Almost. The last 4 earthenware mugs are slipped and thinking of going
I to a bisque kiln later today. I guess we'll see how that smart idea
turns out.
Time to clean up and get back to high fire glazing.
Ready to glaze
Posted in Uncategorized on 05/04/2009 01:20 pm | Comments Off on Ready to glaze
Starting to finish…
Obviously, my phantom apprentice didn’t get the entire list accomplished. So now I’m stuck catching up this morning.
I got a few things done over the weekend but much of it involved finishing up the earthenware so the reduction kiln is still waiting patiently for attention. I’ll finish loading up a bisque of earthenware today and firing it off either tonight or tomorrow. I just put handles on a few mugs late last night and I’m trying to force dry everything. I don’t have a wood-stove in the studio anymore so I can’t force things as Michael can.
Another hour or so of finishing up with the low-fire stuff and then it’s time to clean a table and get back to glazing for the big kiln. I should be able to start loading that kiln later today…if the stars are aligned it may even get the door closed and pilots on…although that’s more likely going to happen tomorrow.
Perhaps I should go make those cones now….
List for Apprentice
It’s going to be a busy few days…Can you please:
1-Wax all the pots that came out of the last bisque
2-Mix white glaze
3-Cycle another earthenware bisque
4-Scrape & wash gas kiln shelves as needed
5-Clear off the glaze table so I can glaze over the weekend
6-Once I have most work glazed we can get ready to load the gas kiln
7-Make cone pads
8-Please stop hovering as I’m loading the gas kiln…I promise I’ll get your favorite pots in there
9-While I’m turning on the pilots please clean the glaze area
10-Put the clear glaze on all of the earthenware just as I showed you
11-Load the electric glaze firing….I’m not as picky here so it’s all up to you
12-Turn on the electric kiln to fire overnight as the gas kiln climbs slowly
13-Start firing the gas kiln with the first turn-ups starting at 4am(don’t worry. I’ll do this one)
14-Don’t worry…the kiln will even out
15-As you worry about the un-even kiln clean up the studio to alleviate your stress
16-Shut down the kiln when we get to 9 1/2 on the bottom….don’t let the top 11 get too soft
17-Get some rest since we have to clean the gallery and fill it up with the new pots
18-Don’t forget to set up the photo equipment so that we can photograph the new work
19-Grind anything that needs grinding/sand anything that needs sanding
I’m sure there’s more but most importantly, I don’t have an apprentice. I think that once I set up the studio in Austin I’ll look for some part-time help. I’m hoping that with UT nearby someone eager will show up. I’ve never been too good with assistants before…I’ve always been a control freak but I’m ready to let go of about 15 or so of these steps.
Unfortunately, I can’t let go of them yet….it’s going to be a busy upcoming week for me. Now that the kids are older and have tons of weekend activities, I probably won’t get a ton done this weekend….although if I had an apprentice I would probably be very productive first thing Monday morning.
PS
Perhaps with an assistant I won’t have to put my cone pads in the oven for a half hour when I realize that I’m almost done stacking the kiln and need to make them.
Posted in studio on 05/01/2009 08:34 pm | 3 Comments
A View of the Blue
Not sure if this batch of bowls will get the same treatment….
….but these are awfully blue. We’ll know more early next week.
Posted in earthenware on 05/01/2009 04:52 pm | 4 Comments
State of Clay 2009
Yesterday, I got my piece back from the State of Clay exhibit in Lexington, MA.
They recently put the exhibit online and you can check it out here…
Posted in group shows on 05/01/2009 01:50 pm | 1 Comment
Still Making….
I’m plugging away in the studio today with some more earthenware. I only have about 50 pounds of the red dirt left so I should be finished making pots today. Perhaps I’ll be able to get back to that reduction kiln-load that is 75% glazed and 0% loaded.
I’ll be back on track to start loading the gas kiln over the weekend and hopefully be firing by Tuesday. I’ll probably also load up an electric kiln with glazed ware as well next week so by the end of the week I should…should…have a good amount of new work up on the site.
Oh and by the way….the earthenware is probably going to be bright. I’m a little afraid and also a little excited to see how it turns out.
Posted in earthenware on 05/01/2009 01:31 pm | 1 Comment
Levitating Planter
Forget about the bowl magically floating upside down….or the plastic table in mid-air. If you’re still standing on your head after reading the last post this one will not look right….stand up.
Look….No Plastic!
Well….almost no plastic. I had to put as few planters under the influence the other night so that I could slip them yesterday.
We’ve had a beautiful couple of days here so my pots have been enjoying some quick-dry time in the backyard. I guess I better start practicing for Austin….I won’t be able to get away with making mugs one day and getting handles on them a week later.
Here are some slipped and incised planters.
These are a couple of fluted hanging planters….I may make a few more of these today. I can’t decide what I think of the cone shape….stand on your head and imagine them hanging to get a sense of what they’ll look like finished. I guess I could have flipped it in iPhoto….sorry.
Some earthenware bowls…made ’em this morning and will trim ’em shortly….how about that?Some bone-dry planters are in the background. Yep…made them yesterday and they’re bone dry already!
Back To Work….
First of all, I apologize for the typos in any posts from vacation. My iPhone typing skills are apparently not quite as good as I thought they were.
Anyways, I should have spent the day mixing a celadon and glazing what’s left to get into the next firing. I was going to….and it was even a beautiful spring day to mix glazes outside. We don’t get many of them on the Cape.
I put that off but instead of wasting the day studio-wise I actually made a few pots in that dirty red stuff again. I don’t think that I’ve thrown with it since last summer. I was actually forced to make new pots. When I dropped of Ale at school today her teacher asked me if this week was going to work out as we had planned. I hope I hid my surprise at that question as I tried to remember what we were planning for the week. Oh yeah….they have a fundraiser coming up and I told the school that I would make something for the 4 year olds to decorate. I figured earthenware would be best for this project so I threw a couple of large bowls that will get some slip and some kid’s handprints all over it that will be sold at the school auction coming up next month.
While I was dirty and red I decided to make a few planters since it’s spring and it seems as though the planter theme has been going through the pottery blogging world. I made a bunch of 3lb. planters (squared and not squared). I’m not quite sure what kind of deco they’ll get…or if they’ll even get any. Tomorrow I’ll make a few larger ones and then get back to glazing. I’ve been putting off this firing for long enough and I have a few orders that need to get to their homes.
Pics of red stuff down below…more on the trip and Austin studio thoughts later….
Heading Back Home
We just boarded our JetBkue flight and Javi is already watching the little tv. Nothin clay related happened this trip but the point of this trip was to find a neighborhood and maybe a nice rental. I fully envisioned having to come back down next month to keep looking for a place. We lucked out because we found a place better than we could have ever imagined and can’t wait to get back down to live. Although the July and august heat will be quite a shock.
Now it’s back to spring at home and figuring out the process of moving. What part of the studio is coming, what is staying and what is getting sold. Pretty soon I’ll be putting some equipment on the market….stay tuned.
There wiki probably be a few more vacation related posts before it’s back to the studio. Well…time to pretend I don’t know the single mom sitting next to me with 3 kids who look just like me.
Posted in Uncategorized on 04/25/2009 04:41 pm | 1 Comment
916 Springdale Rd. Building 2, Suite 104, Austin, TX 78702
