:34:00.002+09:30

Woohoo it's amazing how efficient a firing can be with new gas tanks!!!....

Saturdays firing was quick for me 9hours and done and cone 10 perhaps a little overdone for the new satin shino I was using, they have all come up glossy...

anyhoo lovely all the same so here's a quick look at firing day and the unload from tonight..
The new small cups are part of my SALA work and medium size trays will be on the making menu this week, well that's a wrap...

More happening Monday with kiln alterations. Kevin will be coming over and look out for the sparks flying from my studio.. My kiln beast is about to grow up a bit and Tuesday is another bowl-a-thon with my friends Erin and Anna too we will be keeping in touch via facebook as the day goes and a tally at the end, you can join in via facebook if you'd like... enjoy the vid...

the raven has landed...

2011-06-08T00:37:00.000+09:30

hey cindy the raven has landed :))

it will really freak out the wild life up the garden cant wait to test her out :P hehehhe...

I got this sweet package today in the post along with a lovely card and some flags which will brighten up the garden no end at the mo!! And being really cold and damp and a bit of green and orange will work a treat under the verandah where my pug is.. cheers my friend what a lovely treat..

Anyhoo most of today was spent immersed in illustrations for the tiles...my next body of work for my sala show....some of the pieces will be stencils and some silkscreened and today was lots of thinking about what works and what doesn't and what do I want to say with these pieces..they are influenced by a Hopper etching that really grabbed me, it's a street scene from a high perspective looking down on a corner footpath.. this motif occurs a lot in Hoppers work it's the cafe that has been 'thrashed' in the nicest possible way with so much pop art today....you know the one marilyn and james dean hanging out in the diner..

So the image sparks a sense of the lone viewer from a high up window watching the goings on below....i love that street corner to me it references the artist eye.. we observe so much, daily happenings, strange events.... ones of coincidence and mundane and yet so interesting...anyhoo since my interest is also in

surface textures and wild native creatures in the suburban landscape... so why not combine them all and see how they get on in the streetscape as neighbours.... design wise I think it will be interesting, concept wise I hope i can pull it off...we shall see

and lastly a use for old xrays... a stencil cut from today, my leaf motif somewhere for the birds to hang out!!

one word KLINE...

2011-06-07T00:27:00.000+09:30

This was one jam packed day!! our second stop was Mr Michael Kline's Pottery...I'll let the images speak coz there be plenty of them...

I rather enjoyed this stop at MK's workshop we checked out the space played with local clay and wandered around some confederate gravestones, Doug got to jump in the clay pit, avoid the poison ivy and Hannah did her best Sound of Music pose on the hillside :)) and we drank tea...and ron got to talk shop with MK.

We got to fondle lots of pots and took home our very own samples of his lovely work and some super brushworked paper plates, mines still atop the fridge!

Thankyou MK I trust a well deserved break from sawdust and dirt gets you recharged for other things...well enjoy the Kline experience..

reconciliation week @ tea tree gully library

2011-06-06T14:34:00.000+09:30

reconciliation week @ tea tree gully library

This show is up til the end of this week go and check out the cool works on the foyer walls and some great whittling by the semaphore zebra finch mens group.. there's really good prices for some local aboriginal art for your place...

we found Q...

2011-05-30T21:54:00.002+09:30

we found Q..... up the Lobethal Road turn right on to Onkaparinga Valley Rd Woodside at you're there Barristers Block Winery and the Q gallery....very sweet space and it will definately work for us for our SALA show in August... The show is title '3 Seasons in One Day' and we're working on wall themed work with some complimentary works in a plinth area too...

It should be nice, after our chat we Beck 'Q Gallery owner' the chocolate factory up the road was calling us!! never been to Melbas they had everything I remember munching on as a kid and their dark chocolate was rather good... next door is a cheese place too but no sheeps cheese...boo..

The board meeting continued at Oakbank pub with some swanky outdoor furniture on deck only problem the seats were rain blessed and a tad damp after one had been sitting for a while :P I lucked out with the only dry seat I think hehehehhe... so meeting over lunch and Rose is now 'the pursuader' Ali 'the Pr Pr person' and me 'a rock star' apparently must be the jacket!!! we are pretty much sorted except for writing the artists statement pffft I'm rubbish at these so this will be fun... sourcing some extra lighting will be necessary but everything else is sorted, oh that and creating the work in time....wooho

hello cocky....

outdoors entertaining area at Barristers Block Winery

Q space

Rosa and Ali pondering the setup

melbas chocolate factory mixers hmmmm concrete??

no really they were!!

exit pose :))

monday monday...

2011-05-28T20:24:00.002+09:30

I can't believe I have been home for a month and just today I'm compiling the last of my trip movies, tonight's is of Michael Hunt and Naomi Dalglish of Bandana Pottery Bakersville, NC.... we headed up into the Hills for a Day trip with Ron Philbeck and first stop including lunch was with this lovely couple...they have a sweet little cottage on a hillside with their workshop and gallery and kiln space just a walk away, we gushed and ahhhed our way through their sweet gallery unfortunately I was well out of cash but Hannah, Doug and Ron made up for that with quite a lovely collection of purchases... anyhoo without further ado here's naomi and michael..

like it...

2011-05-26T18:37:00.000+09:30

Oh nothing like a couple of hours in the studio to cheer oneself up!!. Thursday has been cold and wet and cold and I'm over it already do we really need winter, it's just so hard to get up into a cold studio but I made it, cranked up the lil bar heater that is my source of warmth, stacked the water jug infront to warm it up and got stuck in...

I did already have an idea of the style of work I wanted to get into today just not fully intent on form I looked quickly at the batch of bisque pots from last week and they're loose just not quite loose enough but you never can tell til a piece is glazed and maybe they're just right...

