Gary Jackson: Fire When Ready Pottery
A Chicago potter’s somewhat slanted view of clay & play
Categories: classes, process, stamped, textures, tools

While sharing my textured hand rollers from MKM Pottery Tools in class, one of my Intermediate students tried to make her own version of my “hybrid mugs.” Darcy has been getting some great results by wheelthrowing a cylinder, then rolling a textured pattern on the sides & then cleaning up the rim again on the wheel. Always good to a student take your “inspiration” and then find a way to twist it & make it their own!

Categories: flowers

While we seem to be having an “early” Spring in Chicago with bulbs popping up & trees starting to bud… I have some fun Spring hyacinths already blooming in my kitchen. Such a wonderful scent from these bulbs that I “forced” about a month ago on my kitchen windowsill.

Categories: bike, sunrise

Quiet skies with wispy clouds flying low. Nothing to dramatic this morning…
until the sun finally made it’s appearance drifting up through the layered clouds!

Categories: bike, sunrise

With a bank of low-flying clouds hanging out on the horizon this morning,
we had to wait for the sun to show… but the “previews” show was FANTASTIC!!!

Categories: challenge, classes, sculpture

After an hour of sculpting time, my THROWDOWN students had finished their first cereal mascot sculptures. Only to find out that they weren’t done yet… and that they had to do a second one in just 45 minutes!!! They could have traded mascots… but instead, all decided to go with a new cast of cereal characters!!! It was so much fun watching them make these amazing sculptures… watching the parts & pieces come together in the final minutes!!!

Categories: challenge, classes, sculpture

This week in my GREAT LILLSTREET THROWDOWN class, I challenged them all with a sculpture challenge! Most of them had never done a three-dimensional sculpture before. And what better way to celebrate NATIONAL CEREAL DAY than by sculpting some of the famous cereal mascots!!! They may have been new to sculptures… but “They’re Grrr..rreat!!!

Categories: bike, sunrise

So we may have “Spring-ed forward”… or would that be Sprung?… an hour forward last night, but the morning sunrise was delayed by a thick band of clouds hanging low on the horizon. Dramatic waves coming in while the sun took its time to finally arrive & greet the day.

Categories: classes, wheelthrowing

Last week in my GREAT LILLSTREET THROWDOWN class, I challenged my students to a little “throwing off-the-hump” competition… and I mean LITTLE!!! They were tasked with throwing as many matching mini cups as possible off-the-hump… and “they chose” to go with this mini red Solo “shot glass” cup as their prototype cup to match!!! Several of them had never really done any throwing off-the-hump… so it was great fun & a great experience for many of them! And they all did a GREAT job!!!

Categories: vacation

Gotta love a good roadtrip! Even if it is just down to St. Louis for the day…
and then right back that same night!!!

Categories: food

One of the best reasons to go to St. Louis… three words…

Gooey… Butter… Cake!!!