Boogie in the Barnyard! Happy New Year To Everyone!

Happy New Year!  Hope everyone welcomes the 2009 New Year with a little boogie this evening.  Whether it is the farm yard boogie or a city boogie or a beach boogie or a plain 'ole boogie boogie.  

We have decided to stay in this evening and get lost watching Lost.  So, we will be doing an unusual type of boogie tonight, on and off the island.  We are all set for a Lost marathon thanks to Netflix.

British Museum Visit : Part II

I went through the British Museum looking through the eye of the camera.  Bruce walked through looking and reading.  At the end of the day I wondered what that would of been liked to have just relaxed, looked, and read, but then if I did that we wouldn't be looking at all of these great pots now.  When we walked through this museum we were in awe at what wonderful objects have been made throughout time.  We didn't make the time to take notes to identify any of the pieces as there was so much to see and so little time.  Disturbing to think of what wonderful objects have been lost to us through fires, wars, vandalism, everyday use, etc.

Happy Holidays! From Richmond, Virginia

We spent the holidays in Richmond.  We visited downtown Richmond where they have many snowy reindeer hanging out on the green lawn.  At night they all are shining with white lights.  We had a good time visiting and relaxing with family there.  I worked on a 1000 piece puzzle and Bruce read ceramic books.  The giant nutcracker was on display in the lobby of the Omni Hotel.

Richmond's clock tower.

British Museum Visit : Part I

Back in 2005 Bruce and I visited London for around 12 days.  I took my camera and shot hundreds of pictures. We thought we would share some of them with you.  We had a great time there and really enjoyed ourselves in the city visiting all of the museums.  It was a lot of fun looking at all of the amazing artifacts and art together.    Our favorite museum was the British Museum.    I think we spent around 4 days working our way through the various rooms. We highlighted the rooms on our map as we left them so we would know where we had been.  We were focused and on a mission.  

I have always liked shoes.  I find the variety and variations of shoes over history intriguing.  These two images are scent bottles.  Looking at objects this old is very humbling.  Somewhere in our images I have a picture of a stone hand axe tool that is 350,000 years old.  Wow.  It is hard to fathom.  

Horton Hears A Who: Bulldog's movie pick

We have been lucky this week and have watched another movie that we recommend.  This is a great movie and very entertaining.  It has good visuals for all of those Dr. Suess fans, which we are.   The people that worked on this film definitely had a good time creating it.

Electric Apricot

Bruce and I are netflix fans.  A movie in the evening helps us relax and wind down.  We have not been able to watch many movies during the past semester because of studio deadlines and other stuff going on.  Well we are finally back to watching movies.  This week we watched Electric Apricot Quest for Festeroo.  Pretty darn funny and a must watch if you like mockumentaries and have a soft spot for jam bands like the Grateful Dead and Phish.  Their hit song is Are you going to Burning Man.  

Cough..Sniffle...Sneeze....Cough

Bruce and I have had the dreaded cold this past week.  I think he is getting a little better and I am hoping to get better soon.  I am a few days behind him.  We have been drinking lots of juices, drinking ginger tea, sucking on cough drops....anything to try to nurse this thing to make ourselves better as fast as we can.  We are working a bit in the studio, but mostly moaning, groaning, whimpering, complaining about our sinuses and head.  It has been awhile since we have been sick like this.  Thank goodness it does not happen all that often.  We suspect it was a blog vectored virus, as we contracted it shortly after reading Sawdust and Dirt, Dec. 10.  

Greenhill Art Center: Winter Show

We were invited to send some of our work to the Greenhill Art Center for their Winter Art Show.  We joined 100 other artists in their gallery, which is located across from the Greensboro Center City Park on North Davie Street.  The show will be on exhibit through December 31, 2008.  These works are for sale and it appears (from looking at the calendar on their website) that there is early Winter Show pickup on the 22nd and 23rd for people wanting to give the artwork as X-mas gifts.  Here are the pieces that Bruce and I have on display there.

Bulldog Pottery Studio

We have plenty of wonderful pieces in our shop.  Please come by and see us.  We are open our regular hours.  Tuesday through Saturday 10:00-5:00, and mostly likely the same on Sunday and Monday from 10:00-5:00.  Give us a call if making a special trip here.  (540-320-8798) There are kiln openings happening this weekend here in Seagrove.  A few of them that I know of -- are Jugtown Pottery, David Stuempfle Pottery, and Daniel Johnston.  There may be more.  A good place to check out of other Seagrove Potters is the Seagrove Associations website, Discover Seagrove. 

 

Carolina Designer Craftsmen

The above image is what we showed in our booth.  

Here are some general images of the Carolina Designer Craftsmen Fine Art show that took place this past weekend.  We had a great time meeting the artists there.  
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This weekend: Carolina Designer Craftsmen and at home in Seagrove

We will be in both places this weekend.  Ed and Gloria are staying home and watching the workshop here in Seagrove and Bruce and I are going to be taking our decorative work to the Carolina Designer Craftsmen in Raleigh.  Our shop and van are full.

