Gary Jackson: Fire When Ready Pottery
A Chicago potter’s somewhat slanted view of clay & play
Categories: bike, Chicago

Just two weeks after the “big snow”… today we’re in for the “big thaw.”
With the sun beaming and temperature rising, it was a beautiful afternoon.
And I really wanted to go for a bike ride along the lake.

Although I typically avoid days like today because I know it’s too soon
and there will be puddles, mushy snow, mud, debris and kinds of junk along the trail.

I knew that it wasn’t a wise idea.
I knew that I would inevitably get one of those wet mud stripes up my back.
I knew that the puddles would be 3-inches deep in parts
I knew that the stretch just south of Fullerton would be impassable.
But I also knew that I was going to go anyway.

It was irresistible.

Categories: special events

As part of my “glitter gig” with the special events company, we had a very special
Valentine Masquerade Party last night. We had the chance to transform the client’s home
into a wonderfully lush, red velvet space with columns, flowers, antique silver and more!
Each room had a different design theme – and everybody loved their Valentine experience!
Plus, we had some left-over flowers… instead of leaving them there, I brought them home!

Luckily, I have plenty of vases to put them all in! So now I have even more flowers around
which really makes me anxious for Spring!!! Luckily, it’s warmer outside and “Blizzaster 2011”
seems to be melting quickly. I’m even hoping to get out on my bike tomorrow morning!

Categories: pottery, process, production, stamps

Yes… in that order.
Generally that’s the sequence I like to do it in.

I stamp my pots when the clay is considered “wet” leather-hard.
No longer sticky, no longer squishy. Yet still moist enough for a good impression.
Too wet and stamps stick, the shape gets all warpy and it’s no fun.
Too dry and the stamp impressions aren’t deep enough and the pot can crack.
Okay, this time they were still a bit squishy… but I digress…
After I stamp the last pot in the batch, the first pot is typically ready to be trimmed.
So I trim them all, and if they are going to be soda-fired, I add some colored slip accents.
Then I set them aside so they can dry… and that’s where we’re at as of tonight!

Categories: classes, lillstreet

Tonight we finally made it back to pottery class at Lillstreet Art Center.
After a week’s hiatus for the snowstorm, it felt kind of odd to be back again.
Especially with glaciers still covering the majority of Ravenswood in front.
It kind of felt like we were “re-starting” the session. We had only had two classes
before the snowstorm week. So tonight was out third class after missing a week.
It was great to see everyone tonight… all except Eric, pastry chef #3?!

And speaking of pastry chefs… my beginning students Cam & Paul both brought
snacks tonight. Okay, so maybe our not-so-subtle discussions last week about how
they “can bring snacks anytime they want” and that we don’t mind broken cookies,
poorly frosted cupcakes or other day-old snacks didn’t hurt our cause?! Apparently,
Paul works for the Chicago Greater Food Depository and teaches culinary classes
to people trying to turn their lives around and/or make a career change. So tonight
we all benefited from his students’ efforts – Maple Brown Sugar Shortcakes and
White Chocolate Chunk Brownie Cookies. Yum. And then Cam brought in some of
the best cupcakes ever!! Get this… Balsamic Cherry Fudge Cupcakes with Cream
Cheese Frosting and Caramelized Cherries in Balsamic Reduction.
Oh my!!!
Not a single one left by the end of class! Hopefully we all gushed enough to encourage
them both to bring more any time soon!!! Sadly, no recipes were shared?!
And Eric, if you read this… you’ve got some catching up to do!!!

Another great bonus tonight… my friend, potter & former student Pam stopped by
and “somehow” became my second TA?! Which was fine by me! Jess, my first assistant,
was busy tonight doing a slide show as she’s one of Lillstreet’s Artists In Residence.
Pam was hanging out, saw someone struggling a bit and she stepped right up.
She was a great addition to my class – and I was glad to have her back in the mix!
I even told Karen, my boss, “slightly-jokingly” that she should stay on as my 2nd TA.
Jess can be my “technical TA” and Pam can be my “cheerleader TA.”
How fun would that be for me?!!!… oh wait… maybe it was just Pam “working off”
her Balsamic Cherry Fudge Cupcake with Cream Cheese Frosting and Caramelized
Cherries in Balsamic Reduction?!!!

Categories: studio

With the temperatures dropping down to single digits, and even colder with the wind chill,
it was the perfect day to bring some tropical fun into the studio! And after some quick
“dumpster-diving” at my part-time special event gig, I had a bucket full of white hydrangeas
and monstera leaves thanks to last night’s event. Some when into my vases… while others
went home with my studio neighbor Karen Patinkin!

Plus a few extras in a smaller vase. Meanwhile… my pots are too wet to trim!
As much as I wanted to trim them, I had to wait. I couldn’t force it like I did the stamping!

Categories: Chicago

The vote is in… at least mine. And that might be the only one?!
But, hands-down, the best stairway in Chicago has got to be inside the MCA.
The Museum of Contemporary Art hosts a lot of questionable art in my opinion.
Not a big fan of a lot of their ever-changing collection. However, the staircase
is forever impressive! Plus an occasional silver bunny!

Categories: process, stamps, studio

So I spent tonight at the studio stamping pots… okay, squishy pots.
I was kind of in a hurry and wanted to get them all stamped tonight.
For some reason?! Not sure why… I could have done them tomorrow?

Typically I stamp when the pots are a “damp” leatherhard. But since these
were some of the pots I threw yesterday, they were wetter than I would have liked.
So I unwrapped them, let them sit out for a little while and then stamped them
as they slowly stiffened up a bit. But I couldn’t wait.

So instead, I stamped very cautiously!!!

Categories: classes, lillstreet

Well, Lillstreet Art Center is officially open again, and classes are all back
on schedule and ready to go. So if you’re in my class, I’ll see you tomorrow night!

But be prepared… the parking spaces on Ravenswood have not been plowed yet.
It’s been a week since the big snowstorm, plus the new snow we got today!
The street is passable, however, less than half of the spaces are open for parking.
I would suggest public transportation, walking… or even snow-shoes!!!

And just so you know… our classes will be pushed back a week to account for our
“snow day” last week. So we all missed a week of fun… but you didn’t miss a class!
The session will be pushed back a week. So the new “last day to work wet” will be
Friday, March 18th. And our last class will be on Tuesday, March 22nd.

And don’t forget (especially my three pastry chefs)…
that last class is also our Potluck, Critique and Mug Exchange!
…did I mention potluck?!

Categories: studio, television

Today is SuperBowl Sunday…
so I went into the studio to make some “Soup”-er Bowls!

And then somebody mentioned
that there was a game of some sort on TV???

Categories: seasons

Overnight we got more snow in Chicago… like we didn’t have enough already?!

So while we’re still digging out from last week’s snowstorm, this morning I woke up
to a beautiful coat of white snow. This time, just a couple fluffy inches and no wind.
So it blanketed the city in clean, silent snow. Beautiful & quiet. Much more welcome
than the last go-round with bitter winds, flying ice shards & drifting feet of snow!!!