New Pots

Here are some of the lastest from the kiln, but more are to follow, I just ran out of time to take the pictures. All but one of these are in Centenial Gallery. The one that did not make it had a few small chips out of the foot.

As you can see, the foot has a few chips out of it.

Technology is like Frogger

Keeping up with the pace of technology is like playing a game of Frogger. If you get lazy, or think you don't need to keep abreast of new tech and the inherent changes that invariably happen, you will get squashed like the little frogger by the big TECH Mac truck, or if you are too afraid to even try to cross the Tech highway, you will be left behind and never get to the other side. BTW, there isn't another side, the lanes are endless and the traffic is ceaseless.


In an attempt to help prod the fearless leader of Fairview Studios into the 21st century, I have taken on the task of learning about using a smart phone as a credit card terminal. You might think that this would not be a big deal. If so, you apparently have not met our Fearless Leader. Only recently did he get a cell phone and by cell phone I mean a flip phone that only sends and receives phone calls when the phone is turned on, which it rarely is. Texting is not in his vocab.

The way the studio accepts credit cards is archaic to say the least. Do you remember the way we used to do it? Before swiping? That's right, we run the card through a card imprinter. The cost for using this is huge compared to what these companies charge.

I did some research on various companies that provide this service and I have shown him that he can save approximately 40% on the cost of taking credit cards, but he is still confused. Especially when I tell him it is free to sign up and that the device that swipes the card is free and there is no monthly fee (how can that be? he says). In an attempt to make this clearer, I signed myself up. I really should be able to take credit cards when I make sales, instead of hoping a cheque clears or having to delay a sale to wait for the customer to get money. Not many people carry money anymore. I like money, but it is a pain to have to always go to the bank to get it when you can whip out a credit card or a bank card and be done with it. So now I can track the cash and credit transactions and get a clearer picture of how my own pottery sales are doing instead of just blindly feeling my way along hoping for the best. It is a good thing pottery is not my main source of income.

Long story short, once I get my own little card reader, I will be able to take credit cards.

The moral(s) of this story? Don't think you can ignore technology, and when an old fart asks you to help, take a deep breath and count to 10 when their eyes glaze over in confusion. Don't get frustrated, just have patience because this could be you in a few years if it already isn't.

Fairview Studios Spring 2013 Pottery Sale

I know it's a bit early to post this, but I see that some people are already searching for this information when I look at my blog stats.
The Fairview Studios Spring Pottery Sale for 2013 will be Saturday, May 4th.

Wants, Wishes & Dreams

How does one achieve their dream(s)? I really have not got a clue. I have a vague, fluffy, romanticized dream which I can not see coming to reality. In this dream, I kinda know what I want, or sort of., these wants change regularly, but the core wants remain the same (mostly). The conflict within me is that the dream, to ever become a reality, does not dovetail well with my personality. I like the idea of the dream, but to get there I would need to change (I think). I think I need constancy and reliability (who doesn't?), but my dream, if it were to ever come to this side of the looking glass, would probably entail a certain element of uncertainty.

So let's lay it out.

My airy fairy, pie in the sky dream is this. I want to have my own personal studio (& show room?). I don't think I would want it in my home though. Right now, I couldn't do that due to space limitations. But I also know that if I did, I don't think I would have the self discipline to put the time in and not get distracted by household matters (ie: a good movie on tv, food, sleeping etc). So, this imaginary studio would have to be at least a few minutes away from my house where the temptations of being a sloth were not temptingly nearby. Once I get stuck in, I'm good to go as long as there is some music playing in the back ground. Often, as I drive around town, or walk around my neighbourhood, I try to envision myself in some of the retail spaces. I would need to be in a trendy part of town, not too industrial, and definitely not residential, unless there was some element of artsyness and had a good “cool” quotient. Also in this dream I would have a gas kiln dedicated to salt or soda firing (this would probably never happen what with the city bylaw restrictions on things like air pollution etc (I know city hall employees wouldn't understand the need to have one)) and at least 2 electric kilns (front loaders would be nice, but not necessary). I already own 1 electric wheel, but hey, I could always use another, or even 3. Maybe even a Leach treadle wheel for fun, but probably just a show room vase holder. This space would be (in my minds eye anyway) split front to back. The back would be the making area with a ground level loading door for easy unloading of clay and other materials. The front 1/3 to 1/2 would be a show room with a bit sectioned off for the packing etc, but there would be easy access to the back so that the “hoards” of customers would be able to watch me throw if they wanted. I have not cloned myself though, so this would require some thoughts on how to run a show room and an operating pottery by myself. I don't think I could deal with an assistant, that would require paying them and then all the associated headaches like payroll deductions etc. In the back there would be dedicated areas for wedging, throwing, glazing, glaze mixing & ware storage (ie pots waiting to bisque & glaze fire). The floors would be concrete, but sealed for easy clean up. Counter tops would be stainless steel and there would be a good sized sink with a clay trap. If enough room was available, then I could even think about a plaster room for mixing and making plaster molds, but I know nothing about mold making, so that would be a tentative want.

