Clay Blog Review: July 2012

Highlighting the best of the ceramics and pottery blogs over the past month. In case you missed something.

Process and Technique

• Paul Jessop has a lot of pots in progress.
• Jeanette Manchester Harris finds some momentary inspiration.
• DirtKicker Pottery tells of reglazing a fired piece of pottery,
• Emily Murphy shows how she makes square plates on the wheel.
• Hannah McAndrew finishes lots of pots.
• Jerry works on mug sets.
• Carole Epp shares a video of throwing a pitcher:

• Mea Rhee makes elephants without electricity.
• Melissa at Raging Bowl is Meditating on Mugs (400!).
• Ben Carter tiles patterns on cups and lectures on Using color to alter pattern and form.

• Rachel Dorn shares her Summer Studio Progress and works on bike part bulbs and other clay + bike parts sculptures.
• Amy Huacani loads the kiln.
• Scott Reed works on Custom Goblets, throws with a mirror and shares a Little Vid about throwing a lidded jar:

• Scott Cooper has been making pots.
• Luke Langholz has Two weeks to go before show time.
• Tony Clennell describes Toning Your Bottom.
• Art by Fuzzy has Pottery in Progress.
• Angela Walford has a lot going on in july.
• Rob considers a change in his work.
• Judy Abdelaziz has a few Vases and a teapot and Uses bolts for texture.
• Linda Starr is working on towers.
• Ann Tubbs layers patterns for surface depth.
• Ron Philbeck has an update From the Studio.

• Aaron Sober decorates pots.
• Lori Watts tries Two Things to make a wavy plate and shows how she makes Rope-Textured Handles.
• Glynnis Lessing shares a few thoughts On Disappointment.
• Jake Johnson gives a bud vase tutorial.
• Michael Kline makes shows off a few new pots.
• Gary Jackson works on his favorite form.
• Doug Fitch has a massive video update.

• Jeanette Manchester Harris makes Clay Picture Frames.

Tips and Technical

• John Britt found the PDF ^10 glaze recipe collection to end all PDF collections and shares some Shaner Red Recipes.
• Marian Williams shares the magic of magic water and a tip to keep gold lustre from tipping over.
• Meagan Chaney tests a low fire base glaze with mason stains.
• Art by Fuzzy shares a few studio notes and finds a texture machine.

• Barbara Rogers shares a little bit about recycling clay.
• Glaze Recipe Sharing: Black Magic ^10 Reduction.
• Rob shows off his new bat system.
• Melissa from the Ceramic Shop shares some info about Amaco glazes.

Recent Work

•  Scott Reed shows off a Custom Order and shows how to keep Paula Dean out of your butter.
• Barbara Rogers completes a Tree goddess, some bathroom items and Fluted bowls.
• Marian Williams posts a video of the Kiln Opening:

• Kings Creek Pottery has re-fired results and more photos.
• DirtKicker Pottery has a few Celtic Goblets.
• FetishGhost shows some results of Collaboration.
• Hollis Engley has pots with coffee beans.
• Linda Starr has Something Fishy Going On.
• Amy Woo has some finished work.
• Ron Philbeck unloads the kiln wand shares the images:

• Clementina Ceramics finishes some dishes for a client.
• Round Rabbit has another colorful shop update and another.
• Dennis Allen has Lotsa Pictures of pottery.
• Luke Langholz is finishing pots in a Heatwave.
• Hannah McAndrew has some wood fired slipware

• Linda Starr has finished Lots of Towers and more.
• Sequoia Miller has some new pots for Etsy.
• Art y Fuzzy has some images of recently fired work.
• Mea Rhee has New Pots for Artscape:

• Patricia Griffin is making work and making sales.
• Angela Walford has a surprise post of new work.
• Dahlhaus talks espresso.
• Ann shares some recent results.
• Alex Cluck has some hand carved pendants.
• Alison Arnold is Preparing for Spring.
• Rob experiments with underglaze pencils.

Thoughts

• Carter Gillies
  • “Beauty is subjective” Oh yeah? Says who?

What I would argue is that agreement isn’t always the test of a thing’s worth. Its not THAT we agree that is important as much as why we agree and what we are agreeing about.

• The secret life of mysteries…
• Talking about pottery
• Monty Python help explain pottery, language, and the imagination (and who doesn’t love Monty Python?!)
• The Ministry of Pots “Trust me to stretch a metaphor beyond recognition…”
• Michael Kline writes of Change.

Boredom with one’s work is not necessarily a negative thing. Not recognizing when we are bored is.

• Ben Carter – Clay: The Good Obsession
• Scott Cooper – Unknown Knowns

It occurs to me that there is tons of evidence that such things can be less mysterious: the work of hundreds of other potters I admire.

The Rest