This is what we did for most of yesterday.  We unloaded crystalline vases from our kiln and Bruce put the finishing touches on them.  Since the glaze flows off of the vase we need to grind and polish the bottoms smooth.
Ed helped load the van, while we packed our work and accomplished the details that are needed to do a show.  Gloria worked on getting some business cards printed out on our computer.  My card order did not make it here on time for the show, and we are down to just a few.  

Here are a few pieces that will be coming with us to the Carolina Designer Craftsmen.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!!!

Carolina Designer Craftsmen - November 28, 29, 30

We had one more final push last night in the studio.  We are getting ready for the Carolina Designer Craftsmen, Raleigh, NC.  This will be the first time that we will be taking our work to this show.  The show starts Friday evening at 6:00-9:00 pm, Saturday 10:00 am - 6:00 pm, Sunday 11:00 am - 5:00 pm.  It will be in the Exposition Center at the Raleigh State Fairgrounds, daily admission is $7.00, weekend pass $10.00, and children under 12 are free.  

We plan on bringing our decorative studio art pottery.

In the image below Bruce is chipping away glaze that has pooled in the bottom of our catch dishes in order to reuse them.  We really need to do catch up on our dish and ring making.  We keep putting this task off, but after this past series of crystalline vases we will have to face the music, turn and extrude some rings and catch basins for future firings.

Celebration of Seagrove Potters -- Smiles

The above bean pot was made by Sid Luck and auctioned off on Saturday afternoon.  He received special permission to draw the Luck's Beans emblem on this hand thrown bean pot.  This design cannot be reproduced on any pottery without a signed agreement from the company.  This piece is very special.

This past weekend at the Historic Luck's Cannery, 60 of the Seagrove Potteries joined together in one place for the convenience of our pottery collector friends to shop and say hi to us and us to them.   There are about 75 potteries located in the countryside around the town of Seagrove that are open on a daily basis for visitors to come to our workshops.  This is one time a year that we get together in one location.  This year was special for us, and we are looking forward  to working together towards next year's Celebration.  

James Foods will be opening up a grocery store in the future, adjacent to where the Celebration took place.  I don't know the details, but we are excited about having a local grocery store.  James Food helped out in getting the building ready for the Celebration.

Through the past months of planning for the Celebration, Bruce and I met people that we have not had a chance to meet, and became closer with people that we were acquainted with.  

As potters, we work all and almost every day making pots, managing our shops, and many other tasks to maintain our businesses.   By the time we finish up in the studio it is rare to have anytime left to interact socially.  It is hard to find the time to get out and meet others, let alone sit on the couch for an occasional movie.  Because of the Celebration, I feel that we will grow even closer here in Seagrove.  This will be done through communication and reaching out to work with one another.  We are a close knit, and caring group of people living here in Seagrove.   The Seagrove potters come from a diverse background of pottery philosophy and history.  That strong prominent historical presence, and the current rich diversity of styles, contributes to making Seagrove an amazing pottery destination.   Yes I am going on and on, but I can't help myself.  I just want to convey to those who are reading this, that what has happened in Seagrove these past several months, in establishing the Celebration of Seagrove Potters, is a positive move for the community.  

I ducked out of our booth to go to the ladies room.  I grabbed the camera to take some shots.  I found proud potters standing by their pottery, potters talking with people, and others wrapping their pottery for happy new pot owners.  

Here some of the potters that I came across.  There were many more I wish I had been able to take images of, but I had to get back to help Bruce.  There is always next year to add to our archive.

Margie Nance Windsong Pottery

Meredith Heywood and her sister of Whynot Pottery

Blaine and Laura Avery of Avery Pottery and Tileworks

Carolyn Poole of Rockhouse Pottery

Alexa Modderno and her daughter of Seagrove Stoneware

Eck and Rhonda McCanless of Dover Pottery

Amanda, Pat, and Gordon of Cagle Road Pottery

This is Terry Hunt of Cross Creek Pottery.

John McNeill of Old Hard Times Pottery 

Chad Brown 

 Fred Beane of Old House Pottery,  He is the oldest potter here in Seagrove

Bruce is in there somewhere, he is the one in the maroon flannel shirt. 

Michael Mahan of the Ground Up Pottery doing a pottery demostration

David Garner of Turn and Burn

Joe Foster of Jakes Pottery

Georgia and Byron Knight of Ole Fish House Pottery

Phil Pollet of Old Gap Pottery

Morgan Hatfield of Hatfield Pottery

Travis and his mom Pam of Jugtown Pottery

Lisa and Chris Luther of Luther Pottery

Bruce and Janice of Latham's Pottery