Now that I have laid bare my secret dream, the things holding me back are these:

I like a steady income – not so sure that a pottery in the inner city of Calgary would or could turn a profit, or even break even for that matter. My mortgage company also likes it if I have a steady income, not to mention the bank where my car loan is, my credit cards, and other things like that.

There is also the fear of failure and filing for bankruptcy. It is kind of funny though. I have known or heard of so many people who take the plunge into large projects or owning their own business without thinking farther than the end of next week and then of course fail when reality steps in and throws it's weight around. I on the other hand probably think too far into the future. All the “what if's” are imagined. Like “what if no one likes my work?”, or “What if I can't pay the bills?” etc.

It appears that I am an artist trapped in a practical person's body. I am fairly sure that this dream will never come to fruition unless I were to inherit gobs of money from a long lost relative (all the not lost relatives are poor), or win the lottery and my chances of that are less than being hit by lightning.

I could also look at it this way. I work so that I can pot. I pot in a place that is almost like a private studio except for the 50 or so people that also use the space and that I don't own it. I am there when I am not working or sleeping. In fact, I spend about 18 hours a week at the studio, 15 of which are dedicated to my own work. I would get a whole lot more done if I didn't also work 40 hours per week at my regular job. I might also get a bit more sleep, but probably not.
I know it's silly, but a dream is a dream, and if I can't dream, then what's the point? Also, if I don't put it out there, then how will my long lost relative with lots of spare cash know where I am and how to find me?

Back to reality. I unloaded the kiln on Tuesday, took a bunch of pictures last night and took a few pots down the Centennial Gallery. I will take more pictures tonight and hopefully get some of the ones I kept out of Centennial onto Etsy as that particular shop is bare. So maybe some pictures tomorrow?

One more thing - As I wrote this, I envisioned my realtor/mother (one and the same) reading this. So before you ask Mum, no, I do not want to move.

That Was Exhausting

I taught my regular Tuesday class last night and it was jam packed (14 people I think?) In contrast, I taught on Monday night, and there were only 5 people there, 2 of which are taking some time off to have a baby and were only there to finish glazing their pots. I like teaching smaller classes, but of course, that doesn't keep the studio doors open. Fairview Studios is in fact looking for more students as enrolment has been down for quite a while. This past summer we dropped the Wednesday night class as nobody was showing up. I know we would like to bring it back on line, but the demand has just not been there. Hint - if you are looking for classes and you live in Calgary, check Fairview out.

I can usually deal with large classes, but I had a couple of fairly new students, and I had to do 3 demonstrations when normally it is usually just 1. First the throwing demo (normal), then I had 2 new students from last week that needed a trimming demonstration, and finally I had students that had yet to glaze anything so they needed a glazing demonstration. I usually arrive at the studio at 5:30pm right after work so that I can get a few of my own things done before class begins at 6:30, and then I can usually continue to work on my own stuff throughout the class in between the odd question. Not so much last night. I was going to load a bisque last night, but that definitely did not happen. I will see if I can load it on Friday and glaze on Sunday. I really need to get some work finished to take to the galleries and complete commission work etc.

