some times you gotta take the good with the bad...

 i haven't had time to post about the last firing because we unloaded the kiln and packed up to head to NCECA in Tampa.  here i am in our hotel room at 12:30 at night, tweaking a few pics and writing a quick post.  jeff decided to crash cool the kiln to see if his copper reds would be a little more red... no luck.  the only thing it did was make his matte green glaze go glossy.  it wasn't horrible but it wasn't the intended result.  we had a new ash glaze that got too runny if it wasn't applied exactly right.  we have a few shelves to grind when we get home.  i lost two large (for me) vases.
on the bright side, the shino's were beautiful...

and here is an example of the ash glaze turning out just the way it was intended...

that's it for now... stayed tuned for updates on my NCECA adventure!

Meet my NH potter friend Paul Haigh...

Here is the second in my series of interviews with NH potters who are members of NHPG.  Jeff and I have participated in many wood firings with Paul. He creates beautiful jugs and flasks that are kissed by the flame of his wood kiln in Londonderry, NH.  Next month Paul and his wife Jen are coming to Seagrove for a visit... we can't wait to see them again!


M: How long have you been making pots and what got you started in
pottery?

P: I started in high school and dropped it for many years, to the protestation of my mother.  The running joke is that the older I got, the smarter my mom got.  I picked it back up maybe 6-7 years ago when my wife got me a class with Jeff Brown as a present.  Jeff is still a friend and influence in my work.

M: Who or what inspires you the most and how is it incorporated into
your work?

P: Old American pottery is a strong influence in my work.  My aim is not to copy works, but to contrast the forms with a modern feature or texture.  I also like contrasting more classic "delicate" forms with a heavy wood fire effect that makes them approachable.

I recently had the chance to visit Old Edgefield Pottery in SC, where local materials are used to recreate old local slave-made pieces.  The connection I felt to the old collection was pretty powerful.  Wire marks from cutting the piece from the wheel, a fingerprint at the handle join, or the fire direction evident on the pot made me feel like it could have been made this week and that I could talk to the potter about kilns.  Producing quality work that still shows that story and "soul" is what I strive for.

I've introduced just a bit of sculpture to keep my mind working as well.  A lot of that is influenced by my interest in science and the horror genre.  It's 180 degrees away from a lot of my functional work and it forces me to slow down and learn a few things.

M: Clay body?

P: I use T3 (a good standard stoneware) from Sheffield Pottery, Domestic Porcelain from Dave Pellerin at Wellhouse Farm Pottery (this clay picks up incredible salmon blushes in the wood fire), and a mix of the two bodies that gives a swirled effect.



M:  Firing method?


P: My work is all wood fired in my Bourry box/sprung arch kiln.  Now that I send warning notices to the neighbors, they are a bit less likely to call the fire department.

M: What is your favorite pizza? (just because we potters LOVE to make
and eat it!)

P: There's a local place that makes a BBQ chicken pizza that is just killah.  Last year I made 10 pizzas on my birthday and broke our oven.  This summer I hope to make a wood fired pizza oven; I suppose that I could use the kiln if I wanted to burn a quarter cord of wood every time I fire it up.


A big thank you to Paul for answering my questions and sparing my readers of another post about ME.  


If you want to contact Paul or purchase his work:

Paul Haigh
Wiley Hill Mudworks
Web: http://wileyhill.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Wiley-Hill-Mudworks/108145139230652
etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/WileyHillMudworks


All Photos Courtesy of the Artist

i love free publicity!

last fall we were interviewed by Chip Womick for Toyota's magazine Connections.  they have a travel section and were doing an article on Seagrove.  they sent us a couple of copies this week.  it was sort of a surprise because we had kind of forgotten about it.
the article included three potteries... this is great picture of Vernon Owens at Jugtown Pottery:

and here we are... Michèle Hastings & Jeff Brown Pottery:

we are the top photo and below us is Phil Morgan's crystalline pottery and a picture of Morgan watching a firing.
now we shall wait and see if we have lot's of Toyota's in our parking lot this spring :-)
(photography in the article by Bert Vander Veen)