I wonder about the market place and how it will receive this type of work but have a determination now since coming home to give it a go and really put some work out there that represents the gusto and groove that the US trip gave me.... It's difficult to put into words but I want to take some time to develop a fresh look, of form and set work.. so todays studio bash albeit a short, 2 hours developed from a piece from my last shino firing I refired a tiny cup that say it all for me...it's sweet and kinda wobbly but not very.. the glaze work really sells it for me it's shino and carbon and all that i love about firing in my gas kiln... so todays efforts I started with the tray and moved into small bowls, then some tiny cups from about what's half of 3/4's of a lb.. I say lb's coz that's what the scales measure that I weigh out my clay on... I'm also in a privileged position to be using clay already pugged and grogged from my big pot making sessions in march and enough to keep going for another session me thinks, then back to the processing!!

This week has been awesome for hearing about SALA shows, Ali and myself spent Monday putting together our registration for a group show between us 3 and I caught up with Rose after work to keep her up to date with our progress....got it all sorted and completed by 11.30 pm so why does it take us so long to normally organise a show???? So for SALA our show is called '3 Seasons in One Day' @ Q Gallery Woodside, we've already had interest from Adelaide Hills magazine hopefully this is a good sign and the emails keep coming this week about SALA shows.. I have the opportunity at this point for about 5 during the month of August and we'll see what works out the closer it gets, it will be one very busy month!!

anyhoo going on a bit, I'm a tad tired and need some good sleep really... last wkd took some toll on me and my market wares are still very wet, I'm currently drying them out a box at a time in my studio :)) well cheers and here's to the end of the working week.. friday be good..

oh look...seriously....

2011-05-23T21:38:00.000+09:30

oh look seriously how much rain do we need on a sunday it's market day after all!!!!

Ha!! totally exhausted from saturdays wedding vid shoot.... sunday looked promising.. no rain all the way on the road up to Stirling but seriously folks it didn't last we got set up and down it came.
I successfully gathered buckets of water in our pots the roof gave way towards the end and gushes of water spilled on to our tables.. My ski jacket is good for the cold but basically absorbs the rain and i was drenched..

The market was officially shut down at 2pm with gusts of wind flying up the street we held on tightly to our marquee and all was good....Drenched I headed of to woolies loo to dry off under the hand dryer I seriously looked like a drowned rat and managed the best i could you know those hand dryers just arent intended or have the gusto for drying hair :P

So we headed off to Roses place donned the jammies gladly and a very spec dressing gown whilst my clothes dried off in the dryer....we had a few nice glasses and watched Isacc Buttton do his thing along with Nic Collins ate an early tea of wedges, chicken and green salad before i headed off home to fall asleep on the couch... all in all a spectacular day!!! .......enjoy the drips!!!!

Sundays Market Day...

2011-05-21T15:45:00.000+09:30

Stirling Sundays a coming!!! and these lil babies are going to be there fresh from the kiln yesterday...

Just having a short break from videoing a friends wedding today to load up my car for tomorrow....

Hope to see you, it may be a cool one but Stirling is lovely this time of year the leaves will be falling and the market will be teaming!! there's lots to see and lots of yummy food and coffee and of course some great art & craft and produce including our wee stall!!

Hmmm maybe bring ya coats too :P.... We're on the lower deck between 2 groovy clothing stalls, just up from Mrs honey and groovy glass man Mr Tim Shaw....stop by and say hi.

we have roofage...

2011-05-14T20:39:00.000+09:30

Ahhh nothing like a good days work in the studio.......or a good days repairs in the studio :))

Since the rains have begun ye olde tarp could only keep so much rain off my new pugger... I got all inspired and decided to rip of the shade cloth and blinds from the summer heat and get up on the roof and screw down the suntuff!!! As with any job using recycled materials there's repairs to be done and armed with lots of silicon I got stuck in filling up the holes with the goo and the other major job for the day repairing the skylight in my studio, a wee roof patch with suntuff and heaps of silicon too......
tonight i get to find out if it worked, I hear the wet stuff again..

And a resurrected cafe blind to keep the rain off the front of my pugging space ... maybe i can find another at the auctions!! apparently it's quite the thing for picking up all kinds of household items and maybe a rocking chair for the deck that would be cool!

PT wasn't quite so torturous last night so muscle wise this was an easy day we'll see how I pull up tomorrow after climbing all over the roof today...woohoo. So glad this is done and hopefully the space will be good for winter working and another bonus is the great view now through my doorway!

Work seems to be picking up a little too which is good! Lots to do and lots of projects in the works just the way I like it..

The Xpo opens this week at 'the Terrace' I'm excited and nervous about this one, I have quite a few tiles in for this show and hopefully it's a good one.... I'm also looking into a SALA venue for this year, so fingers crossed for finding the right space for my work.

Anyhoo I think it's time for feet up and a movie don't you :))

bad blogger...

2011-05-14T15:04:00.000+09:30

Bad blogger has been down for most of the week!! humpfff!!!!

So just for that it's break out the recipes time :P

Curried pumpkin soup with rice stick noodles..

In my wavering ability to keep recipes here's what I remember putting in...

1/2 large butternut pumpkin, roast off in the saucepan blacken a bit remove the skin when the veg is soft..

4 medium sized potatoes

8ish cups of water

3 chillis from the garden 2 red 1 green

a few spoons of chicken stock

2 heaped teaspoons madras curry powder

salt and ground black pepper to taste at the end

cook the noodle separately 4-5 minutes usually does it.. wash off in cold water and add to the soup later

when everything smells great and the veg is cooked mash it down with a hand wizz, then add the noodles and serve up baby!!!!!!

I'm out doing studio repairs today...the roof leaks and the pugmill needs cover..... pics later :)) back to my yummy soup!!

flashback to freidas...

2011-05-11T09:17:00.000+09:30

Yey 'B' is back after some technical issues attaching anything for the past couple of days!!! So here's my most recent video account of the States trip...Easter sunday at Ron and Sarah's good friend Freida....After a gorgeous BBQ lunch and an easter egg hunt in what must have been around 28 - 30 deg C warmth there were lots of melted eggs...hhehehee.. Freida's boys also figured out Doug's puzzle jug which was great to watch..

