my clay my way

No Rain Date

2009-10-16T20:26:00.000-07:00

I am registered to set up a table tomorrow at an outdoor Fall Flea Market/Crafts sale and the forecast is calling for 33º weather with rain! I have all my pots priced, tagged, wrapped, boxed and waiting to be loaded into my car. I even purchased a new folding table!! I shall wait until 6AM to check the weather update. It's not that I'm a wuss and can't tolerate a little bone-chilling rain. I just don't want to drive there only to find out no one else is showing up to check out the goods. Oh yeah, and there is no rain date for this event.

Happy Clay

2009-06-09T19:07:00.000-07:00

"I like clay!"

Clay is an amazing medium. It can be formed into endless shapes. It can be dry, brittle, wet, liquid, soft and malleable or hard as brick. It can be carved, pounded, coiled, thrown, molded, rolled and more.

I like working with my hands. I like getting dirty. I like the earth. I like clay. I like the way it smells. I like the way it feels. Sometimes it annoys me. Sometimes I destroy it only to re-work it, re-throw it, and re-enjoy it all over again. Clay is patient.

When I'm making pottery, I think about the clay and the shape and whether it's a good pot and whether the clay is happy about what it's becoming.

I don't want to disappoint the clay.

Give Peace A Chance

2009-05-13T18:24:00.000-07:00

I was carving peace signs onto a pot when my husband entered my studio. Of course I had to show him what I was doing and asked the silly question, "What do you think?" He took a look and said "ugh", then walked out of my studio. His response (or non-response) hurt! But then I thought maybe I should follow my own advice from my last 2 posts, which was to Stop Worrying and Know Thy Enemy.

So, I stopped worrying about my husband's reaction because he really hadn't said anything negative, just "ugh". And as far as Know Thy Enemy goes, I've known him for over 20 years. I figured he just wasn't interested in what I was showing him. I shook it off and continued working on my Peace Pot and began liking it more and more. Later, he came back into my studio, saw the finished pot and complimented it—said it looked cool!

Wow... give Peace a Chance and it really can make a difference.

Know Thy Enemy

2009-04-05T16:21:00.000-07:00

I think it was Katharine Hepburn who once said:

"Avoid your enemies... and an enemy, my dear, is anyone who stands in the way of your dreams!"

Everyone has the potential for being an "enemy". It could be your best friend, or a family member, or anyone who may comment on your work in such a way as to make you feel inadequate. They just have to say the wrong thing at the wrong time and a sensitive soul can be thrown into turmoil for days. A simple remark, such as, "this looks like it was done by a child", could make the artist doubt themselves no matter what their age!

I remember hearing that comment and how embarrassed it made me feel. It was in reference to a cookie jar I had made decades ago. I liked that jar even though it was clunky and the glaze was too thin and the lid didn't fit very well. But it was mine. I made it with my own two hands. How could that twerp have said that! He hurt my feelings and made me feel bad about my art.

I thought of Katharine and her words of wisdom, "Avoid your enemies...", and realized that in order to avoid my enemies I'd have to avoid anyone who may criticize my work. Maybe it would be easier for me to just toughen up. Besides, criticism isn't always bad. It's how you react to it that's important.

Believe in your art. If you don't, no one else will.

Stop Worrying

2009-03-30T08:52:00.000-07:00

When you no longer care about what other people think about you or your art, then you are truly free!

Artists are hard on themselves. They are vulnerable. They create something from nothing and put it out there for all the world to see and admire—or disregard.

It's hard not to worry about what others think. "Will they like my pottery?" "Is this rim too thin?" "Does this handle fit the mug?" I never shut up inside. I'm always concerned about someone else's opinion. It's such a waste of energy! Nitpicking is human nature. People enjoy criticizing other people and I can't change that.

You gotta be tough to be a sensitive artist!