Dreary days in June are no fun

Fortunately, I've been countering the lack-luster weather by using particularly bright colors on one of my new bodies of work (they make not look like it now since colored slip is usually pretty dull before it's fired, but trust me). Since late fall I've been experimenting with the yin-yang effect of using vivid electric glazes contrasted with smoke firing (did I mention this in my last post? I don't remember and it isn't worth it for me to check thanks to the wondrous world of 52 Kbps); recently, I've begun connecting that with my older interest in foreign decorative motifs and *voila* now have several new bodies of work I'm creating simultaneously.

The body I referenced earlier in particular has been demanding most of my time purely because of the ridiculous (so I've been told) amounts of time I spend decorating each piece. The pieces are simple hand-build forms with patterns inspired by Aboriginal artwork, which means lots and lots and LOTS of dots. The idea came from a book of postcards Joan gave me at the beginning of my apprenticeship and which has been stewing in the back of my imagination ever since; I didn't know quite what to do with them until my recent visit to an exhibit of Dale Chihuly's work inspired by Navaho Trade Blankets where something just *clicked* in my brain (*make a motion to indicate a light going on*). Obviously, the images posted with this blog are a sample of the creating-frenzy that followed.

One of the first pieces I created - the pattern is based on watering holes connected by small streams (a lot of the work I used as reference is depicted as if from a bird's-eye view)

A close-up of the detail on the bowl...the hardest part was "dotting" onto a concave surface without the slip running

This piece is based on a story of how one kingfisher visiting another led people to water; I was in awe at the thought of language as pure imagery with this one*

If you can't tell from the images, all of the pieces are completely rounded; I did this intentionally as putting feet on them just felt like it interrupted something with the form...couldn't put my finger on what. Instead, I'm designed wooden stands for the pieces to be displayed on - should be interesting at the very least. These pieces are also shown in their pre-fired state as I forgot that camera batteries need charging and therefore didn't have pictures of when they came out of the kiln. All I have yet to do in the finishing process is smoking the white areas of the pieces and then coating the exterior surfaces with beeswax to seal them...looking forward to the finished products. :)

*Please note: I was very careful to check copyright laws pertaining to Aboriginal artwork and am abiding by all said laws when it comes to the selection of inspirational pieces and decoration of my work

Finally "Getting Out There"

After years of promising myself to do so, I'm finally taking the initiative to create a blog intended to revolve entirely around my work in ceramics. Please forgive my first few posts as I'm still getting used to the whole concept of "blogging" and am currently living with a less-than-stellar internet connection (gotta love living in northern Wisconsin...I do, actually, but only when it's warm out); things should balance out as I familiarize myself with the site and a schedule of regular updates.

A good way to get started is probably a little background information on myself and my work.

I graduated in May of 2009 from Luther College in Decorah, IA, with a B.A. in Studio Art and a minor in International Studies. The following September I became the resident apprentice and beginning-level throwing/handbuilding instructor at Riverrun Center for the Arts in McNaughton, WI. My apprenticeship will continue through the end of August 2009, after which time I plan on moving to the Twin Cities to continue working in ceramics and preparing for graduate school.

My current body of work is an exploration of the contrast between smoke-fired and glazed surfaces; I've been experimenting with low-temperature glazes (usually no higher than cone 04) and white clay bodies for the last few months and am finally getting some results I feel I can really run with. I will be firing a load of bisqueware tomorrow, after which I will be able to post images of REALLY recent work.