The weather was indeed much better today. Still a little chilly, still a bit cloudy, but no rain!!!
So we “returned to the scene of the crime” to revisit the wonderful potters today. My parents
returned to the first two stops, and then went off on their own to discover Stillwater & Hudson;
two local towns on the St. Croix River. So I hooked up with my friend Amy Higgason, and her
friend Katlyn. I’ve known Amy for years through our time together at Lillstreet Art Center.
She has since moved up to the Wisconsin Northwoods, but continues to make incredible
pottery way up north! Katlyn is a college student preparing to graduate in a week. She’s
worked with Amy over the years, with Amy acting as her mentor & teacher. It was great fun
to play with them both today – chatting, shopping, discussing, critiquing, and laughing
our way through the tour. We saw old friends, shared stories, talked with potters and made
new friends & contacts along the way. Some good-old-fashioned networking never hurts.

Today we spent a little more time actually “looking” at the work, since the frantic pace
and the race of shopping had subsided yesterday. It was fun to look at the work again with
fellow potters to discuss our likes, dislikes, preferences and “clay crushes” all day long.

One of Amy’s favorites is Sylvie Granatelli… okay, I bought one of her mugs yesterday too!
We all were impressed by her lines, shapes, carved textures and color pallate. Very nice.

Then we had a chance to chat with Laurie Shaman from Chicago. Laurie used to be the
Gallery Director at Lillstreet Art Center when I was first starting to take classes. I wasn’t
sure she would even know who I was, as our time there only overlapped for a couple years.
But Amy re-introduced us and she was indeed aware of me and my work. She’s no longer
working at Lillstreet, but instead has her studio just a few blocks down the street!

We then made our way to the studio of Linda Christianson where we met up with our
potter-friend Emily Murphy and her husband Ian. She introduced us to Kristin Pavelka
who has a whimsical & colorful approach to her work… much different from the other
potters invited to Linda Christianson’s place, including Dan Anderson. At this point,
I was becoming entranced by some of the textures & patterns…

Then we met up with my friend Steven Hill and introduced him to Amy & Katlyn.
His work is stunning and I’ve had the chance to work with Steven over the past couple
years on his marketing. He also had some great advice & insights for Katlyn as she
is just starting her ceramic career. In fact, now that I am “so-not-an-expert” on
Facebook, I encouraged him to set up his own Fan Page on Facebook. Which he did…
so show him that I was right, and search “Steven Hill Pottery” and click his “LIKE”
button to become a Facebook Fan of Steven’s work.

In the category wonderful studios, wouldn’t you like a large picture window overlooking
a beautiful prairie just like Jeff Oestreich?!

After visiting most of the official potters on the tour, we ran across a sign on the highway
that said “Pottery Sale” and an arrow pointing off to the side. We decided to give it a try
even though we knew they were not part of the “official” tour route. We were impressed
by this merry band of rogue potters… by their enthusiasm, signage and willingness to
become part of their own “tour.” The house was quite dilapidated, but the pots were quite
nice and very economical. From the sounds of it, our “rogue potters” were a teacher and
his students putting their work out there an capitalizing upon the hoards of pottery
enthusiasts traveling the area this weekend. BRILLIANT marketing plan!!! I love it.

We ended Pottery Tour Day Two with an evening with our friend Emily Murphy
who recently relocated up to Minneapolis from Chicago. We had dinner, toured
her house, saw her newly built studio area and some work in progress and waiting
for a kiln to finish them in… and celebrated Ian’s birthday.

It’s been a long day… and a long weekend. But I know I’ve had a wonderful trip,
and I think my parents had fun too. It’s always so inspiring to see so much great
pottery all at once. To see all of the customers coming out to support handmade craft.
To see such support for local artisans. To talk with fellow potters about their path.
To see all of the different “things” that can be made out of a simple lump of clay.
To realize that there is a larger audience out there looking for quality pottery.
Now if they would all just read this blog?! And more importantly…
How do I get “invited” to be a part of the Pottery Tour next year?!

Cold & rainy… but it didn’t dampen our spirits. We trudged out to see a LOT of pots!

The St. Croix River Valley Pottery Tour is a wonderful chance to see some of the country’s
most celebrated potters all in one day… or two… or three. With seven different studio potters
opening their doors and inviting others, there are seven locations and forty-four potters
within close proximity. The tour is Friday, Saturday & Sunday. We did pretty good today –
and made it to all of the studios except for one. I’m continuing the tour tomorrow with
my friends Amy & Emily – making a second trip to each of them!

We started today at the studio of Bob Briscoe It’s a beautiful location off in the woods,
overlooking a little pond. The yard is lways full of large white tents full of pottery…
and tables & benches all around with even more pottery! Everywhere you look…
pottery!!! By some of the biggest names.

Including one of my very favorite potters… Matthew Metz. Typically you only get to
see his work, one or two pieces in a gallery, or on the pages of Ceramics Monthly. So
it’s always such a treat to see so much of his work all in one place! And have a chance
to look through them all and decide which “one?” you need to add to the collection.

And just for the record… while we’re sharing stories… I now own one of these beautiful jars!!!
Just to add to my “Matthew Metz Collection” already at home!

Other favorites… Steven Hill, Simon Levin, Suze Lindsay, Dan Anderson… the list goes on!

And these miniature porcelain vessels… so sweet, so small, so refined.
They remind me a LOT of the ceramic work by my friend Roberta Polfus!

New on the pottery tour this year, my parents’ new favorite potter: Ellen Grenadier!
Her work is a beautiful combination of slip, leaf impressions, stains and glazes.
The delicate details of the leaves are crisp & clean and quite elegant draped across the pots.

We continued the tour through the chilling rain. We made it to all but one of the studios.
At the last of our studio visits for the day, that of Guillermo Cuellar, I also met up with my
friend Amy Higgason. It was a lot of fun to get caught up, discuss the pottery and
“share our opinions” on some of the pieces. She used to be a potter at Lillstreet, but has
now moved up to Rhinelander area in Northern Wisconsin. She continues to make
beautiful pottery – check out her Pigeon Road Pottery website.

Each of the locations has its own style, its own artists, its own personality. My favorite
little bit of “personality” today was the brilliance shown at Connee Mayeron’s studio!
A little “creative problem solving” to keep the customers dry…

Let the games begin… forty-four wonderful potters all participating in one great pottery tour!
I’m going up to the Minnesota area for the weekend with my parents to participate in the
tour, see a lot of incredible work, be inspired, meet the artists… and possibly buy a few pots!

For complete details, and list of the participating potters, go to the tour website.
It’s an annual event, always over Mother’s Day Weekend. If you can’t make it this weekend,
mark your calendar for next year… and I’ll see you there!

The St. Croix Valley Pottery Tour – www.MinnesotaPotters.com

Over the years, I’ve gotten to know a great watercolor artist on the art fair circuit.
She does beautiful paintings of birds and botanicals. And as she’s getting ready for
the kick-off of her art fair circuit, we’re getting a quick look at her newest piece!

Check out her website to see more watercolor works by Anne Gilna.
Go to my “Links” for a quick transfer to her website!

So… my friend, studio-mate and fellow TV Jeopardy player… Karen Patinkin
has finally made her online debut. Welcome to the wonderful blogosphere Karen!!!
Now don’t get too excited… she doesn’t have a new blog… she doesn’t have
a new website… although I keep urging her to jump on the blog band-wagon.
But today she was featured on a Chicago-based blog “Chicago Now” that features
great things around town. And today she’s being “exposed” as one of
“The Best Kept Secrets” after 30 years of making beautiful pottery!

Check her out on “her first blog posting… Karen Patinkin: Best Kept Secret

While I was working in the studio tonight, I was also watching Kristen Kieffer’s
new DVD about surface decoration. It’s a very informative DVD with twelve chapters
on twelve different techniques. Chapter One was of course my favorite… all about stamps!!!
All in all, here techniques are very informative and encouraging for all skill levels. I really
liked how her presentation style was very calming & professional. She demonstrates each
of the twelve different techniques – making them each look relatively simple and accessible
for everyone. From stamping to slip trailing, from sgraffito to mishima, from banding to
her own slip technique she refers to as “Dairy Queen.” Something for everybody!
Of course the key is making it “your own” instead of just trying to reproduce her work!