Work in progress

Lately I have been working on a few different things in the studio. I have begun making for the salt and soda firing in April, but I have also begun to experiment with a low fire porcelain body. I mixed up a 5000 g batch of this "porcelain" and threw a few little cups and even constructed a small teapot to see how this body throws and fires. Kurt Weiser talked briefly about this when I saw him at the workshop in Lexington, but only talked about it as a good formula for making beads etc so I was not sure how it would throw, if at all. The recipe is 50% New Zealand Kaolin, 50% frit3195 and an addition of 2% VeeGum by weight. It fires to cone 04, but just to be cautious, as the test kiln seems to fire a bit hot, I only took the first firing to 05. As you can see from the first 2 pictures below, it is quite translucent. I did not glaze them either, they became quite glossy on their own (although a bit pebbly in texture, I am hoping it will smooth out at 04). Nor did I stilt them. Although the "clay" vitrifies completely, the placing sand that I set them on buffed of with sand paper to reveal a satiny smooth foot. The rest of the pictures are just more of the sgraffito work I have been obsessing over.

Help an artist save his eyesight

It's a pretty sad state of affairs when a Canadian Citizen has to raise money to save his eyesight. What ever happened to universal health care?

Check out this campain and if you are able to help I am sure it would be appreciated.
http://igg.me/p/221310/x/2079866

Ouch!

Too many days spent with hands in wet clay leads to this....I think I need some hand lotion!

Large teapot continued

A while ago I posted a out a customer that is looki g for a large tea pot that would hold approximately 12 cups. After many back and forths on size shape and colour, this is what I came up with. It hold 11.5 cups or so and requires some muscle to pick it up when full, hence the extra lifting lug on the front. I have yet to hear back from her if is acceptable or not, we shall see. In the back groundw are the last batch of mugs with the black and white scraffito decoration.

A Christmas Orphan

Last year I was a Christmas orphan for the first time. My parents decided that humid Hawaii would be a better place to be than cold Calgary and they did not get back until after the new year. We had a pre Christmas dinner before they left, but it was not the same. My Cousin took pity on me and invited me over for their Christmas day dinner, but still, not the same.

This year, they decided to go on a Caribbean cruise and will not be back until late on Christmas Day evening. I had no plans, and wasn't really looking for anything to do. I don't mind being alone, I can do whatever I want, like go to the studio, contemplate the universe, eat cookies, watch movies etc...But last night one of my students asked what I was doing for the holidays. I made an offhand comment that I was not doing anything as my family was mostly out of town (not sure what my sister is doing). Later that evening, one of my other students, who joined up with his daughter, invited me to his family's house for dinner. I couldn't say no, being the charitable time of year, so I accepted and now I will have turkey.
When I got home, I got a message from my Cousin asking if I wanted to come over Christmas eve, and so now my calendar is full and I am no longer a Christmas Orphan. Now I just have to think of what to give these people as a thank you for including me in their holiday goings on. Good thing I make pottery.

A Weight has Been Lifted....Hallelujah

...Wait a second, nope, that was the stove shaped albatross. I had the junk removal dudes come by on Saturday to take my extra stove away as well as all the detritus on my patio. If you have ever wondered (although probably not) how long a person could live with a stove in their living room, then I can honestly say that 1.5 years is about as long as any person can stand it. I know, 1.5 years. It just flew by though. One minute in August I had 1 stove, the next I had 2, throw in a generous helping of procrastination, and you have 1.5 years of living with two stoves. It was pushed out of the way and was partially hidden under assorted pieces of pottery. It was as if I had an installation art piece in my condo that “...explores the human condition through it's dependency on electricity and lays bare the divide in western culture between function and art by juxtaposing the sad stove and hand made functional art....” or something. But really, it was just that I am hardly ever home during the day, and am often not home before 9:30 pm during the week and I am lazy (Sorry Mum, it's true, but I think you knew that already)

So Saturday was a write off, I worked until 3, went to let the junk guys in at 3:30 and that was pretty much it. Sunday I loaded a glaze with all those cups in my last post as well as a few other pieces and lots of other student work. I threw half a dozen mugs, slipped and scratched a bowl with a geometric pattern on the outside and my new Dr. Seuss inspired Who House motif on the inside, worked on a commission for another ceremonial firebowl, put a tea pot together and finished trimming a low wide bowl/plate. It too will be destined to have the Who Houses on the inside.

