Tom and Elaine Coleman Workshop

About two weeks ago I attended a workshop with Tom and Elaine Coleman at Finch Pottery. It was a wonderful time. I learned a lot. My brain was swelling with information. Tom puts on a great show. He gives out a lot of useful information and tells some great stories. I would recommend attending a Coleman workshop if you get a chance.

New Work

New Work, more coming soon

Gustin Workshop

I just got back this weekend from a two day workshop with Chris Gustin at Cub Creek. Cub Creek houses about 4 to 5 resident ceramic artst in Appomattox, VA. It was only a couple hours drive and Chris Gustin work is a really big influence when I was starting out. It was a great workshop. Met new people, learn new things and overall great time. Gustin make large sculptural forms. He starts out with a thrown base, alters and then coil builds. The finish form is about 3 to 5 feet in height. Some of what I learned and saw might come into my work. I will at least play around with some ideas.

Good news

I don't update this thing as much as I should. I've been really busy in September with teaching. Making some great work too. I have some good news. In my previous posts I talked about getting into Strictly Functional. The opening was last Friday and you can check out the show online at their website. The good news is I got a purchase award. I will be in Clay Times magazine permanet collection. I was so excited when I got the news. I don't subcribe to clay times, so I checked out the website and there it was on the cover. I went to the store and picked up several copies. It's a good feeling to have your work recognize like this. I guess i'm doing something right. Go rush out and pick up a copy of the sept./oct. issue. I'll try to get some pictures up of recent work soon.

update

I was juried into this years Strictly Functional Pottery National. The cork bottle above was chosen by jury Pete Pinnell. Out of 1252 pieces he selected 108. Its kind of mind blowing that your work is one of the few that was selected. It's quite the honor. I've been thinking lately about sending stuff off to galleries for shows and sales. I have been shying away from this. I sell work at one local gallery and another couple hours away. I want to send my portfolio off to more bigger, establish galleries. My dilemma is that i'm moving away from what I was making in grad school and trying some new stuff. It's not quite as strong as I would like it. Also, I don't have a definite studio. I've been using the one where I teach at and its not a stable long term job. I would also like to teach workshops. I did send a portfolio out for that, but haven't heard anything yet.

Spraying Glazes Continued

So why spray glazes? I'm attracted to atmospheric firings, wood, salt and soda. I like the way the clay catches the fire and it paints the surface. one side of the pot maybe different from the other side that didn't catch the flame. I want the surface of my pots to be rich and varied. I try to approach spraying like the spray gun is the flame of the glaze. I usually start with a base glaze and then a light modifier sprayed on top. This glaze is usually a matte glaze. I use a glossy glaze to highlight certain areas. This is a thin application depending how much I want it to run. A good spray booth is esstential, otherwise you'll have to spray outside. I spray about 3 to 6 glazes on each piece. The glazes then flow into each other leaving traces of the process. Like with all things in ceramics, this takes practice and patience. The first pots I sprayed ran and fuse to the kiln shelves.

Tips for spraying glazes

I have been using a spray gun to apply glazes to my work for about three years now. I think spraying allows for more control and variation of how the glaze looks. I'm not a big fan of lines that result when you dip your pots into glaze. I also don't like solid colors. I want my pots to be rich and varied in color. I want the viewer to engage and explore the surface
Alright, now you might be asking yourself how do I spray glazes? Well first you need a good spray gun. I use a gravity feed spray gun. Geil kilns use to sell a good one, but I don't think they sell it anymore. I purchase mine from tooltopia.com and you can always get one from harbour freight. I would get one that is inexpensive, because the glaze will eat away at the nozzle overtime. It can easliy be replaced with another. You want a gun with a larger tip. I recommend one with a 2.0mm nozzle. This allows for less clogs and more material to pass through. Gravity feed is better then syphon. It uses less air. Of course, you'll need a compressor. 18 to 30 gallons should do. Make sure you put it away from you, because it can be like a small dog barking at your feet. On the next post I'll talk how I spray.