Craft Guild of Dallas Show & Sale

This past weekend one of my regular twice annual events with the Graft Guild of Dallas elapsed. I got some valuable feedback and an opportunity to see a selection of the new work in a display setting. The slightly warm white and surface texture of the glazed ware pleases me. I’m plunging ahead towards cake stands, more lidded vessels, and place settings galore, etc.

Here is an assortment of what I have made already for the show in early December.

Harbor Artisan Market, etc.

Hey pottery fans, sorry about the long hiatus! I am officially back on the show circuit, and my next event was just added for this coming Saturday, Sept. 21st. I will be displaying primarily pottery with some jewelry for sale at the inaugural Harbor Artisan Market and Art Festival at the Harbor in Rockwall, TX. The hours extend from 10 am – 6 pm and this event is running in conjunction with a regatta. In addition to up to 50 artists there is plenty of free on-site parking, eateries, shops, a Cinemark movie theater, and a lovely view of Lake Ray Hubbard. The event will likely be bustling (they had ~3,500 attendees last year) so plan accordingly. Hope to see you there!

For more details: Events & News at The Harbor Rockwall

Also, save the date for my next established event, Nov. 1 – 3 for the Fall Sale & Show at The Craft Guild of Dallas in Addison TX. Link here: Craft Guild events and homepage

P.S. The reason my production has temporarily slowed down is to allow me to focus on building my gas-combusting kiln. Here’s a photo of the 8′ x 10′ concrete pad I will be building it on, shortly after completion!

Next on the agenda? Pickup the remainder of the necessary firebrick from the Houston area in Oct-Nov.

Photos from The Spring Show & Sale at The Craft Guild of Dallas

Firing back up to temperature after salting.

A solution of roughly 6.5 lbs of salt dissolved in nearly boiling water was sprayed into the kiln in increments, primarily through the rear ports located above the burner ports shown.

Just after opening the door, before unloading.

Almost all of the large pieces warped and/or cracked, and the higher than usual quantity of salt combined with a better volatilization from the water solution resulted in some both gorgeous and repugnant glaze effects. Yet another mixed bag. Thanks a lot lot, porcelain! (said with both sarcasm and appreciation)

TCG table setup after the Friday night reception.

I wore a Sugarhill Boutique horse batik dress from ModCloth with a Cynthia Rowley blazer from TJ Maxx, mint tights from Anthropologie, and All Black eel/fish skin kitten heels to work the Friday night reception.

A close-up of the pots on display, minus back-stock and what’s chilling in the Gallery.

I also have some things in the Gallery space at the front of the building and about 1/2 again as many pots holed up for re-stock and/or future events. I’ll be on hand again Sunday 5/5/2013 from 2-5 pm if you want to see something that’s not on display.

A close-up of some of the pots.

A final close-up featuring a dragon jewelry dish, necklaces, and assorted functional pots.

My work will remain on display through Sunday, so make plans to attend if you’re able! Hours tomorrow run from 10-6 and Sunday from 11-5. TTFN!

 

Salt Fired Pots in September

I got my most recent batch pushed through a cone 10 reduction salt firing at the Guild. It’s primarily more ambitious pieces and prototypes, but the nice high temperature at shut-off and good quantity of salting gave me pretty successful results overall. I think the Some Bright Green did a bit too much running, but otherwise warping and cracking didn’t plague the pots. This is an ideal situation considering I use grolleg porcelain which tends to take any opportunity to warp and/or crack.

A successful teapot, with a well-fitting lid fresh from the kiln.

The colors and textures evident in the glazes are a bit different than the palette I am accustomed to. A few re-fired bowls got some unbelievable color and crystal variation, for example. The halo and richness of hue in the teapot shown above represent the overall results well. I am happy with the blue slip decoration, both inlaid and trailed, including the few pots with sufficient glaze fluxing to make the slip bleed and run.

Part of the newest batch.

The next event I know of that I’m bringing pots to will be the Fall Sale & Show at the Craft Guild of Dallas, which arrives in early November. I plan to get some more pieces completed by then. The finished pots in my studio are beginning to overflow, however, so we’ll see.

Trophy Completion Report

Well, the results came in on Tuesday, when James cracked the kiln to unload. They turned out just like I planned, for the most part. I did have 2 that touched another kiln shelf as they shrank in the gas firing, and 2 with cracking problems. I should be able to dremel, re-touch with glaze, and re-fire the 2 with touched rims, hope not to have to re-make those. Regarding the cracked pieces, 1 has a minor compression crack in the rim, the other has an impressive crack along the foot ring and outside wall curvature. That ship would sink, so to speak. I ought to re-make both, so I probably will. The re-makes will slow down my completion date, but that won’t cause any problems because they’re not due until September. They’re a time hog to decorate, though.