On Saturday I also took possession of my new tungsten carbide trimming tool and a 20kg bag of New Zealand Kaolin. The trimming tool is fantastic, but it will take me a bit to get used to it. I think it requires the pot to be a little drier than what I am used to trimming. The Kaolin will be something for me to play with over the holidays. I am going to try combining it with frit to make a low fire, highly translucent porcelain body. I am not 100% sure what I am going to do with it yet, but once I get my hands in it, the ideas will come (I hope).

Mugs, mugs and more mugs

These mugs and an assortment of bowls, plates and vases that were done in the same black and white sgraffito decoration were bisque fired on Sunday. I will be glazing them tonight. There are a couple in there that were done with a deep red terra sig slip and I have no idea how it will come out, so I will have my fingers crossed for those. I tried layering the red and black on one mug as well. I am really liking some of my designs, some not so much. One in particular is sort of an accidental homage to Dr. Seuss. It ended up looking like the houses the Who's live in. You can see the "Who" mug in the last picture front and centre.

Hoarding – a Confessional

Ok, so I am not as bad an actual hoarder, but I can see that I have certain tendencies in that direction. I also work best when faced with a looming deadline. So, with those 2 things in mind, I booked an appointment for the junk collector dudes to come around to my condo next saturday after I get off work. They are going to take all the detritus off of my patio and a stove. A stove you say? Yes, a stove. My mother, in all her best meaning motherness, foisted, I mean gifted the stove that she did not need anymore after my parent's renovated their kitchen a while ago. I'll grant you that it is a much better stove. It is a ceramic top, it self cleans etc, but I knew that the old stove would become an albatross around my neck. My mum seems to recall offering to take the old stove away but that I refused the offer. I however recall that they dropped the stove off and left like jack rabbits. I tried to get rid of it the cheap way by calling scrap metal guys but no one seemed to want it, or if they did, it had to be outside.

Long story short, I have been living with this stove pushed up against my wall between my kitchen and my living room for more than is mentally healthy. I broke down the other day and booked a pick up time with the 1-800GJ? guys for next Saturday. I will now have to pay to have it removed, but in the long run, who cares, I will get it out of my house and I can begin thinking of new furniture. I really really want to change my living room, and this will let me do that. The sitting furniture is staying, but the shelving is changing (I hope). The only snag in that plan will be to see if I can hang the wall units that will be affixed to to the wall above and behind my new sitting area by myself and if my skills are up to the job so that they do not come loose and concuss or kill me while I am sitting in the “new” sitting area.

So, there is a lot going on, and hopefully these new improvements will help me achieve a new level of unhorderliness. So let the purge begin. I hope the dumpster out back is empty, because I am going to fill it up.

Retired

I have come to the conclusion that there is a massive cosmic imbalance. At least in terms of the number of flat tires I have had and had to change when compared to the rest of humanity. I could understand it if I drove through fields of rusty nails and broken glass, or was a maniac with a blatant disregard for curbs and speed bumps etc. However, I am a normal person, I drive on paved roads, I do the speed limit (mostly) and I don't go off-roading and 4x4ing across curbs and cement barriers. Friday was, I'm just guessing, but at the very least, it was probably the 8th flat tire I have had over a period of 4 cars. I have driven 5 in total, but strangely enough, the little '82 Dodge Colt did not get a flat, at least while I drove it. Everything else was wrong with it, but never a flat. Anyway, in an attempt to be somewhat proactive, I got a couple of “new” all seasons put on the front of my car last Tuesday. On Friday I drove into a parking lot not 500m from where I work and got a flat tire. To top it off, it was really cold last week. My fingers were like chunks of ice by the time I was done changing it. Oh yeah, I was in boots with skinny little heels on them, so it was as if I was standing on my toes the whole time. Not so good for the calf muscles. I almost had a charlie horse in both legs. A lot, if not all, of the other people I know have never had to change a flat, or even had a flat tire for that matter. It can't be some kind of Karmic retribution thing. I mean, I think I'm generally a nice person, I'm polite, I don't get angry etc etc, so that can not be it.