Their property is on a stunning laked area surrounded by all manor of homes and some very cool decks with boat houses....so here's the cruise video footage courtesy of Doug and some of Hannah's handy work I think....my flip was out of memory so just stills for me that sunday..anyhoo enjoy the moving pictures and check out the giant bees!!!!

I have such a wonderful collection of pots too that made it home safe but that will be another post :))

gotta mark this one...

2011-05-07T12:22:00.000+09:30

Far out gotta mark this one 12pm and I finally cracked it 12 by 12!!!!

Actually 17 today but whose counting....me!!! after a warm up session yesterday I had a chance to think about the first pieces I wanted to make being back in my studio after a month off...
Loose is the order of the day with a nicely finished off rim...getting quickly to the form I wanted to see and finishing off nice and slowly. Slowing dow the wheel to make some intentional marks and taking care that the rim says what I want it to loose open and smooth with some nice marks on the outer just under the rim....mmmm..

With the weather being cooler I have a chance to let these sit for a day before having to look at handles for the cups... Pulled handles is going to be the order for these and nice and thin me thinks, keeping that possibility of warpage low and paying close attention to getting them on at just the right time when the cups are not too wet and not too dry...

space...

2011-05-07T09:59:00.000+09:30

Really obligatory a clean up before making a mess again!!! I spent most of yesterday getting gear out of my studio just to get some clear head space and at the end of the day real space!!!

I still want to get some high shelves in to sort out some space for finished work rather than having everything boxed up..although its good for markets its hard to show any one work when I have to rummage for it through 5 market boxes and the shelves really are looking just cluttered not user friendly to see what need firing and what is just junk!!

So space yey... and a lil short throwing moment making some really loose bowl forms with my hands in clay for the first time in a month!!!!

Must fix that right now off to the studio again....

cameo by doug fitch sprig stamps

to market.. to market...

2011-05-06T09:54:00.001+09:30

After such a whirl wind tour of 'the States' last month it's time to refocus on my work and getting it around town successfully.. so yesterday I embarked on a little marketing day.. Loaded up with some new additions for the Urban Cow Studio I headed into town dropping off a tea set for a photo shoot for 'Attitude magazine' a local free mag all about style in town.... After leaving some new wares including the red stripes dippy bowls and some wee raku pots I headed off to wander around town and look for prospective places to approach for my work..

Followed by a trip to central market and on a cheese hunt!!! Found some great cheeses and happy with that off to the chinese supermarket to stock up on spices for cook ups :)) mmmm what a great shop they even had the lil cooking pots that we ate from in the vietnamese restaurant with ron!! such a cool flash back to that dinner and so yummy must write that meal down and have a go at making it, it was awesome...

Then off to the Terrace where Graham is holding an interiors expo this month, so exciting I dropped in some of my larger wall tiles before going away and luckily he loves them as do I some of the gorgeous new old sanded back teak furniture they have in at the mo mmmmmm... So that's next wednesday the opening and I'm hoping to make it for that it will be great to get some feedback on these pieces as they look great with the rustic furniture...

So into the studio today....I'm inspired to get sorted out and get making, I had a chat with my electrician last night about a prospective electric kiln hook up and what thats going to take and hmmm what do i need to sell to get one :P and a great visit from my bud kevin too looking at extending my gas kiln vertically...

yep a good day....

Slipware Tour USA.....Ron's end....

2011-05-03T16:26:00.002+09:30

And Ron's end... this pretty much says it all in pics folks..... the end of the Slipware Tour USA - british invasion tour... we saw, we slipped, we laughed, we cried till it hurt!!! I still can't believe we crammed so much into 3 and a half weeks....
Ron Philbeck met us at Kevin Crowes place.. a lovely guy who took us on a tour of is wood fired kiln....don't worry i have notes and videos a plenty so much more footage to come!! what great folks lunch was all set when we arrived and a table full of wood fired pots to eat from mmmmmm..... So we get on the road with Ron and head for Shelby where the next workshop was to take place, a one dayer because of the easter wkd break and wow did Doug and Hannah pack everything in :P The puzzle jug demo, the lovely slip drawn jugs....the slide talks and movies you saw it all peeps!!....Hannah was busting her moves with baking dishes, the 'über Platter' and her lovely slip trailed jugs......

It was exhausting and I wasn't working!!! anyhoo around the workshop we went to Ashville for the day....sat in great rocking chairs of which i am now on the hunt for!! a trip to Penland... Michael Hunt and Naomi Dalglish's for lunch yum : )) and Michael and Stacey Kline's for afternoon tea, well that's all in the next catch up enjoy this vid from the workshop below.....cheers!!!!

Some pre wkshp prep time..

testing testing....the puzzle jug

kevin crowes place and lunch deck

über platter...

I'm baaaaack...

2011-05-02T11:31:00.001+09:30

Yes I'm back but not much closer to putting together a blog post that will catch up on the last weeks happenings....

anyhoo I got home to a massive amount of mail incoming and am making my way through it...an interesting one is a mention in 'Australian Ceramics' from the Brisbane teapot show!!! how cool i didn't know about the article so what a surprise to see my shino teapot in there!!

I really enjoyed making a high fire version of my teapots and it seems I need to get back to the wheel with a mad hatters teaparty fundraiser event coming up and i'm just about out of teapots..

Entertainment at Sydney airport while waiting for my final flight home watching planes being towed out and the baggage guys doing their thang on the tarmack..

