End of summer

I was at Rochester Public Market for the Artist Row today, and this was my last outdoor show this summer. Public market is located down the street from my studio and a good place to hand out fliers for the upcoming open studio. There were lots of bees and zombies in the crowd. Nice sunny crisp fall day.

I am getting ready for the first Friday in October and November and the open house in December.  Back to the studio time. I talked my clay supplier about the sagger clay and found one premixed for refractory use.  I am getting it next month.

Here is a teapot 25.

[caption id="attachment_1776" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Teapot 25"][/caption]

 

Forks over knives

I watched the documentary, Forks over knives, last night.  This makes me really thinking.  I used to be a market researcher, and am familiar with the statistics. This documentary explains the extensive research done in China about the correlation between the meat consumption and the heart disease and cancers, in statistic significance. I knew our generation of Japanese is taller than my parents generation when I grew up 30 years ago as we ate more meat products, like McDonald.  I like eating meats as the source of protin rather from the peas.  I do not think I can become a vegetarian, but certainly try to curve the amount of meat consumption and gradually increase that of peas and vegetable. I cooked the pasta dish tonight, using the chickpeas instead of the chicken, that was not that bad.

 

Potters from Uzbekistan

We had potters from Uzbekistan visiting Rochester last couple days. We were invited to see their slide presentation and demo (throwing, painting tile and figure whistle) of their pottery at Rochester Institute of Technology and they visited my studio and two other studios in our building this morning. They are 5th or 6th generation of potters and learned lots about their pottery. Their pottery intervenes with Japanese to Chinese pottery through the silk road, and somehow American Indians.   It was lots of fun and great experience.



I had the best Clothesline Festival ever last weekend, weather was good and people came to buy!



Here is a picture from my customer Linda.  She told me at the Elmwood Festival, that she bought peaches at morning, and thought this tray would be the perfect for them.

Almost perfect firing...

I got every pottery reduced.  I am very happy for the results, and am ready for the Clotheslines Festival this weekend.

[caption id="attachment_1737" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Teapot 19"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1738" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Teapot 22"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1739" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Teapot 23"][/caption]

This is my discontinued blue glazes, and applied to thick. Unfortunately it pours very slowly.

Interior of one of sagger did not hold up during the firing, and shot up pieces into a bowl and surroundings. I believe this is fifth firing of this sagger, and others show crack as well.  I need to find better clay recipe for the sagger. Does any one know a good recipe?

The Creator's Hands

Loaded the kiln, and realized I needed more small mugs than large mugs.  I need to rearrange the kiln before firing on Tuesday.   I had two weeks between my last show and the Clothesline festival, and did not have enough time to make enough pottery to fire twice, so I decided to relax.  I had lots of naps this week.  I needed them, and feel very refreshed now.  After the Clothesline, I will start making pieces for the holidays, and load up my etsy store.  I updated my one of kind teapot page with slide show, enjoy!



I received the news from Carleen, the Creator's Hands, one of my consignment store, who decided to close the door at the end of  October. This is the first store who carried my work almost 20 years ago.  I knocked the door without any appointment, and asked carry my pottery.  They accepted even though I had very few potting experience before. I enjoyed the very good relationship with the store.  I knew she wanted to retire recent years, and am very happy for her to retire, but will miss the store greatly.