Anyway, while pondering the injustice of it all, I left work early to get my flat fixed/replaced. Turns out that I had picked up a screw. I thought there was a strange vibration that morning, so it was probably slowly losing pressure, and the balance was thrown off . They replaced it for free, so that was great, but not how I wanted my Friday to go. I guess the upside to this story is that if you are ever with me in a vehicle, you know I know how to change a tire. I can do it fast too. Unless it is -15 and snowy and wet, and then I'm a bit slower. With all these flats, I have learned a few things. I have learned that there is no cell phone coverage on the Trans Canada Highway in between Lake Louise and Banff; long haul truck drivers don't stop for nothin', at least not a single woman on the side of the road trying to change a tire; old farmers eating ice cream will give you a hand even though they look frail enough to blow over in a light breeze; and the police officers in Calgary will give you a hand when it's -24 and the cheap !!@#ss tire iron your car manufacturer provides wont cut the mustard.

So there you go, if you have never had to change a tire, then you should thank me, I probably picked up your slack.

A Pleasant Evening out with Friends

This past summer I made 12 crocks in the “Medalta” style for a friend who was getting married in the new events facility at Medalta. I did not charge for my time, just the materials, so as a thank you, she bought me 2 tickets to see Stuart McLean's Vinyl Cafe Christmas Concert at the Jubilee Auditorium. Last night was the show, and we had really good seats. There were 8 of us in our group and we were in the 1st row of the first balcony. They were pretty good seats if you ask me. If you don't know the Vinyl Cafe, you should check it out. It began as a radio show on the CBC and it still is, but now they take it on the road as well and do live audience broadcasts in various cities and towns across Canada and some in the US as well. At Christmas they do a special tour for their Christmas Concert. The show has been running for 19 years now and to me it has been a staple when I'm in the studio on Sunday mornings. I got home around 10:45pm, but only because the parking at the Jubilee is stupid. It took about 20 minutes for me to park, and 15 minutes just to get out afterwards. My night took a turn for the weird after that. I went to bed at around 11:45 and woke up at about 4am having just had a dream about tazering somebody. I will have to review my sleep talking recordings when I get home tonight, because I know I was very vocal. I woke myself up sleep yelling at someone to “just get out of here”. Very strange indeed.

I will be all alone at the studio tonight. But that is OK, I have about a dozen or so large mugs to finish decorating which is quite tedious and I tend to tune everyone out and ignore them anyway. I will just turn the radio up and be antisocial tonight. I may even see if I have enough greenware to load a bisque, but that is not urgent, so maybe not, we'll see. I have been shooting more youtube videos as well, so perhaps I will work on a few more this weekend and see if I can't get at least one edited and uploaded this weekend. They just take so much time to finalize and upload these days with the HD quality videos, but they are nicer to watch than the grainy low res ones. I'm still searching for the perfect angle to shoot from too. I may try using 2 cameras to get a couple different angles. It is hard to see what is going on inside a pot when throwing and that is just as crucial as what is going on on the outside. Something else to work on I guess.