Meet my friend Steve...

i decided a couple of weeks ago that i would do a series of posts about my potter friends from the NH Potters Guild.  i am sending each of them the same questions about their work and inspiration and lastly  what is their favorite pizza? (because as you know, i think pottery and pizza go hand in hand!)

it made sense to me to start with the president of the guild, Steve Cunliffe.  Steve is a studio potter from Henniker, NH.  he is awesome and we met at the very first potters market that the guild sponsored... it was the first time either of us got up the nerve to sell our work.  i think he ate most of the hershey kisses from my table that day.  here is what the very humorous Steve has to say:

1. How long have you been making pots and what got you started in pottery? 
Steve: I have some bowls that I use every day and the markings on the bottom read 04, SC, with a crown, scored with a needle tool.  These are the first.  Wicked rare, and wicked valuable.  I started that summer by borrowing a wheel from our local college (I still have the wheel)--Peter Sabin and Vivika Heino taught here, but the ceramic program no longer exists.  I was a furniture-maker who wanted a hobby, something to relax with and enjoy.   Up until I saw work by the Scheiers (google them and read their catalog from the Currier Museum--fantastic story!), I thought pottery was bland and boring.  At shows I would walk past pottery booths without a second glance.  I still think a lot of pottery is boring. 

2. Who or what inspires you the most and how is it incorporated into your work?  
Steve: Contemporary potters inspire me.  Local potter, Peter Sabin, has been my biggest influence.  Crisp, Clean, flawless.  But I wish I had that gene that allows loose, free flowing work.  But I don't.  I do like to try new methods, new ideas----nothing is sacred.  To get the best idea of what I value in pottery is to look at artists I follow ( in no order of importance)--Matthew Metz, Maren Kloppman, Michael Simon, Ayumi Horie, Michael Snipes, Steve Cunliffe, Peter Sabin, Ed and Mary Scheier, Kelly King, Jane Kaufmann, Rim Virgirdas (sp?), Tom Coleman, Ron Meyers, tom Spleth, and anyone else that expresses ideas and emotions into their work.  I do know that Steve Cunliffe's work is very reasonably priced.   I am forgetting a ton of people..............

3. Clay body?  
Steve: I use many prepared clays.  My favorites are a red stoneware, the one I started with, Standard #308, a white stoneware from Sheffield Clay (Massachusetts--nice people), and occasionally, any porcelain that comes around.

4. Firing method?  
Steve: Eclectric, eclectic, I mean electric. cone 6.  Occasionally, I fire in the NH Potters Guild wood kiln--look up the NHPG and join, many great opportunities.

5. What is your favorite pizza?  
Steve: Hmmm.............tonight I was finishing a bottle of wine and seasoning a wok (Joyce Chen model) at the same time, something all potters should relate to, sorry to say, no fire extinguisher needed.  Can you cook pizza in a wok?  I am partial to Greek olives on a cheese pizza--WELL DONE.  My local pizzeria told me to order my pizza, "Burnt, but not burnt."  Haven't heard that before, but it works.  Thanks, Michele, I owe you a Greek olive pizza---burnt.


Thank you Steve for being a good sport!
Steve Cunliffe is a statewide juried member of the League of NH Craftsmen and his work is available in their galleries.

firing results

we unloaded the kiln today and overall were very happy with the results.  we had great reduction in all areas, which is a first for this kiln.  the firing was long - 14 hours.  the kiln seemed to stall at one point close to the end and then it took off... ^10 dropped in the back first and it wasn't too much later that it dropped in the front and i turned off the burners.  at that point we saw that 11 was down in the back.  we realized yesterday when we peeked in that 11 was also down in the front.  luckily the glazes we use are usually fine at higher temps.

i had mostly bowls in this firing, nothing too exciting... the blues were a special request and that glaze is pretty consistent.

