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

Just when you thought they couldn’t top themselves…
the crazy folks at OREO’s have done it!!!

A crazy cross-collaboration with Coca-Cola! Yep, this week we tried the Coca-Cola flavored OREOs in my pottery classes!!! Much better than I expected… with two-color cookies… so “on-brand”… and just a little dash of carbonation!!! No, seriously…

We also had a can of OREO-flavored Coca-Cola! I didn’t try it… since I swore off caffeinated sodas over 30 years ago as a New Years Resolution! Don’t want to break it now… and trust me, no one needs to see me all hopped up on caffeine! I’m a bit too much already!!! Ha!!!

Categories: art fair, artists, collaborations, flower pots, glaze, terra cotta

Looks like Cory McCrory is in the final stages here… with some clear glaze in all the right places! Yes, that mint green color is actually a low-fire CLEAR glaze! So it will make all of Cory’s underglaze colors a lot more vibrant. And it will make the terra cotta areas darker & shinier than the “raw” terra cotta areas. Can’t believe ART IN THE GARDEN is this weekend already… but it is good to know that these are already in the final kiln firing. So I think Cory has timed it perfect… although they might just be “a little warm” when they come out of the kiln just in time for this weekend’s art fair!

Categories: art fair, artists, collaborations, flower pots, terra cotta

After the underglaze is wiped away, everything shows up so much better. All of the grooves, stamps, textures & Cory’s whimsical additions! These are looking so fun… can’t wait to show-off these collaboration pieces at ART IN THE GARDEN this weekend!!! – “Cory, you’re killin’ it!!!”

Categories: art fair, artists, collaborations, flower pots, terra cotta

To help highlight my stamped textures & her handbuilt details, Cory does a wash of dark underglaze. It fills all of the stamps & seams… and then gets gently wiped off leaving the underglaze only in the recesses. And it really helps make the colors POP!!!

Categories: art fair, collaborations, flower pots, terra cotta

While all of our collaboration pieces are safely in the final glaze kiln firing…. I’m just sharing a few more production photos from Cory McCrory’s studio! More underglaze painting to make all of the parts & pieces even more fun!!! Just hoping these all look great when they come out of the kiln for ART IN THE GARDEN this weekend!

Categories: art fair, artists, collaborations, color, flower pots, terra cotta

ART IN THE GARDEN is just a few days away… and the collaboration pieces are coming together nicely… I see COLOR!!! My pal & co-collaborator Cory McCrory has been working so diligently in her studio adding her own special sense of whimsy to every piece! We can’t wait to show-off the finished flower pots this weekend in Glenview! Remember, there are a limited quantity of these colorful collaborations!

Categories: art fair, artists, collaborations, porcelain, sgraffito

Cute critters with curious cravings carved in clay! Fresh out of the kiln… now I just have to get them all cleaned, prepped, packed & priced for this weekend in Glenview for ART IN THE GARDEN! No dibs… it’s always “first-come, first-served” at ART IN THE GARDEN.

For more details & location info… www.grassrootsartfair.com

Categories: collaborations, terra cotta

ART IN THE GARDEN is just a few days away… and the collaboration pieces are coming together nicely… I see COLOR!!! My pal & co-collaborator Cory McCrory has been working so diligently in her studio adding her own special sense of whimsy to every piece! We can’t wait to show-off the finished flower pots this weekend in Glenview! Remember, there are a limited quantity of these colorful collaborations!

Categories: art fair, artists, collaborations, flower pots, stamped, terra cotta

Well, it looks like the collaboration project is finally “collaborating” together! Yep… this year it’s terra cotta flowerpots for the WIN!!! I made all of the flowerpots & water saucers with my stamping, and now Cory is adding her own special sort of handbuilt whimsy! Love her creativity… even more when you see them come together in COLOR!!! More photos to come… as the “Big Reveal” will happen at ART IN THE GARDEN this weekend in Glenview!

Categories: art fair, artists, collaborations, porcelain, sgraffito

And speaking of “laboring” on Labor Day… now that metalsmith Amy Taylor has finished her part of our collaboration with all of her sgraffito doodles on my porcelain pieces, I can now get them into a glaze kiln quickly so they’re done & out in time for next weekend’s ART IN THE GARDEN! This one of the best features of ART IN THE GARDEN… several of the artists work together on different one-of-a-kind collaborations that will only be available next weekend in Glenview. And they’re all limited editions, so you might need to get there early!!!