Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Saturday, May 26, 2012

The Line Up



More masks!
I spent a couple hours on Monday photographing masks and wrapping them for storage. That's one of the "problems" with art: what do you do with it after you make it?
I took the pics and put them is a book so I would have a record of the clays, techniques and glazes I used for each.

Friday, May 25, 2012

Sunflower Banner

Here is my inspiration. I found her in a thrift store about 8 years ago and for only $19 she was mine. She sat in the living room next to the fig tree for a couple years and I enjoyed her presence. Then one morning I found her toppled over and her head broken off. I was sad. I left her there. When my son saw her he said: aren't you going to fix her? And I replied that since Easter was in just a few days I was hoping she might be resurrected. Anyway even if I "fixed" her she would never be right and that would make me sad. Well she wasn't resurrected and eventually I did glue her head back on. And, yes, the scar is visible, but it's OK; she still brings me joy. Today she sits in the picture window of the living room surrounded by my indoor garden.

The patten and layout

In the process

Finished!
You will see her on the corner of 3rd and Main in Guymon

Monday, May 21, 2012

Raku

The kiln is loaded and ready to go; David elder is firing it up.
Approx. 1 hr. firing time.

Trash cans are ready with combustible material (news paper).

Brent Shoulders moving quickly to get glowing pieces into the trash cans for smoking.

The finished tiles after water bath; they all survived!

Here are the pics that I promised a while ago of the raku firing I did. One of these days I'll figure out how to get the pics directly from the camera to the computer, instead of having to put them on a disc first. Then I will be more instant.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

The hills are alive

The hills of the OK panhandle are alive with yucca plants. In some parts they are called "bear grass". Whole fields are covered with the spikes of flowers, and making an unusual show. I wish I had a few around the house. They would look great against the stone exterior.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Friday, May 11, 2012

Quote of the Week

"Art is entertainment but it's also celebration, condolence, exploration, duty and communion."
                                                                                                               Barbara Kingsolver

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Raku

Wow! Today another first in my life; I did a raku firing.

Wikipedia says that raku means "enjoyment", "comfort", or "ease". Well the actual firing wasn't hard, and the outcome is pure enjoyment.

I enlisted veterans to help me, Brent Shoulders and David Elder. They worked in unison to get the hot pieces out of the kiln quickly before they could cool. And I had a bunch of pieces: 12 tiles. They all made it and look great. I hope to have some pics of the process up by Sunday.

Friday, May 4, 2012

Keith Haring

GOOGLE celebrates the birthday of "original" artist Keith Haring. Check out his work at http://www.haring.com/.