Next up?… I need to make some new stamps! Her method of stamp-making is different
from mine. And I’m looking forward to creating a few new ones with her technique to see
how it goes. Her personal pottery “design aesthetic” seems to be much like my own…
precise, repetitive, patterned, textured. Sound familiar?

So here’s the deal… if you like her style, or if you’re just looking to learn some new surface
decoration techniques – this is the DVD for you!!! Check it out and order your own copy.
Go to www.FilmBaby.com and get your own Kristen Kieffer DVD today!

Just when you thought every artistic medium had been explored, images like these
come along. Artist Baptiste Debombourg created this portrait with staples. I’ve always
loved how a “few” of something can be cool, but a “LOT” of something is amazing!!!
Less is more?… not in MY book.

And what if the staples weren’t used as they were intended?!
Have you ever noticed how sculptural a line of staples looks? Peter Root has.
Here’s his creation called “low-rise.” Built on a glass table-top, it’s especially amazing
when photographed from the side with a great depth-of-field exposure!

Well, here it is, finally… ceramic artist Kristen Kieffer has created her very first
instructional DVD showcasing her incredible surface decoration techniques.
I’ve been a fan of her intricate work for a long time, and just purchased my DVD
this morning. I can’t wait to get it…

To purchase your own copy, go to FilmBaby.com and search for Kristen Kieffer.
Or just click here!

I was very excited to get an e-mail the other day from Kristen Kieffer.
Not only did she announce that she will soon be publishing her first instructional DVD…
which I will need to add to my collection as soon as it’s published. But it also
said that she’ll be coming to the Chicago area for a two-day workshop in September!

It’s already on my calendar. I can’t wait to see her working and showing off her technique.
She’s the queen of elegant stamping, beautiful slip trailing and other surface decorations!
Still a summer away, but something great to look forward to – September 22-23, 2010.

As I was writing the past couple posts, I was reminiscing about some of the potters
I’ve met over the years. In particular, the workshops I’ve attended that were taught
by “famous” potters. Being kind of new to the clay scene, I was impressed that the people
teaching were also the one’s showing their work in the gallery at Lillstreet Art Center.
Let alone, the potters you see in the pages of Ceramics Monthly. Clay rock stars!

Each workshop takes on a different tone – based on each artist and their perspective.
The very first one I went to was also left the biggest impression – Julia Galloway.
I had seen many of her pieces in the gallery, very detailed, elaborate and intricate.
Beautiful formed porcelain, altered, attached, carved, inscribed, drawn, glazed, etc.
I thought it a bit little too-“foofy” for my personal taste, but amazing & inspiring nonetheless.
So I signed up for the workshop… a little apprehensive because I thought it would
all be WAY over my head. I was still just a beginner.

But as soon as she introduced herself and started her shpiel… I was mesmerized!!!
I’m always intrigued & inspired by people who are truly eloquent, passionate about life
and can express their personality through the words the choose. Julia is one of those!
The workshop was incredible – a little beyond my skill level, but I could have just sat there
and listened to her talk. I had my first pottery crush.

So a few years later, when I found out that she would be coming back to Lillstreet for
another workshop, I was right there, the first one volunteering to be her workshop assistant.
So not only did I get to hang out with her, listen to her musings, assist during her workshop,
but I also got to help her set-up her gallery exhibit – and go out to dinner! But I digress…

The coolest part of her gallery exhibit was her new “installation” of tumblers.
A not-so-simple grid of 112 tumblers. Each placed on the right shelf. Each in its place.
Here’s the cool part… when they were all in place, and you stepped back to look…
it created one large glazed image on all of the tumblers. And oh, but wait there’s more…
if you turned all of the tumblers around 180-degrees, the same image would appear
but this time in a simple line drawing, not colorfully glazed! Crazy, I know…

As I have been cleaning, organizing & labeling my collection… I’ve been reminiscing
about the potters I’ve met. Some of the “Clay Rock Stars”… Julia Galloway being the first.
One of the favorites. And I got a couple of her beautiful tumblers as a souvenir…