Post Sale Blues

Another sale is in the books, but not the record books. We began arriving to set up the hall at 6:45 on Saturday morning. I managed to forget to bring coffee cups, so I had to run off and buy some at Safeway. I have never been the first person in a grocery store before, but now I have. Gotta say, the employees are mildly crabby at 8am. The set up went well, not rushed. I only broke one thing :(. I tipped a plate over onto a teapot and cracked the lid. The doors opened at 9am on the dot, and although the crowds were nothing compared to the black friday freakyness in the US, I took my life in my hands opening the doors up. I'm pretty sure that if I had not gotten out of the way quickly enough I would have been knocked down and run over by crazed pottery buyers and their rolling suitcases and I would have been just a stain on the linoleum. As per usual, the crowds rushed around grabbing everything they saw, shoving it into their boxes and bags to be picked over in a corner of the hall when the frenzy subsided. I must say I still don't understand the buying public's thought processes. The things that attract me and make me oooh and aaah are obviously not the same as what attracts their attention. It apparently doesn't matter if a piece is perfectly thrown and glazed just right. They like the bling. If it has super busy glazes, then that is what they love. If you spent hours carving a piece, no matter, they don't care. They just want cheap. So, if it is lumpy, bumpy and much less than perfect, but only costs $10, then they will take it, doesn't matter. Perhaps it matches their drapes. One shopper came with a friend and was heard saying “this isn't a seconds sale, I thought it was a seconds sale”. We have never advertised it as a seconds sale. I don't know who told her it was, but we gotta nip that in the bud. She was pleased that the quality was much better than a seconds sale, but would she have come on her own if she did not know? Probably not. I think the sale was above average in sales, but mine were down a bit from previous years, so I guess that is what has me bummed a little. What I thought would fly off the table did not, so I guess I will need to rethink my new work, or just bombard them with it at the next sale and not give them a choice.

New glaze combo

Just testing my blogger app. I did not even realize there was such a beastie.

I swear I'm not on drugs officer

Check out that pupil, it's huge.

I had just had my eyes dilated at the optometrist. Driving home was weird. I could see clearly to drive, but up close everything was fuzzy. Just glad I didn't go through a check stop. They might have thought I was under the influence of some illegal substance.

Another Trip to Medalta

It looks like I might possibly make another trip down to Medalta in the spring. My friend Susan and I are thinking of going down the weekend of April 27th to fire in their Salt and Soda kilns. Medalta is located in Medicine Hat, Alberta and is in the historic clay district. Back in the day, there was the Medalta pottery, the Hycroft pottery, and at least 1 brick factory that I know of. It is also where Plainsman Clays is located.

When I went down in Feb 2010, we had a very good tour of the Hycroft factory as well as the Medalta museum and the areas of Medalta that were off limits to the regular visitor. At that time, the new Events facility was still under construction. The facility was being constructed on top of some excavated Bee Hive kilns that you would then be able to view through the floor.

If we are able to book our trip for that weekend, it will coincide with a community clay event that Medalta is having. Their long term resident artists will be holding workshops for the public and it would be fun to be involved with that while we are firing.

I am hoping April will be much warmer than when we were there last. It was so cold that weekend that my power steering froze during the time we were glazing and loading the kilns that first evening (note to self: don't leave your car facing into the wind when it's -30 celcius). The temperature difference while we were firing in the kiln area was such that we created our own weather system. The skies were clear and blue, but it was snowing in the kiln compound..

So I am looking forward to that. Right now however, I am still not ready for the studio sale next weekend. I still need to clean out the car and empty out my boxes of pots and decide what is going and what is going into the trash to make room for the new stuff. Then I need to price which is not a science. I usually go on gut instinct for pricing. I ask myself “would I pay $xx for this?” then, do I really want to sell it (still precious to me)? If it is still precious, I jack the price up so as to alleviate the pain of letting it go. Otherwise, I try to price it fairly so that it doesn't make it impossible for the average person to buy.

Sgraffito

The pictures suck, but they were taken with the old iphone under fluorescent lighting on my desk at work.

This is an example of what I was up to on the weekend. The previous weekend I had thrown a few "Christmas" bells as well with the idea that I would carve holly leaves into them. So I did. There were many many bells, and they took me 3 days to finish, including the mugs. I also managed to wear my pin tool and a small kemper triangle ribbon tool down to wee little nubs. They came out of the kiln on Tuesday and I wrapped them up to take home. I did manage to "ring" one bell before I got out the door. I tested it against the concrete floor. Not recommended.

After sgraffitoing 4 mugs and 16 bells I was beginning to get a weird tingling shooting pain running up my forearm. I might have found a way to speed up the progression of carpal tunnel syndrome. I was also doing a pretty good impression of Quasimodo by the end of the day.
On another note, I am going to be learing the art of wood turning. Maybe tonight even. I am leaving it at that though, I don't want to give away my Christmas gift ideas to the possible recipients of said gifts.