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

After a couple days in Minneapolis surrounded by all that darn NCECA going on.. Ha!… it felt great to get away to continue my long weekend away from home. So I hopped in the car and followed some friends on the expressway as we crossed into the middle of nowhere Western Wisconsin. A beautiful drive as we had gorgeous blue skies once again. Shockingly great weather for the weekend as Minneapolis had just gotten snow & freezing weather just a few days prior!

Random side note… apparently a tornado had gone through this area awhile ago,
and that is why these trees are “shaved off” along the top!

We eventually got to the farm… after a pretty yummy lunch with an “award-winning” burger along the way! And yes, it was indeed yummy so I can totally understand where the AWARD would have come from!!!

It was great to tour the farm as she has been renovating much of it to become her new pottery studio. Her work space, kilns and retail showroom would be on the first floor. But it’s the second floor that takes your breath away!!! You walk up the stairs…. and the vaulted ceiling just opens up and shows off the amazing wooden ceiling craftsmanship! Her plan is to open this space up for other artists to stop by, stay for awhile and share their creative energies as a sort of “resort-creative-getaway kind of place”!     And I’m in!!!!

I also love all things “farm”… lots of old pieces with great history,
lots of rusty metal, lots of grounded reality!

But it’s not just the barn that’s so impressive… it’s also her cozy country farm house!
I always LOVE seeing where artists live, and how they decorate their spaces, what they collect, and how they show up as artists in every part of their place. Great fun seeing all of her collections & personal treasures… many of them with a touching family memories still attached.

Huge thanks to Delores for opening her home… and her farm... to me for the weekend! So much fun to spend time with good friends like Delores, Roberta & Yuki… discussing & solving all of the problems of the pottery world… just chatting… and maybe a little gossip. And a great way to cap-off my NCECA weekend!

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