One of my fav mugs at rons place...very sweet indeed glaze on the inside and the handle and slips outside ...mmmmm

Ron and doug scratching away on the porch, what a team Hannah

was somewhere else at the mo but the whole crew got to it getting Ron ready for his wkd sale hope it all goes super well mr... thanks again for yours and sarah's lovely hospitality it was quite the week with some lovely sun and warmth made me feel right at home and here it is sun shining again today just beautiful... and so much to do......

hopefully next post we'll be up to date and some semblance of normality will resume :))

ashville...we walked, we ate and ate some more...

2011-04-27T05:56:00.001+09:30

I'm back tracking once again.....Thursday Ron and Sarah took us on a tour of Ashville and what a cool place plenty of galleries great old mom and pop store with the best rocking chairs in town in the front foyer apparently peeps often have a snooze in them and I can see why...

after breakie at Early girl eatery Hannah's handy work on the lovely brown paper table cloth above...we ate we walked..we walked, we ate and ate some more... we had tea!!!! and a lil daliesque moment Un Chien Andalou courtesy of doug...

the woolworth store in Ashville has been converted into an Artists Cooperative, 2 floor of cool art space...

the Blue Spiral Gallery was awesome.... 3 floors of art and a really cool print show in the basement..

Ariel Gallery another art space of amazing work with some really cool sculptures by Holden McCurry and Jane Peiser among athers.. oh dear I'm afraid a little too much food of all the wrong kind this day finished me off and sent me in search of green salads and peppermint tea :P

seeing the grove...

2011-04-23T21:17:00.000+09:30

Huge touring, great pals and lots a lots a pots!!!!!

Settle in for a bit of a long tour around 6:17 mins long...

Hannah and I had the royal treatment with a cooked breakie to get the day started before the epic day began....the lovely Meredith took us a touring along with surprise Tracey Broome appeared on her driveway....after lots of ahhhhh i cant believe your here screaming we piled into the cars and off we set...
anyhoo here's some pics...enjoy

on the road again...

2011-04-22T11:02:00.003+09:30

Kevin, Hannah and Doug some serious kiln talk

Monday found us on the road again from Fredericksburg to Charlottesville with Dan, stopping in for lunch at Kevin Crowes pottery and met up with our man Ron Philbeck....

Kevin's crew was prepping for the next firing wadding pots and broke for lunch with us.. what a treat the table was all layed out with a huge range of woodfired teabowls and plates....yummy chowder prepared by Kevins wife and tea from the biggest teapot I have ever seen!!

Kevin's kiln is a 3 chamber combination anagama and noborigama totally huge and check out the wood stacks.... it was a stunning day outside the first time I'd felt warm in days mmmmm sunshine and heat..after a lil swapping around of pots and a great chat we hitt the road again with Ron heading towards Seagrove and Meredith and Marks Pottery we arrived to a house full of potters and potluck dinner mmmmm curry and heaps of salad woohoo....... tues in Seagrove contd. next...

Kevin, his apprentices and Dan

Kevins showroom!!!!! mmmmmm...

ciao Dan...

weekend at freds...

2011-04-20T23:31:00.000+09:30

So we're here in Shelby with Ron and Sarah, we made it last night after dinner at Fongs very nice vietnamese restaurant...and i'm attempting to collate all the info from the passed week. Here's a snippet of the last weekends demos at fredericksburg... hope you enjoy the pics as my files are stacking up and some semblance of order is required :P....

We had a super stop at Meredith and Mark's with a brilliant tour of some potteries yesterday in Seagrove....our bud Tracey came over for the day and it was just like hanging out with old friends...thanks guys it was brilliant!!

DC...

2011-04-20T13:35:00.000+09:30

Unreal it's catchup time again....these images are from last thursday in Washington DC, an hours trip from the farm in Fredericksburg to the big smoke DC itself..A visit to the Native American Museum with huge traditional art exhibitions and contemporary ones too..

The amazing sculpture garden complete with squirrels and interesting security guards....some really amazing sculptures and brilliant views..We had picnic lunch in the city at a park not far from Dan's friends bookshop...Its a truly stunning city but not a cup of tea to be found anywhere but the main park from a kiosk where Liptons came to the rescue!!!

The Peacock room at the Freer Museum was amazing..

All in all another amazing day filled with great art and amazing characters.....

while the slippers work...

2011-04-17T04:05:00.002+09:30

The Slipware workshop is well underway and while the 'slippers work' I'm composing some more movies and working on thoughts for the slipware workshops movie.....more on that soon..

A little change in the weather has brought down some rain today there was mention of a tornado last night that def. had me concerned!!! amongst other things snakes and snapping turtles were the kitchen topic of conversation!!! and they say Oz is dangerous... I don't know there seems to be critters everywhere you go.

Doug has done some blasting with the burner today and Hannah is quietly jewelling the puzzle jug from this morning a lovely Fredericksburg Virginia across it's belly... Libertytown is quite the lively place today kids painting classes and peeps keep wandering through the gift shop.. it truly is a hive of activity and local artists, reminding me similarly of the Jam Factory spaces at home where artists can rent space and get exposure to all manner of shows going through. Last night was the opening for this slipware weekend truly a successful event and a testament to Dan's ability to create an event and draw in a crowd... Loads of lil red stickers that we all love on the pots, surely a great start to Doug and H's exposure here...

dan's town...

2011-04-16T02:33:00.001+09:30

dan's old workshop

Tuesday started slowly we had breckie on the verandah and the light was strange after a humid night....it was clear and filling the trees with amazing colours....


moma of dada

the verandah

Dan took us on a quick tour of the town visiting all of his past studio spaces....
A quick tour of the farm we're staying on included Dan's mystery garden with all sorts of treats for the kids... His very neat lil studio space complete with bee hives now and all manner of pots in and around the place, this gorgeous teapot sits amongst others in the garden..
A very chill day with Sammy T's for lunch mmmm..... Thai sandwich with ginger, chilli and lime....

dan's garden

tea

the lake

walkies

the mural wall awaiting restoration....

moving pictures...

2011-04-16T01:45:00.002+09:30

guy wolffs

a lovely guy jug

sweet garden

the green hornet...

