Two Directions

Stick a fork in them, these Penguin Pods are done.  These were glazed (underglazes) at the same time I did the small painting (here). They may get a buffing to give them a slight sheen but that's it.

And to prove that I am working hard, take a look at my Works-In-Progress shelf.  The headless Dudes are still there as a reminder for me to pay attention.  Martha found them interesting so I eventually will do these as a Art Give-away.  That will really make someone wonder "What the .....?"

Surprise Visitor

This semester I'm taking a Sculpture class in addition to ceramics.  There is a cemetery up the road where I ride my bike and sometimes I'm able to get big chunks of wood when they do landscaping and clear out old dead (of course, it's a cemetery) trees.

I was strongly influenced by El Anatsui and his show here in Austin.

Do a Google Images on his name and you'll be impressed incredible size and beauty of the work he does. The part that caught my eye was his wood carvings:

At the beginning of the semester I was given a scrap of wood to practice on and I made this little box. Susan collected some of our stuff to put in it but told me she thought the holes in the wood were what she called "worm holes" and were actually made by worms. Oh sure. Like worms can get in hard wood. She warned me not to used any junk recycled wood right away, to let any critters move out of it before using it.  Oh sure...

When I brought my three wood guys home I set them up on a shelf and the next morning told Susan to look at them and see what she thought.  She walked right up to them and immediately said "What is that sticking out of the head?" I picked it up and looked at it.  ????? IT MOVED!!!

I'm not sure if Susan was madder at me for ignoring her about critters in the wood or for not taking a picture of the worm sticking out before I pulled it out and threw it outside. At least you can see where it was.

Catching Up

I'm not the only artist here. This is from Susan's sketchbook.  She is the one who taught me how to make maps.

We made our annual winter trek to New York City's museums last month. The week before the big storm. The week that was very, very cold.  We like to go in January because the cold weather keeps the amateurs away.

What else in our lives? I finished reading Gone Girl and gave it a 5-star rating. I'm now halfway into The Dinner and it will be getting a 5-star rating also.  I wish it was possible to give more than 5 stars to the movie Beasts of the Southern Wild. That's a must-see.

Off With Their Heads

When you don't let your Dudes fully dry before going into the kiln for their first firing their heads will blow up. And their fingers will break off. Someone I live with has rudely told me this is a mistake people make in their first year, not their 6th year.

These guys might survive better. That really isn't blue clay, it's just a different clay. I think. They are going to get really, really dry before being fired.

Giving it away again, at a park near us.

 

 

 

 

Valentine's Day

We gave this to ourselves for Valentine's Day.

Susan's grandfather came to the United States from Poland when he was 16 years old because he was told the streets in America were paved in gold.  His first name was Valentine.

The sign is available here.

Keep It and Giving It Away

Yes, I AM working. It's been a struggle because I've been going off in about 10 different directions. Or, as Susan refers to it, farting in a colander.

Remember this give-away?

All that's left of him is the base he was on, it got tossed on the grass (performance art?).

Here's the latest give-away: