B is for Bruchenhein

or Eugene Von Brunchenhein, or EVB, whatever you want to call him.  EVB has quickly become one of my favorite artists.  Currently there is a show up at Intuit Museum for Outsider Art of his work.  It is mind blowing!  I went this morning with my studiomate Jen FitzGerald to check out the show. I could probably go and see it every day until it closes and not get tired of it.  Apparently, as I learned today, he dug all of his clay from a clay pit nearby in Milwaukee.  None of his worked was ever fired in a kiln, only in his oven, so the work is extremely fragile.  He also made a series of pieces out of chicken bones.  It is absolutely incredible work.

Eugene Von Bruchenehein, censor vesselEugene Von Bruchenhein, vaseEugene Von Brunchenhein, crownEugene Von Brunchenhein, censor vesselEugene Von Brunchenhein, vaseI love that this sculpture of his turns a mason jar cap into a pedestal!

Eugene Von Brunchenhein, chicken bone sculptureMove EVB chicken bone sculptures

A is for Apple

For the past month, my husband and I have been gorging ourselves on the AMAZING apples we get at the farmers market down the street from us.  It's been so fun trying out new varieties and realizing that there is a whole other world of fruit!  I must say, I have become quite addicted to Northern Spy's, Mutsu's and Melrose apples.  They are delicious!

What I enjoy almost as much as the fruit, are the faces my dear husband makes for me from our fruit bowl before he leaves for work. What an artist! 

I will even put in a few oldies, but goodies. Enjoy!

I like the vitamin "mole"Banana Rama

Not fruit, but I loved it when Matt said he could make a million faces out of any breakfast. A bacon mustache!

Bright eyes

Breakfast face

Pilsen 2nd Fridays

Matt and I have been trying to do a bit more exploring in Chicago.  A lot of times it can be difficult to do this since it seems nearly every weekend there is something happening at Lillstreet that I want to participate in.  But this weekend we headed south and we went to the Pilsen 2nd Fridays event.  WOW. I was really amazed at the quantity of artists who were showing.  There were so many fabulous gallery spaces, it just made me drool. I told Matt, if it wasn't for him, I would be moving in to a new space on Saturday.  Two of the highlights for me were artists Michele Lauriat who made incredible guash paintings that were nearly 12 feet high.  Absolutely stunning.  They completely engulfed the viewer, but what mesmerized me was how she layering the paint and the negative space, which felt to me like lapses of memory in recalling a landscape in your mind. 

York Beach, by Michele LauriatLogging, by Michele Lauriat

The other person who blew me away was designer Chris Jamison.  He founded the workshop, Plywood Office, the work is simple and beatifull crafted.  I want two of the Stripe endtables!

Stripes End Table by Plywood Office

The Horsey Desk, by Plywood Office

Currently.

Here are some show postcards from current exhibitions I am in.  It's always a fun thing when you get a little spotlight!

Here is the card from the Harvest Exhibition in Edwardsville, Illinois at the Edwardsville Art Center

And here is the exhibition card from Willock & Sax Gallery in Banff, Canada.

Enjoy!

Here and gone!

Wow.  I can't believe that it is only about two weeks after I unloaded my last kiln.  Well, the good news is that the refired work turned out quite nice and it filled out my studio space to the brim!  Also, now my work will be available at two new places, the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art in Overland Park, Kansas and at Willock & Sax Gallery in Banff, Canada.  Good news for you Canadian collectors (wink, wink.)     But the sad news is that I think there are only 5 pieces or so left in my studio from the most recent firing!  I knew there were quite a few shows and galleries that were requesting work, but I really didn't think it was going to wipe me out in the way that it did.  If you are looking for something specific, let me know.  I have a handful of cups that are still available and some serving dishes.  I will post a few studio shots too of a few of the pieces that came out. Enjoy!

Ravenswood ArtWalk today and tomorrow!

If you want to see some of the goods from the most recent firing, you can stop by my studio today from 11-7pm or Sunday 11-6 and I will have my work on display.

My studio is located at 4401 North Ravenswood Ave, Studio #203  in Chicago

This weekend is the 10th Annual Ravenswood Artwalk where hundreds of artists in our neighborhood open their doors for the public.  It's a great way to see some incredible artist and to get out and enjoy this great fall weather.  You can check out the Ravenswood ArtWalk website for more information!

The results are in...

So, things ended up pretty bad out of the kiln. There was a strange occurance where the kiln had a hot spot in the front of the kiln, exactly where the lower cone pack was, giving the illusion that the kiln was one temperature, when it was really about 200 degrees cooler.  I ended up refiring everything in an electric kiln and thankfully, it turned out pretty great.  I will be posting images here and on my Etsy page.  A lot of work is being shipped off to upcoming shows, but you can always contact me if there is something in particular you are looking for.

But in the mean time, you can enjoy my little rainbow of glaze :)

Wizard of Oz

Well, this post has totally shifted gears from what I wanted to do, to what I think it will become.  As I was loading work into my kiln on Wednesday, I kept thinking about the movie the Wizard of Oz.  At the beginning of the movie, it starts in black and white and then it switches to color when the get to Oz.  I was thinking to myself, That is just like firing a kiln!  You glaze your work and the bright blue or green glazes just look like a drab shade of grey, but when you unload your kiln you get that beautiful POP! of color. 

All that to say the past week has been filled with long hours of glazing and finishing a huge kiln load of work.  As any ceramicist will testify the kiln firing is the most nervewracking part:  You make all of your work, put it in the kiln and wait for the results for 2 days.  A lot of times it's also referenced to Christmas anxiety, the similar feeling of seeing your presents under the tree and waiting to unwrap them to find out what you got!

Well,  I debated about not posting after finished my firing yesterday because it could probably go down as one of the worst firings I have ever had!  I won't get technical, but essentially the top of the kiln is undercooked and the bottom of the kiln is overcooked. Ugh.  It went from Christmas anxiety, to complete dread.  I have several shows which need to have work mailed to them on Monday and I am already trying to plot out what  I already have fired that I can send to them.  That's a horrible feeling.

Tomorrow morning I will unload the kiln and find out how bad the damage is,  but until then....

Pro-cess

When I was teaching in Canada, I always loved the way Canadians said the word process.  It always sounded so cute to me, they would say it more like "pro-cess" versus the american "pra-cess".

This summer I was fortunate enough to have an amazing girl email me and ask if she could help me in the studio, how can you say no?  She was so amazing to have around and helped me out with all sorts of smaller projects that I have never quite had the time to get to.  One of those projects was my "pro-cess".  She helped me document the way I work so when people want to know how I make what I make, I can point to a series of images and show them.

So here are Megan Kelley's beautiful images that help document my process:

images by Megan Kelley

Musik

Le Loup BathsE VaxBibioI am ramping up for a big firing in the next few weeks, which means,  I will need to be in the studio more than normal in order to fire this kiln on time to ship off work for shows.  This also means, a lot of time listening to the radio/ipod/podcasts.  My taste in music has changed over the years and I find myself listening more experimental and electronic music (in addition to, of course, Wait! Wait! Don't Tell Me, All Songs Considered and This American Life on NPR).  I feel like electronic music is the classical music of modern day; a series of rhythms and textures which often carry the same abstracted narrative quality as so much classical music.   A few groups I have been listening to lately are: Le Loup , Baths, E Vax and Bibio.  I really find it so interesting how they mix together organic and digital sound, with sometimes peppering in a bit of vocals.

This summer while teaching a workshop at Santa Fe Clay, someone asked me what I listen to in the studio.  I have had other people ask me that question, but a lot of times I have equated music type to a specific activity, meaning: the music should be in tempo with the speed in which I should be getting something done.  It wasn't until one day this summer that I went for a run and put on a group which I would normally equate to a slower pace.  I ended up having a fabulous run and I have since shifted how I separate my music out.  All that to say, I am going to be putting my nose to the grindstone for the next few weeks and I am really curious what other people listen to.  If anyone has some fun stuff, feel free to post or email!