Just taking a mo at Liberty Town...Dan Finnegan's lovely spot to do some catching up..... So much has happened and the stories are getting crazier as we chat over meals about who we've met and the characters along the way... It's just beautiful here in Fredericksburg a gorgeous ol town with so much charm..

Monday was a mammoth road trip traveling from the Cape through Connecticut with a stop at Guy Wolff's Pottery for a couple of hours, it's quite the place and I love that lil jug on the shelf.... Doug has some great film of that visit.. we arrived at the farm we're staying on 3.30am Tuesday, our hosts are some very cool friends of Dan who arrived from Washington last night, it's a lovely property with a great verandah and deck outside where we sat for breakie the first morning a very easy day yey!!!! and very much needed Doug and Hannah needed a break and I needed some serious zzzzz's after that long trip...the green hornet radio show kept us awake amongst others on satellite radio... a very cool tool!! Ooooh and they have ticks here ewwww!!!!

Cape Cod workshop day one...

2011-04-11T01:27:00.000+09:30

Saturdays workshop in Cape Cod at the local High School Doug and Hannah started with a slideshow and some home movies which were great!!!

and the obligatory student torture how to drink from a puzzle jug...

It was tag team all day with both working and decoing apart from when doug slacked off and drank tea....later we had some munchies and I got to tour Hollis's gallery in the garden so much cool stuff mega shino :)) swapsies of course were in order...

thurs and friday mash up...

2011-04-11T00:47:00.000+09:30

	more pics from the MET on Thursday a truly awesome place...
reds at the met


raining inside!!

no not really just playing with a water bottle soft focus anyone??!

central park

look the Guggenheim

I may make it back to the Guggenheim on my way out of the States not sure at this point how my time will go but if I have a few hours yes!! unfortunately it was closed on Thursday which seems to be my luck really, When i was in Hong Kong 7 yrs ago our day in the city was plagued by closed Museums....more research needed perhaps..


on the train on my way out to Boston

That was a long train ride out to Boston from New york city followed by a bus trip out to Cape Cod where Hollis met me from the bus a welcome face after a very looong day...... have i said it was a long and tiring day yet???

and dinner fish and chips!!!!!
with the lovey Hannah and Doug and the crew...Hollis and Dee

the green chicky....

catching up...the MET

2011-04-11T00:22:00.000+09:30

Thursday was another day in the city, Judi and I went touring around the MET wow some stunning sculpture and pots a lovely Korean exhibition of Contemporary and ancient works called Poetry in Clay was stunning... no cams allowed apparently oops!! in that exhibition anyway..

lunchtime view!!

gorgeous big architectural sculpture

and this lil guy!!

'4 chickies at a well'....the descriptions of the traditional work was sadly lacking :P

and some stunning architecture...

New York city...

2011-04-09T11:49:00.004+09:30

MOMA!!!!

ABC

near the Ferry BAR!!

a rainy trip back wed night on the ferry..

Well hello there!!! so much has happened in the last few days...where to begin?

My first venture into New York city with Judi Sapero Tavill was via the ferry and well more motion just slightly nausiating :) suffering just a little still with the jetlag and the feeling that the ground is still moving under me...

Wednesday was great with a trip to MOMA museum we ventured at least 2 and a half floors before retiring for lunch..immersed in German Expressionist prints and painting the amazing impressionist works plus a lil Mondrian and Modigliani all too awesome up close! Followed by an asian fusion lunch and heaps of trecking through the streets of NY city... an interesting interlude by the 'Pres' causing all sorts of drama with traffic and bucket loads of police....we went through Theatre district, Times square, grabbed a cab or 2 went round in circles...hehehh... stopped for a drink at the pier before heading home...phew what a day one...

Thursday was Judi's grand tour followed by a trip in to the city again to visit the Met wow lots of peeps guarding the work and constant reminders not to touch the work!!! def don't lick it and stop taking pics of the exhibits :P We did a quick stop into Greenwich House Pottery in the West Village... ABC Carpet and Home near Union Square. Nancy Margolis Gallery- Chelsea? kinda intriguing GPH a workshop in the city space quite tight for the amount of peeps there and no one in the gallery I guess we were too late for that... all in all a flat out 2 days followed by dinner out back over New Jersey way.... Judi kindly helped out with names of things...thanks!!!

And today a very long train ride out to Boston...I didnt make it out to Puckers Gallery as negotiating a taxi turned out to be more of a challenge than i could muster up the energy for....so back inside the station for a cup of tea followed by a bus trip out to Fallmouth.....pronounced faaal muth not fall mouth apparently :)) anyhoo just back in after meeting up with Hollis and back to his to see Doug and Hannah....so great to catch up....it's been a while....and off to the first Slipware workshop tomorrow with 'the brits' and hopefully I can figure out how to add some photos to a very uninspiring page of text totally out of character for me and I'm feeling it hopefully i can make up for this tomorrow.... cheers all :))

runny green ash...

2011-04-03T08:59:00.001+09:30

And here they be 2 large pots going into the Campbelltown Art Show today plus a lovely shino platter....

Both pots shrunk about 5cm in their glaze firing, It's always sad to see big pots shrink before your eyes...that must be 20% or more since the wet state.. oh well need a bigger kiln to make bigger pots I suppose...

This is the setup yesterday agin it kept changing as the work I shot got smaller and the tweeking of the light setup changed...not sure how to combat the light reflecting back off the white surface other than a matt spray and more lights..

So off to deliver this work and a busy 2 days left before I leave :))

a lil market fare...

2011-03-28T19:56:00.001+10:30

New Shino and my clay....YEH!!!!

Are pics ok....I feel so flat out at the mo... getting work fired for shows before my trip, they're timed down to the last minute!!

My buddy Rose is the Queen of the setup!!!!.... she just has the touch you know...

Rosa doing her thing!!!!!