jeff was a little disappointed in his reds... some were looking a little more like mauve... i love the textured  bottoms and rims on these salad plates of his.  i think he plans to re-fire them to see if they get redder.  not all the reds came out this way there were a few keepers.

we will be firing again very soon and will follow the same program for reduction but we are going to try going a little faster in the beginning so that we can hopefully shave off some time... and HOPEFULLY get the same results... except for the mauve because that is so 80's :-)

one year ago

it was this time last year that jeff and i spent  a week here at the log cabin to see if we thought a move to seagrove would be the right thing to do.  we had a terrific week that culminated with jeff's 50th birthday celebrated at jane braswell's home in asheboro.  the weather last year was much the same as it has been this week, warm and sunny with flowers blooming everywhere.

a year has past, jeff has reconnected with old friends, we've made lots of new ones... we have no regrets about the move... 

tune in tomorrow and i will let you know how yesterday's firing went.

meesh learns to fire the lil' gas kiln (aka baby kiln)

we finished loading the kiln on thursday afternoon... since it was much later than planned we decided to hold off on firing until today.  i bricked up the door last night and lit the burners shortly after 9:00 am this morning.  i have never fired this kiln, just helped with loading and then jeff took over the firing.  this go around jeff will walk me through it and i will make all the adjustments to the burners, peep holes and dampers.  i found my log book from the NH kiln and i am going to take good notes on this firing.  i need to learn how to fire this on my own!

it's going to be a nice day here in Seagrove with temps nearing 80 degrees.  if i step outside of the kiln shed there is a nice view of my neighbors farm.  as we work we can hear the cows mooing and occasionally the goats making noise, seemingly trying to get our attention.

Large Pots

the newest big guy is done!  jeff has plans to salt glaze this one... eventually we will get the front window position in the new co-op gallery and won't this look great there?

it's been a weird week, jeff's been knocked down by a doozy of cold and which means he hasn't slept much at night and my sleep pattern is now a little off... our days have not been too productive.  we were supposed to be firing the gas kiln today, but that has been put off until tomorrow.  my glazing is done, jeff is working on his now.  shortly i will start loading.
on the bright side... traffic is picking up here in Seagrove and people have been buying pots!  we also have both had some good etsy sales in the last few weeks.
i am feeling upbeat about spring and the weather at the end of the week is supposed to be in the 70's!

uncommon clay

yesterday afternoon a sweet couple from Ohio stopped in at the pottery.  the wife told us that they decided to first visit Seagrove a number of years ago after she had read the book Uncommon Clay by Margaret Maron.  the book came out in 2001, about a year before i started taking pottery classes with Jeff at the NH Institute of Art. the book is a mystery and centers around the divorce of a pottery couple in Seagrove who have been married for nearly 25 years. 
well wouldn't you know... Jeff had a copy of the book and actually found it in the first box he opened!    it looks like a quick read and i think i will take some down time today and get into the story.  it was fun to read the acknowledgements at the front of the book since they are mostly people i have met since moving to the 'grove.
i think we need a lazy day after the very busy weekend.  the beautiful weather brought out the shoppers and in between waiting on them we loaded and fired the bisque kiln, did some gardening and finished up some pots.  we are enjoying the spring here and everyday something new is blooming...

...and my anole friends were out and about basking in the sunshine!

hi - ho - hi - ho...

it's off to work i go!  it's my day at the "coop" - the "co-operative of seagrove potters" gallery that is.  our sign is going to get painted soon... jeff jokes that only cool people can read it now.  it might actually feel good to put on nice clothes and stay clean all day.

finding love after loss

recently someone very close to me told me they think i moved too quickly into a new relationship after john died.  that i was selfish and have become a different person in the last two years.  since john's death i have followed a few blogs about widows, widowers and families left behind.  interestingly enough there was a post i read this week on the very subject of finding love again soon after loss.  below is a comment from that blog...

I have heard the scathing comments about others who have dared not to follow the "script" of widowhood. Especially when it comes to love. 