Tip toe through the tulips

Well...not quite tip toe and not really tulips, maybe rather, biking through the bonsai's.  This weekend was beautiful here in Chicago and my husband and I went biking from our place down town up to the Chicago Botanic Gardens, which is a MUST do for anyone visiting the city.  It's a little out of the way, but completely worth it!  A lot of inspiration in the color and in the textures.  What a great afternoon! 

Beautiful zinnias Brick wallyes, those are indeed square shaped trees!Lovely pinks and greens

 

Brick Path

Call for Cups!

If anyone is interested, my good friend Jayson Lawfer and I will be jurying the upcoming cup show at the Clay Studio of Missoula.  The entry fee is really reasonable ($22) for 2 cups! Applications need to be received by November 18th.  Click on the logo for more information!

Good News

It's always a nice surprise when you get a note stating that your work will be featured somewhere special.  So, for those of you who subscribe to Ceramics Monthly, I have an image featured on their "Exposure" Page.  It's for a show that I have coming up in October at the Edwardsville Art Center in Edwardsville, Illinois.  It's with a great group of artists:  Karl Borgeson, Mary Louis Carter, Sam Chung, Susan Dewsnap, Rick Hensley, Jan McKeachie Johnston, Kirk Lyttle, Donna Polseno, Liz Quackenbush, Shoko Teruyama and Sandra Trujillo.

The Show will run October 14 - November 18.  Hope you can see it!

Just had to

I always try and put some flowers in one of my vases for our monthly First Fridays event and these ones were just too great to not photograph.  This vase is still for sale!  You can buy it off of my Etsy site if you are interested :)

In the Neighborhood?

If you are in the Ravenswood area tonight from 6:30 - 9:00, please be sure to stop by Lillstreet and check out some great art that is available for purchase by our artists!  Not to mention, there will be awesome music playing!

Home Again, Home Again

So after two weeks on the road, my feet have finally stopped back in Chicago.  I had a fabulous week in Santa Fe with one of the best groups of students, ever!  I feel like they pushed themselves and their work to accomplish things they didn't think they could possibly do and in turn, I learned a lot from my students.   Avra and Birdie were such wonderful hosts and the break from this crazy Chicago humidity was MUCH needed.  Here are a few pictures from the trip!

Arriving at Santa Fe Clay

Hard at work     

Spout demo on water bottleSome of the work I made while at Santa Fe Clay

Work from a beautiful tile shop I would walk past in the morning

On the Road

This next week I will be in Santa Fe, New Mexico doing a 5 day workshop at Santa Fe Clay!  I am really excited to be doing this and really look forward to meeting some new artists and fellow pinch pot enthusiasts.  After the week in Santa Fe, my husband and I will be heading up to Colorado for a long awaited trip into the mountains.  It should be a great time to unload and get inspiration!

The Inspiriations

I am just starting to post up pictures from my most recent firing.  Here are a few inspirations that I enjoy while working.

Busy Bee

Well, I am not beeing as busy of a bee as I should be (or bee), especially considering how much work it takes to fill up one of the gas kilns at Lillstreet, but here is a look into my studio and the things that are progressing along!

These images were taken by one of our lovely Lillstreet photo students, Rabbi Paul Seiger

New Beginnings.

Well, you've gotta start somewhere!

I have had my studio at Lillstreet now for almost 10 months and I feel like I am just finally starting to settle in.  I have revamped my studio space and I have been busy making new work and trying to figure out what the next step is.  Here are a few pieces that came out of my last kiln.

        

in the mean time...if folks would like to see what I've been up to, you are welcome to stop by the studio on Friday May 6th at 6:30pm.  Lillstreet will be starting "First Friday" beginning in May, meaning, all of the artist studios will be open to the public and folks are welcome to stop in.