It seems like I made these pieces so long ago, They survived the bisque firing, but I’ve been worried ever since about warping & slumping in the final cone 10 soda firing. Well, they finally went into the soda kiln last Friday… and made it back out WITH NO SLUMPING!!! Yeah! My first attempt at 10″ cake plates was a huge success! So there will be a very limited quantity of them at my first couple art fairs. It’s going to be first-come, first-served… just like cake. And if they get a good response, I’m sure I’ll be making more. And again, hoping that the new ones don’t slump. Just because they survived once doesn’t mean I can get cocky! And please disregard my poor photos. They were just taken quickly as I pulled things out of the kiln. They’re actually in the Lillstreet spray booth with some packing foam to cover some bad stains on the table! Glamorous, huh?

10″ Cake Plate #1  – with a hint of teal blue glaze

10″ Cake Plate #2  – with a touch of temoku

10″ Cake Plate #3  – with a smattering of matte blue glaze

10″ Cake Plate #4  – with a soft, satin yellowish sheen

10″ Cake Plate #5  – with some crackling slip “sealed” with temoku glaze for this crazy effect

Still a little hotter than I might like… but I couldn’t wait.
I figure as long as I can pull then out with bare hands they’re not too hot, right?!

Tonight I finally got to unload my soda kiln. You don’t know how tough it is to wait. You’ve worked so hard to make the stuff, waited for it to dry, fire it, glaze and then fire it again. You want to see it as soon as possible!!! But of course, the kiln decides to cool off at it’s own speed… and you can only open it when it’s good and ready. So finally… after waiting all day… I finally opened it… revealing the treasures inside brick by brick!

A little closer examination of my pots… and some kiln posts?!!!

So now everything is unloaded, packed up, piled into my car and shlepped into my storage room. Now I need to find some time to unpack everything, do a little prepping, cleaning, pricing and RE-packing to get ready for this weekend’s art fair in Schaumburg!

After three days of fun in Minnesota, and thousands of pots everywhere you looked, it’s always tough to keep your cool.. and keep your cash. There’s a certain excitement, and a certain compulsion that takes over as you see more & more incrediuble work. And the quesiton is always “which ones” would be coming home with me?!!! And here they are…

Always a favorite… As I’ve said before, we always go to Bob Briscoe’s studio first. Some of my favorite potters are there, as well as the one responsible for one of my pottery addictions. Matt Metz.And his incredible sgraffito technique!!! Let me just say upfront that I already have too of his pieces in my collection. But when you’re surrounded by so many more, along with Matt himself to talk to… it’s so hard to resist. I tried my best. But apparently didn’t do so well in the self-restraint category.

This sweet little rectangle box was the first piece I picked up. Then I put it down. Looked around more. Picked it up. Put it down. More admiring. Picked it up. Put it down. Eventually… after being drawn back to it so many times, I knew it was coming home with me!

And then I decided that I needed an Matt Metz “tumbler?” to actually use in the kitchen. So many of his pieces are part of “the collection” and they’re too cherished to use. So this one I purchased with the intention of actually using it… and loving it everyday!

Sure, I should have stopped. Sure I should have kept my wallet in my pants pocket. But then I saw this tall cylindrical vase. And it was over… mine.

And while I was getting a Metz to use everyday, why not get a Suze Lindsay tumbler too?!

Then we moved on to the other studio locations and we made it to Will Swanson’s studio. Another batch of incredible potters. Karin Kraemer was there once again. I remember last year being enamored by her colorful work. But it’s really not my style. I knew I liked it, but not sure why. Then this year I was drawn to it again. And had some time to talk with Karin as well. I kept going back to the same cheerful bowl… and I realized they just made me happy. So colorful. So fun. And if it makes me happy… I think I need it.

And another mug for my official “mug collection.” Again, who wouldn’t smile every time you see a rooster smiling back at you every morning?!!! So two of Karin Kraemer’s colorful majolica pieces made their way back to Chicago. And they continue to make me smile!!!

After my “greenware explosion surprise”... I was ready to some quick loading. Quick because I really wanted to get home for a goo night sleep in my own bed!!!

Layer 1 – bowls, salt & pepper shakers, mini vases & glaze test tiles

Layer 2 – plates for berry bowls, tiles and some porcelain Christmas ornaments.

Layer 3 – More berry bowls, salt & pepper shakers, ikebanas, tiles and mini’s.

Layer 4 – More ikebanas, more tiles, more glaze test tiles and the “exploded” greenware plates!
Really no good reason to glaze them… other than a souvenir and visual “evidence” of my story!

Layer 5 – tumblers, a couple mini’s and some porcelain pieces by studio neighbor Karen Patinkin.

Okay, sure. Our weekend had been jam packed full with clay, pots & potters.
We did the official St. Croix River Valley Pottery Tour, we did a little shopping, we did a little chatting. We also went down to Continental Clay, Northern Clay Center and Emily Murphy’s pottery studio. We also played with the Rogue Potters and toyed with Steven Hill. But today was our day to head home. So why not make one more stop along the way?!

So we drove to Hudson, Wisconsin… right across the river from Stillwater, Minnesota. It’s a cute little town with a very nice art gallery. It used to be located on the east side of the street, but Seasons On St. Croix has relocated to the the west side of the street to a much larger facility. And when you see a big sign like this on the side of the street… you’ve got to stop by!!! You know we love ART!!!

We’ve been tot he gallery before. They have a lot of great artists, and generally quite a bit of nice pottery. And this newer gallery space has room for even more pottery! Including some really large pieces by Joe Christenen If you’ve been to the One-Of-A-Kind Show in Chicago, there’s a really good chance you’ve seen his large vessels on display there. But his is a much larger collection of his work… large urns, bottles and newer pieces with some sculptural animals on them. I know my friend Nancy loves his work!!!

And while you’re there, you need to go downstairs to see Joe Christensen’s studio. It in the walk-out basement of the gallery building. There’s a large work space and a separate kiln room. Unfortunately, Joe wasn’t around today while we were there. But luckily, his studio space was unlocked so we got a chance to look around.

And a great pot that he had apparently just finished sgraffito carving as it was now drying.

For more information about Joe Christensen’s pottery, click here for his website
or check out Joe Christensen’s LINK the right hand column of my blog.
And you’ll be glad you did… there’s a time lapse video of him throwing a 5-foot tall pot!!!

I’ve know Steven for several years now. And I’ve loved his glazed textures even longer.
When Steven moved from Kansas City to Sandwich, Illinois, my friend & incredible ceramic artist Cory McCrory introduced us. We ended up working together as I did a lot of graphic design work for him while he was opening up Center Street Clay. He has since moved on, and moved back to Kansas City, Missouri. It’s always so much fun to see Steven on the Minnesota Pottery Tour at Richard Vincent’s studio location. Not only does he bring a lot of gorgeous pots, but he’s also a lot of fun to talk with and make fun of!!! And if you ever run into him somewhere… remind him that he still owes me a bunch of dinnerware!!! I know I remind him EVERY time I see him. And frequently on his Facebook too!!!

For more information and details about Steven and his work, click on his website here www.stevenhillpottery.com or from the list of LINKS in the right side column of my blog.

Okay. So I’m a Matt Metz fan.
And I’ve got quite a collection growing of his work. I love his crisp sgraffito style, the geometric patterns, the natural themes of leaves, trees & birds, as well as the subtle colors and flashing from his firings. And for those who don’t know, sgraffito is a great technique where you paint a solid coat of colored slip on top of the lighter clay body (in this case porcelain). Then you painstakingly carve away portions of the colored slip to “reveal” the patterns. So in this case, the white sections have all been carved away… and if you look close enough, you can even see the little tool marks that made them!

Springtime in Minnesota. It’s been a long time coming. A very long & cold Winter and a delayed Spring. So it was a a wonderful Spring day on the tour. Lots of pots with lots of flowers! And lots of vases fulfilling their destiny!!! So here’s a quick trip around the tour, studio by studio, with a wonderful assortment of potters with an assortment of flowers in vases!

Bob Briscoe’s studio… always the first stop of our Tour!
I think Bob Briscoe is wonderful host who has done so much for the Minnesota pottery community. He’s also gathered a great collection of some of my favorite potters like Matt Metz & Suze Lindsay!

Richard Vincent’s studio…

At Will Swanson’s studio…

Linda Christianson’s studio…

Jeff Oestreich’s studio… and with the huge plate glass windows in his studio, the vases & flowers turned into silhouettes!

Connie Mayeron’s studio… which let me just say, first off.. I love the barn!
And the rusty metal pieces that hold the ceramic vases and beautiful forsythia branches!

Guillermo Cuellar’s studio… our last stop of the day…

Here’s a parting question… So when you buy the vase, do you get to keep the flowers???

Let The Games Begin!
My parents and I got up early this morning to head out for the big pottery tour. Our first stop is always my favorite stop! It’s the furthest north and my favorite collection of pots & potters! So we always start at Bob Briscoe’s place, do a little shopping, a little chatting and a have a lot of fun before moving on to the other locations.

Picture thousands & thousands of wonderful pots made by some of the best potters all in one place. There are seven studio locations on the tour. Each of the host artists then invites other potters to share their space and their wares. In the end, there are fifty potters, quite a few white tents, and thousands & thousands of pots!!! All in one glorious pottery weekend!!!

For more information about the tour, click on St. Croix River Valley Pottery Tour.