Ohata kaki glaze and tripod porcelain foot ring.

I wax resisted the rim and entire foot ring before applying glaze, to keep visual unity in the bowls from top to bottom. I am thoroughly happy with the glaze results, as both were reliable from piece to piece. Even the damaged bowls had flawless results.

A view to highlight the precisely flared rim.

The bowl interior features the logo of both regional Peruvian Paso horse clubs who host a regional Texas-based Peruvian Paso horse show. I carved sprig molds of all the capital letters and the relief Peruvian Paso horse in motion, then slip-trailed the rest. Helpful tip: make sure you carve all sprig molds in reverse, so they read the correct direction once you lift them out of the mold and flip them over. Of course, the current year and show title adorn the flared rim of each trophy bowl. I look forward to seeing how the successful recipients react to their prizes this fall.

The Craft Guild of Dallas Show & Sale: This Weekend!

I set up my table at the Craft Guild in Addison today. I feel pretty solid about the group of work presently in my inventory: the pots represent my current level of proficiency pretty accurately, are a pretty diverse selection of forms, and I see definite evidence of my aesthetic and symbolic evolution.

Here’s the group of work, ready for some thoughtful and discerning collectors to pass by.

The reception runs from 7-10 pm tomorrow (Friday, 5/4/12) night, 11 am-8 pm Saturday, and 11 am-5 pm Sunday. I am slated to work the Friday night reception and Sunday from 2-5, so come by during those timeframes to catch me in person. The pots will be available all weekend; those that don’t find new homes, that is. Stop in if you’re able; the Craft Guild is easier to find about 2 blocks down Montfort off of Beltline, just fyi. Look for the suite with Visit Addison in the windows from Montfort, the Craft Guild is intermingled with the visitor’s center. I would love to show you the pottery, give you the rundown on all of the other talented craftsmen and/or artists set up throughout the studios at the event, or simply talk shop about my studio practice.

Here I am with the table, tired and happy. What a big day with a few more to come.

Here’s the postcard image, front and back side, with some of the particulars.

Trophies in Progress

Here's a bird's eye view of the incomplete Breeding Stallion trophy bowl.

I received a custom order for a regional horse show in the fall, for 12 trophy bowls. I was given full artistic freedom with the requirement of including the club logo, year, and title. I placed the logo in the bottom interior, and scrolled the text around a flattened rim. I hand-carved all stamps and sprig molds myself, then the slip-trailing was completed freehand. After all, I believe in authenticity. The slip and sprig molds are colored with blue stain, dark for the slip and medium for the sprigs. I still have 7 more to make, and these 5 still need to be trimmed. Let me tell you, this sort of decoration takes FOREVER. I really hope the pieces live up to the expectations of the club President.

Here are the five with finished decoration. There are slight variations in text placement, but I think that indicates their hand-crafted nature.

After trimming, I’ll cut out three chunks in the foot ring to match up with the three stamps on the rim band to give these a nice visual openness underneath.

P.S. I’ll be showing/selling work at two craft sales in April and May. Stay tuned for details as the dates approach.

Business as usual in the studio

I have once again filled my big Skutt electric to the gills. Apparently my volume management skills are still on par, as I only made three pieces too many. Those orphans will just get priority next time.

There’s a lot of traditional forms for me, including bowls, cups, mugs, cream/sugar sets, pitchers, and sauce boats. New stuff like colanders, bowls with mug handles, updated pitcher forms, lots of sprig molds, inlaid slip, and slip trailing, a number of inlaid slip glaze test cups, and progressively larger item dimensions are looking pretty promising. I’ve also been gradually whittling down the overall weight with thinner walls, trying not to compromise durability.

Going to see the Jeff Oestreich lecture at the Craft Guild of Dallas tonight. I’m really excited to see the slides and hear what Mr. Oestreich has to say. He’s definitely one of the heavyweights in the U.S. pottery community. Click on the photo of Jeff Oestreich’s teabowl below to go to his website.

Pretty classic example of what his work is all about

 

Also, I’ve posted a bunch of fresh pots in my Etsy shop, if you’re interested. Be sure to check back for a review of the lecture. Thanks for the atencion!