Every ceramic program has their own way of making test tiles of their glazes to share with their students. Some are very elaborate systems that give you all the information you could ever need to know about a glaze but with my students in a classroom setting, just knowing what color it will be seems to be enough information. I will never forget the look on a students face when I handed him his green penguin. He just didn’t believe me that the seeming black goop in the jar would magically turn green in the kiln- surprised to say the least!
I like to make tags that can be attached to the jar so that as they move around the classroom, the correct tag stays with the correct jar. I use the same clay we are building with and make small pancake shapes that are about 1 1/2″ across. I texture half of the tag and put a hole in the top to eventually hang it by. If you know what glazes you are using, you might want to write the name with a sharp tool onto the back of the tag while the clay is wet. If you want to make a bunch and label them later, you can do that too. Then bisque fire them.
I label mine with an underglaze pencil made by Amaco, they write just like a pencil but are fired onto the clay permanently. I include the temperature, the brand name and the color by name and number. Then paint on your glaze to the front of the test tag. I like to do an area with one coat, two coats and three coats so you can see how the glaze changes in translucency or richness of color. Some glazes will look very different when they pool in the textured area of the test tile too. Once they are painted, glaze fire them to the appropriate temperature for the glaze you are testing.
When you have your tiles done, loop and elastic band through the hole at the top and then around the neck of the glaze bottle. When you run out of glaze, you can easily take off the label and place it on the new bottle. My new students always have a hard time believing that this rusty red glaze will turn to leaf green with just a little help from the kiln. Happy Glazing!
the dirt
Art at the Arboretum
The opportunity to participate in a sculpture exhibit at the UCSC Arboretum recently came up and I’m delighted to showcase one of my newest installations from the Lichen Series there for the first time. This exhibit was curated by Susana Arias and includes local artists Marilyn Kuksht, Anna Martin, Jaime Abbott, Coeleen Kiebert, Christie Thomas, Scott Lindberg, Kirk McNeill, Jennifer Hennig and myself. The exhibit will be up June 1 – October 3, 2016 with a reception for the artists June 1st from 5 – 7.
About the Lichen Series:
This inspired by observing the growth of mushrooms, fungus, lichens and algae as they sprout, grow and perish throughout the seasons. In the natural world, these forms thrive and expand in organic patterns following the natural rhythms of dying areas of the forest and as the rains come and go. This installation explores the dualities of death and regrowth, the power of negative space and the contrast of dark and light.
Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust
For being such an earthy art field, ceramics is so hard on the planet. From the mining of raw materials, to hauling heavy clay all over the world to using natural resources to fire our work, it’s hard to care for the earth and be a clay artist all at the same time.
Someday I hope to have a studio powered entirely by solar or wind but that’s just not an option for us right now, so instead, I try to pay attention to all the little things I can do to reduce my clay footprint on the planet.
I realize that I’m lucky to live in California and in particular a region of California that has very accessible recycling options. We can recycle nearly everything, plus we compost nearly all of our kitchen waste, to the point where we have very little actual land fill worthy garbage. This is a pretty amazing thing that I’m reminded of every time I travel somewhere else.
That said, I realized that one of the biggest contributors to our garbage was fired ceramics from my studio. It was work that didn’t work out, abandoned student projects, explosions from the kiln or otherwise unwanted fired work. I discovered that after asking around at our local recycling center (aka: the dump) that ceramics can be sorted into the construction debris piles for toilets, tile, concrete, brick etc… They grind it all up into small bits and use it as an aggregate to help build roads, burms and other construction projects. So now my favorite thing to do at the dump is chuck all these unwanted pieces into the pile and watch them explode into a million pieces. Plus it adds a lot more color to the pile! 
Since we do have to pay to deposit this material, I have a large garbage can in my studio (on wheels) that I collect all the fired ware in and when I have enough it gets hauled to the dump with anything else that we may need to recycle. Since I’ve discovered this one item to recycle, I have almost zero studio garbage. It’s not a total solution to the impact that a ceramics studio can have on the environment, but every little bit helps.
Sculpture IS: In the Garden Install Day
10th Anniversary of Sculpture IS: In the Garden
I installed my piece at Sculpture IS: 2016 at Sierra Azul Gardens last week and was lucky enough to be there when KSBW news was there reporting on the event. Caught this screenshot from their live news report the other night. This is my favorite exhibit if the year and the opening is a beautiful time to walk the gardens, view the art with music and a glass of wine. After seeing some of the other work coming in while I was installing, I assure you that this is a very incredible exhibit not to be missed!
Sculpture IS: In the Garden 2016
June 1 – October 31, 2016
Opening Reception June 9th 5 – 7pm
Sculpture IS: In the Gallery
I got in to see this exhibit last week and it’s fantastic! Many pieces have already sold and my parents decided on a piece to add to their collection as well. Here’s a sneak peek of a few teaser pics…
Sculpture IS: In the Gallery
May 4 – June 19
Opening Reception May 15th 2-4
Demos starting at 11am
Pajaro Valley Art Gallery
37 Sudden St Watsonville
Local Press for Sculpture IS:
I got my picture in the paper! Thanks to Wallace Baine for the article and Susana Arias for the photo! I installed three pieces from my Vine Series and they are growing across the gallery walls for this exhibit.
The reception for Sculpture IS: In the Gallery is this Sunday 2-4 with demos starting at 11am at Pajaro Valley Arts Gallery in Watsonville. This is a fantastic exhibit showcasing the diversity of sculpture in our area.
Be sure to check it out!
Summer Classes are Filling Up!
Time is running out to sign up for a
Summer Sculpting Workshop!
Here’s the schedule and number of spots left:
Session 1: June 6 – 10 (Ages 7+) FIVE SPOTS LEFT
Session 2: June 13 – 17 (Ages 7+) TWO SPOTS LEFT
Session 3: June 20 – 24 (Ages 9+) SIX SPOTS LEFT
Session 4: June 27 – July 1 (Ages 11+) FULL
Session 5: July 5 – 8 (Ages 7+) FULL
Session 6: July 11 – 15 (Ages 7+) FOUR SPOTS LEFT
Session 7: July 18 – 22 (Ages 9+) SIX SPOTS LEFT
Session 8: July 25 – 29 (Ages 11+) ONE SPOT LEFT
Learn more…
If you missed the Studio Sale…
If you missed our Spring Studio Sale, here are a few pics to tease you with!
And the winner is…
Congrats to Misia Buetens and Becky Schmauch for being the winners of our raffle at the 11th Annual Spring Studio Sale!
Prizes:
The Nest Series is about the balance between protecting and trapping. Each nest has an item that is exposed to the viewer through its outer shell but also shielded by its webbing. In some, the inner items are attempting to escape but are then left vulnerable to the elements. These pieces are hand-built, hand-carved and created with a process that fuses the inner pieces to the outer.
‘A Relationship with Earth’ A hardcover catalog of the artwork created by sculptor Jenni Ward from 2009 – 2011. This includes images of work from the Nest, Branch, Sprout and Hive Series.
Visit the studio at our next event for another chance to win raffle prizes!
New Create with Clay PDF book
I’ve teamed up with my friend and art teacher extraordinaire Kathy Barbro of Art Projects for Kids for Book 2 of Create with Clay!
We’re sharing five more ceramic art projects that are creative and classroom tested. If you like to work with clay, but need some new ideas with clear visual instructions, then this is the book for you.
PDF FILE INCLUDES INSTRUCTIONS FOR:
• 3D Shape People
• Pinch Pot Monster
• Mug with Mugs
• Fishie
• Textured Frame