Peas in a pod couldn't do this again if I tried!!!!

Beautiful but very chilly day at Stirling yesterday.... we have a cold and damp spot and search for the sun constantly.....I promise I wont scare it off by exclaiming it's presence next time :P hehehehhe....

Rose's lovely tea light lanterns....gorgeous we sold heaps!!!!

shinos baby...

2011-03-21T22:46:00.000+10:30

mmmmm... not bad considering the underfiring..

The celedon's will need a refire but everything else came out noice!!!

intro 'The Planets Introduction And Variations On A Theme' By Rossini played by the London Symphony and 'The Cave' by Mumford and Sons

finito...

2011-03-20T18:29:00.000+10:30

Pot #2 all finito taken pre rim and clean up stage I had to get on it quick smart yesterday with firing the kiln my studio was warming up so it's now done and covered in layers and layers of placky....I'll peel these off tomorrow prepare for slip layers and some marking then the drying can happen..

Post Bisque fire of pot #1 she survived nicely...

A refire shino cup much nicer on second firing, I wasn't happy with the firing from k9 it was quite pale..

My firing yesterday was going really well and ahead of schedule at 6pm when cone 8 started to tip.......I plunged the kiln into a fairly heavy reduction loading it with chips of wood and shutting in the dampers, the atmosphere looked nice and cloudy inside with flames leaping out of every exit....then a couple of hours later disaster!! the tank started icing up and the one I thought still had fuel in it was just about empty....I watered down the tank and got approx another hour out of it before the burners just died out.. oh well!!

a good cone 8 I was hoping for and on cracking the kiln a short time ago the shinos look good....smiles!!! the celedons need a refire they are very opaque but for the most part a very even firing cone 8 top to bottom...I'll unload tomorrow for a closer inspection...

And another refire shino very interesting with heaps of carbon trapping

Lovely 50/50 blend of brown local clay and SWE

And a nice all rounder colour carbon trapping and smooth B7 combo!!

Group shot :))

playing favourites...

2011-03-16T14:12:00.000+10:30

This lil guy is quite possibly the fav from my last raku firing!

I gave them a quick scrub up and under a somewhat dirty green was this gorgeous turquoise colour glaze..

And a couple of really loose sketches for some more tiles, complete of course with a note to self to leave more raw clay body space... I tend to get carried away making images and forget that the nicest thing about this body is the iron spots that emerge during the firing, they really are too nice to cover up all the time...

So a few more of these and I'll be happy to move into the firing schedule, they will make nice additions to my current pieces for the the Terrace Xpo...

It really has been a shocking week watching the devastation in Japan and hearing and reading first hand accounts from aussies living in Japan and notably Euan the Potter who has blogged about his experiences and getting his family far away from the reactor fallout... It's just horrific and makes ya feel rather insignificant against such disasters and the power of nature.. A tough week indeed and work here at home has been totally loopey with a range of events... I won't go into all of it but I left a job yesterday as the police arrived to settle a dispute at the property I was at....yikes!! all calmed down today as i returned to do the job...

Just about to head up to the studio post lunch..I getting ready for a gas firing this wkd and want to get in some lil pieces to bring with me to the states a few gifts me thinks along the 'Doug and Hannah slipware tour'...I'm looking forward very much to meeting the US crew of bloggers along the way and a couple of days with Judy Tavill in New York... woohoo! should be fun.. I reckon my feet are about to be walked off!!!

up that hill and down that mountain...

2011-03-14T17:41:00.000+10:30

I've had a great afternoon shooting these guys...this is my setup at the beginning of the shoot but not how it ended up!!

The lighting tripod ended up on some bricks and leaning across the table almost vertically above the work and leaning towards me and held in place by a heavy bag of stuff so it wouldn't slide away into the cupboard...and thanks to my handy friend the derek for the phone advise :))

Just abit more processing to do with these images and some nice cropping and they'll be done....woohoo learned so much today..

Trying to think of a new name for these tiles there's so much going on and playing with depth or lack of is challenging the 2d space...so 'up that hill and down that mountain' or is it just 'slip and slide'?

lil birdie returns...

2011-03-12T19:35:00.001+10:30

I dig saturdays :)) the phone rarely rings and I get uninterupted studio time....

These tiles are for the expo I mentioned yesterday....it's so great returning to this form after a break.. Ideally another session at this next week will make me happy that I've put the time in developing a story with succession with these tiles..

and lil birdie printing on some mugs jugs and lidded forms....The glaze combo that came out with the cups last week will be where I'm going with these, i finally found a way to use the yellow glaze with a slip trailer over the green and blue glazes it looks just like a watermark where they meet.. so nice...

driving like a granny...

2011-03-10T23:26:00.000+10:30

Oh some groovy stuff goin down this week.... I dropped into one of the places I have some work this week for a chat to see how things are going and was invited to take part in an interiors expo in May this year... It's a really cool idea a setup with all kinds of gear furnishings and everything that goes with it... more when I know the details, so I really got inspired today to make a few more tiles :))

Some earthenware tests and a midfire yummo green...

And my car load for the trip home...some new cups and a few bowls about to get the shino treatment :))

you know it's crazy around here on the short treck home, I need to hang a 'driving like a granny' sign up in my window... you think they'd be used to me by now turtling around the round- a -bouts :P

slipware after all #2...

2011-03-08T11:26:00.000+10:30

A few details of the marks I made on Saturday, two of the three Accidental Terracotta platters survived the slip to this point.. firing tomorrow and hopefully I have a result as I've entered one into the Campbelltown art show..

I think at this stage they are about 38cm.. more shrinkage to come

I didn't attempt to slip the outside of the wares they are very loose and whatever dripped over the outside whilst pouring the inside I have left there..

Thanks peeps for all the notes on my previous post.. I have some good info to go on now for the next firing..and hopefully we can tweak the gas pressure enough to get a good result, the clay body used by others is out of my hands!!!

your help needed...