I always think - they must have been so loved and so in love because despite it all - the broken and smashed heart of grief - they dare to risk it all again. It is the most courageous act - to open your heart to love again when you have lost someone you so desperately wanted to be with forever. I always said I wanted my life to be defined by one thing and that was how much I could love. My husband taught me more about that than anyone ever has. 

Why must we forgo our humanity to prove that we loved them so deeply?

am i a different person than i was two years ago? absolutely.  how can you be the caregiver for your loved one, hold them in your arms as they die and not be affected by that?  have i become selfish?  maybe.  perhaps i felt i deserved to be.  moving forward i will be conscious of that side of me and work harder at not being selfish.

the one thing i will not do is apologize for finding love again.  even if it was too soon for other peoples standards.

March 2011 Workshop Announcement

"Before the Alter & Beyond" - A Throwing, Altering, & Texturing Workshop

Presented by Jeff Brown

Saturday- Sunday, March. 26-27, 10am - 5pm 

 Cost: $120

Location:
Michele Hastings & Jeff Brown Pottery
1423 Pottery Highway 705
Seagrove, NC 27341
336-873-1001
http://www.jeffbrownpottery.com

Two days: starting with Demonstrations.
After demonstrations, participants will use previously thrown vessels
for altering and texture exploration. We will transform the pieces by
using a number of handbuilding techniques.  You'll paddle, roll, drop,
squeeze, impress and carve your way through the leather hard pots,
giving you the opportunity to try new ways of finishing your thrown
vessels.  The focus will be on pushing your limits and taking risks with
different ideas. 

Day two will focus on throwing practice while more texturing and

altering will continue. Even though you will have a few nice pieces at

the end of the second day, the goal will not be making finished pots.

 Instead it will be about exercising your clay manipulating muscles by pushing 

your limits, and about making fearless decisions to aggressively alter, and texture

thrown pots .

Being free from the pressure of making a product will help in developing a fluidity of motion while you work, and give you the opportunity to take risks with different ideas, and perhaps bring more of your personal expression into the pottery you make. It may never be your intention to be a production potter, but the practice you get from working in a series will help make each individual pot easier to form, and the ideas you have in your mind flow smoother from your fingertips.

Call or e-mail to register!

336-873-1001

jeff@jeffbrownpottery.com

FLUFF!

jeff and went to the Food Lion in Asheboro last night to pick up a few groceries.  we haven't shopped there all that much even though they are owned by the same company that owns my favorite grocery store in NH - Hannaford.  there are similarities between the two but Hannaford has lots more to choose from.
as we were strolling down an aisle jeff pointed out that they carry Fluff!!!  i hadn't seen any since moving here... the stores have Kraft Marshmallow Creme but it isn't the same as Fluff, made in Lynn MA (Lynn, Lynn, the city of sin... as the old saying goes).
not that i eat tons of Fluff but it has always been a staple in my pantry.  it has so many uses!  you can put it on ice cream, make whoopie pie filling with it, fudge, rice krispy treats are better with it... and of course there is the famous Fluffernutter Sandwich!
so last nights treat was ice cream sundaes!

my sundae toppings were chocolate raspberry wine sauce,  a spoon full of Fluff and a blob of
Vanilla Cream... it was delicious but over the top sweet.  it may take days for me to recover from the sugar overload!

the co-op of seagrove potters is open for business!

downtown Seagrove's newest gallery is up and running today.  yesterday we were all busy pricing pots, arranging displays and putting the finishing touches on the gallery.

this building was at one time the bank of seagrove... here is jeff inside the vault!

if you are in the area be sure to come into town and check us out.  here is a list of the potters who are members of the co-op:

Michèle Hastings & Jeff Brown Pottery

Tom Gray Pottery

Bull Dog Pottery

Latham Pottery

Dover Pottery

Nelda French Pottery

Old Gap Pottery

Seagrove Stoneware

Lufkin Pottery

Ole Fish House Pottery