new directions

So here is what I gathered from my workshop with Diana Fayt

Don't be afraid of underglaze
color is good
bold backgrounds go well with my drawing style

I just doubled the time that goes into each piece.

I figure that I'm not a production potter and never will be, if it takes me a month to make 20 pieces, so be it. I'll just fire every other month. I would much rather make few well crafted, highly detailed pieces than rush through a large batch, if that makes sense. (thankfully Jake can support us and any profit from ceramics goes to the rainy day fund)


Here is a piece I made before the workshop. It was dark stoneware with a porcelain slip and underglaze applied to the surface for a little bit of color.



So on a similar path now but substituting underglaze for slip and being less timid with color.

I still need to carve into these, but the background is laid out.



here are some drawings that will be carved into the new work




along with more whales and octopi

So that's what I am up to.

Hunter is still teething so it's hard for me to get any time in the studio. By the time he passes out, I'm exhausted and am ready for bed at 8:30 myself. He's crawling all over the place, people tell you your world gets flipped over when they start to move, man oh man.... yikes. I never thought our house was dangerous until he started moving and pulling up on things! it's like having a heart attack every 30 seconds.



The other day I left him in our bedroom while I went to get a glass of water, when I got back into the room he wasn't there.. He's not a fast crawler by any means (the fat rolls slow him down) but he found his way into the shower and was just sitting there putting his fingers into the drain.