2011-03-07T16:26:00.000+10:30

Here's the firing results from K9 on the wkd.... as you can see we have a rather large crack in the big pot and a tad over fired as I knocked the cones from their perch whilst adding some twigs to the firing only the cone 10 remained but i wasn't sure which cone it was until the unloading today.... belinda's dragon now has extra claws....

We did a pre warm up on friday evening and the pots were still warm sat morning when we lit the kiln again, it was still a long firing the kiln only has one pilot and one main burner its a 'port a kiln' model

and the firing log is below and ideas on the cracking issue...

any comments greatly appreciated.... I have done this to one of my pots before in a gas kiln and just assumed the firing was too fast and the shock too great....or is it a cooling crack???

Will get details about the clay body used soon....it looks fairly dense to me..

poured not swished...

2011-03-04T20:31:00.000+10:30

Would you believe glaze incarnation #9????

Poured not swished...It's variation is just overwhelming one might say!!!!! pfffft.. So anyhoo I'm liking the overlap areas and no crawling and no dunting so happy yes!!!???

A little wax on wax off....lovely black satin glaze...

the new batch of glaze just lovely.....

and I quite like the old glaze batch remnants with less copper.....noice and very smooth

more workin...

2011-03-03T21:13:00.001+10:30

Casualty

A lil attempt at slipping these accidental TC platters, I say attempt coz it's been a long time coming... the slips have been mixed for ages and quite possibly had the slip too thick I'm still getting a feel for this and will def make thicker pieces next time I have a go......

hmmm one casualty and wont know til tomorrow if they survive i saw a rim crack today that I've smoothed and compressed...only time will tell really.. I feel they are a bit thin to take the slip treatment and if they survive, these will get a bit of scraffito action maybe tomorrow...

And a quick kiln face lift yesterday and today.. with some improvising as i ran out of buttons to hold the fibre in place with a few 1" props..

So just getting the door and flue back in place and I'm ready to go...woohoo!!

Finished this guy today too with some porcelain slip work and some mark making...now for the slow dry and mixing up some ash glaze :))

On completion it was 50cm H x 46cm W

workin day...

2011-02-28T18:32:00.000+10:30

Nearly done!! this big guy is awaiting a rim and that will happen tomorrow now, he's all wrapped up with heaps of placky and overnight will give todays coils time to consolidate and firm up.. then a little base tidying up and some slip and mark making... woohoo!!

trimmed and awaiting the slip now :))

The rim I score up ready for the next coil..

the pug all bright and shiny got its first workout today :))))))))))

a new batch of recycling drying out on plaster..

The Sculptural clay!!!! ready to start again with the platter making...

And this is how I wet down clay that I mentioned in the previous post...
If it's a bit too stiff for me to throw....slice her through and dunk a towel in the bucket loosely wring out and wrap up the clay in layers..tomorrow I flip the stack and the moisture settles out ready to wedge up..

slipware after all...

2011-02-28T10:10:00.000+10:30

Well Stirling Market day came and went and would you believe I didn't take a single photo??!! mmmm brain is a bit mushed me thinks...anyhoo yesterday was lovely a tad cool and foggy when we got there yesterday atop the hill and loads of cyclists.. I mean loads...everywhere!!

It was a beautiful day and lots of first time visitors to the market too which is always lovely... we drank, we ate, we sold some ceramica and heaps of chats and catchups the best stuff really...

So back to my mushed brain would you believe the platters I threw on friday are in terracotta clay???? how did I manage this you may well ask well..... I debagged 2 bags of clay and damped it down in a wet towel.... i'll pics the process later.. the clay body is remarkably similar to my warm sculptural body and in a very similar bag and well if i don't have my specs on I do assume a fair amount :P so back to square one on the platter remake this week.. and it looks like i'll be doing some slipware after all doug :)) some nice black and white slip mixed up and ready to go!!.. HA I don't believe it.. do you????!!!

a bit of coil...a bit of throw...

2011-02-25T13:47:00.001+10:30

Ahhh it's friday!! I've been adding a bit to this pot when i've had a mo this week and it hasn't been easy...but what has been easy is that my clay is pugged and well aged it's been sitting in the tub for months and i'm nearly out...oops and the extruder has been a dream to use.. this pot's for the campbelltown show, I have aspirations of making 2 pots for this years exhibition.. we'll see! ... so here ya go, where i'm at.. it's lunch time and a quick vid from this morning....speedy version :))

where there's smoke there's obvara...

2011-02-19T21:59:00.002+10:30

a lil smokin action from today's raku firing....quite the blast of a day shared with my studio pals...enjoy

When I was little I spent quite a lot of time at home due to illness...I prob read every book in the house and the library and started drawing on books and on whatever had been given to experiment on I had charcoals, pencils, watercolours and all manner of thing to draw with... I do remember drawing portraits of Burke and Wills 2 Aussie explorers that perished in the bush and a striking watercolour painting of red and green capsicum in isolation that hung around our house for years....well eventually the tonsils and adenoids were extracted and I went back to school...and the rest is history..
I did art at every level in school and went straight to art college ....a good thing a I had no idea what I wanted to do....my first year I had Kingsley Marks as my Lecturer in clay as my Liberal Study and he was the best really...It is in that subject i was inspired by clay as a medium but unconvinced I could make a living out of it I moved into design, a good choice for me.....and there you have stylin tip #4 be inspired... absorb....and regurgitate your hearts desire

stylin #3

2011-02-17T13:47:00.000+10:30

Well busy week and i didn't quite make it yesterday for number 3's hot stylin tip... so here tis today...

Tunes!!!!! one simply has to have the grovin tunes whilst working in the studio.... I usually have triple J on I like the alternative tunes mostly, blame this on college too... I've never been much of a top40 fan but i will make an exception for Cee Lo Green 'F You' was in high rotation on the afore mentioned station complete with a language warning I have no idea why it made me smile so much :))

Anyhoo the J's has freebies online and one of my favs at the mo is Gorillaz 'Plastic Beach' along with 'Vampire wkd' of course...
So there's tip Number 3 get ya groove on!!!!

