Embracing my inner clay


You can't just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood.
What mood is that?
Last-minute panic.


 Calvin and Hobbes
by
Bill Watterson


Some days I think I am giving up clay. I can go a long time thinking about it. Planning for it. Agonizing over it.  Dreaming about it.  Having a deadline changes everything. Next thing I know I am rolling coils. Embracing my inner clay. What's a person to do?




 Embrace
12" x 5" x 3"
Ceramic, terra sigillata, texture glazes, oxide stains, 24k gold leaf
(sold)

See her in person at the Pence Gallery in Davis, California
preview and silent bidding begins
 August 30-September 20, 2014
(they will take a bid via phone and ship, too)


detail of back

Artists don’t get down to work until the pain of working is exceeded by the pain of not working.
sculptor Stephen De Staebler

Comments

  1. so true about the pain of not working, does she have a key hole in the reverse? who holds the key?

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  2. She is just fabulous. There are so many intricate spots to lose myself in - and the key hole adds just the right bit of mystery. Love that your gallery will sell via phone and ship - opens so many opportunities. She won't be on her gallery pedestal for long.

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    Replies
    1. I made a press mold of the keyhole from an old family desk and same with the key. I thought it would be over the top to gold-leaf them--but once I did that I knew it was complete. I know you understand when one piece inspires the next---I can see it in your fabulous paintings.

      My galleries are very supportive and have shipped my pieces off as far east as New York safe and intact. Pence is located in a ceramics/university town--where Robert Arneson lived and taught. The community has a deep respect for ceramic works.

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  3. What is it about deadlines?? I know I work better with them. Even though the panic swirls and eddys inside like the rush of a tide, I somehow seem to welcome the roiling undercurrent, like I'm racing myself to the finish line - where I collapse exhausted but satisfied that (by the skin of my teeth) I made it :)
    I think I like a challenge, and I'm sure many artists would concur.

    I was delighted to see the "touch of gold" in the lock and key on Embrace. Just the perfect accent for her. Beautiful soul she is.

    You are so fortunate to have access to a community who respect ceramic art.
    It's not to the same extent here, sadly. It's a different vibe, and collectors are few and far between.

    Your natural beauty will be gracing her lucky new home very, very soon. Who could resist pondering her secrets in person?

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    Replies
    1. Sometimes I get to work because of deadlines. Sometimes I do my best work just under the wire. Then there are times I want to give it all up and get a little peace. No more wedging clay, no more mixing glazes, no more muddy messes! Still once I just touch a bit of clay I am engaged again and slip back into the magic world.

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  4. You say "Some days I think I am giving up clay...." but I'm absolutely sure you are going to unfold your own myth in clay forever and ever. She is so beautiful, Charlene!!

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  5. thank you, sapphire...I like the way you say it "unfold your own myth."

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