My lovely pug mill bits that Kevin blasted and painted up :))

Sunday arvo involved clay dirt trecking up the road...

Ovoid cups anyone ????

and some newies along with a couple of jugs...

fired another bisque today for Saturdays raku!! drop in if you're local Crouch Rd Golden Grove 5125 SAT 10am - 4pm Gas firing only....bring a plate :))

extruder action...

2011-02-17T13:31:00.000+10:30

for Ron Ball of Canada a few closeups of my extruder....what can i say it's just brilliant!!! check out the pin that clicks in and out of the inner post as it pushes the clay down.

The cylinder for the clay swivels out for ease of access to add clay and to change the dye beneath.... enjoy...

the contortionist wore red...

2011-02-15T13:51:00.000+10:30

The Contortionist Wore Red was a College photography project combined with a graphics project for a book cover....I do remember dreading the next brief it always took so long to get ya head around the next challenge and then you had to pull it off convincingly!! Communicating with the lecturers was always a challenge they could be so....hmmmm how shall i put it snotty? cruel? intimidating!!!! This idea came easy.. I hate that coz then i resent working so hard the next time....hmmmm My photography lecturer provided the smoke bless him...he and his lungs weren't long for this world. He had this terrible rumbling cough that never cleared i always thought he'd hack his lungs up one day....urgh

anyhoo My Styling Tip #2

get a challenge grab it with both hands and get stuck in..

learn to use all the tools you have at hand... be it a camera, a video, a mobile phone, some new software

'a new kiln'....I can only hope :P

but grab em with both hands and work it baby, work it....

stylin...

2011-02-14T11:48:00.001+10:30

Ahh Meredith.....it's a challenge but i'll see what i can come up with over the next 7 days....thinking of them all at one is just like preparing a shopping list really! I always forget something :P

And a lil studio tour with a bit of a flashback to last summer...we were sweltering but not at the mo, it's 22C outside lovely studio weather as it's usually quite a bit warmer up there...so here ya go stylin #1 ya have to wait til the end or fast forward...

arm throwing...

2011-02-11T21:45:00.001+10:30

One of the best clips I've seen recently involved arm throwing!! I must say for the smaller and lighter of us it's a great technique for getting your body weight into centering rather than just relying on your hands..
This week's been a bit busy, which is great as work has been quiet of late and finally I had some time this afternoon to get into the studio.. We had some lovely rain today filling the rain water tanks back up and giving the garden a much needed soak and with the cooler conditions it was lovely outside today...

So back to the platters I've decided to get on with a new batch as I'm really not happy with any of the refires and totally befuddled by this glaze i'm going to fire just a couple at a time in the kiln rather than risking such large losses as in previous firings.. And going with pouring the glaze this time!! I have a new batch of glaze and been making kiln filler pieces too for this new strategy....so settle in the clip is 10mins 40..

Can't wait for my physio to see this he might start to understand why my elbow won't heal :P.... it's my axe injury, did it chopping wood last year...

the ground...

2011-02-10T10:02:00.000+10:30

artline 0.4 pen x2 on A5 sketchbook page

My tuesday night drawing class took an excursion into the outdoors this week ...I thought a change of scenery would be nice for the knew term...

I made up some lil viewing frames to assist with choosing what exactly to draw outside and we spent quite some time out there quietly sketching away enjoying the cool breeze and the birds..we were visited by fatty the magpie who eats everything left out for him and Janet from my class did a quick sketch of him, it was good quick sketching practice because he didn't want to stand still at all..

I drew several sketches of the ground around me it is covered with debris from the gum trees, grasses, leaves, sticks bark and ants...It was a really interesting exercise and in the last sketch i put my frame on the ground to draw what was within and got out the charcoal to do a really loose impression of what I saw...

I'm thinking some really large pieces of paper and some easels would be fun out there!!

Click on images for larger pics..

FC charcoal on Cartridge A5 sketchbook page

tea party cups...

2011-02-09T17:28:00.000+10:30

I'll be throwing my very own teaparty with these cups!!

This is take 2 of the monster cups the sliplines turned out great but i got quite a bit of movement with the clay and the post fired cups are now ovals not round... so here's take 2 with a different clay body and fingers crossed that the handles aren't too heavy.. and a few drawings from the wkd i'm slowly getting the hang of spending more time in the sketchbook again :))

Created with flickr slideshow from softsea.

the tools of the trade...

2011-02-07T15:00:00.000+10:30

my new toys!!!

I honestly can't remember if i've written about this before...so if i have excuse me!! :))

This tool list appeared in my lap one day and i thought... well there's no prices on it and no brand names so whats the story??
It turned out to be a workshop of wonders as I stepped inside this old iron clad shed i couldn't help but smile i took pictures (above) and heaps of them.. wrote down all the details and got as much history as I could..
It turned out the old gentleman now passed away had been a market gardener and quite the inventor as such a job requires..You should have seen this place, a gantry for carrying out large works to the kiln and a place for everything and everything in its place...
Even the atmospheric fluro light that hummed away was inspiration for this Alladin's cave.. I brought all my notes and images to Kevin 'el Club Superman extraordinare' and said what do you think?
I brought home 2 extruders with more attachments than I know what to do with, a de-airing pugmill all home made....a bunch of glaze materials, some cones and a few tools including a cheese slicer or 3 that i've been hunting down for ages! Left behind an electric kiln and a gas kiln that i'm still trying to find a home for..
It's such a mass of heavy metal pieces but put together with great thoughtfulness I can't help but love this stuff and love that it gets to have another life at my place....and after some repair work all these pieces will go on working for years.....as cumbersome as they are they make me smile :)) now what colour shall i paint the pugmill??