Diversity on display

 Snapshots of the show

Note: This link: Table of Contents 
          will help you find specific items of our work on previous posts.

The Blue Sage Center for the Arts did a beautiful job of hanging/displaying the extreme diversity of my work, several styles spanning over 30 years of working/playing with clay. Following are snapshots of the various displays, posted here especially for those who couldn't attend. The show ends on Saturday, June 18; I will be in the gallery on Friday afternoon from 2-5pm for conversation. The Blue Sage has a concert beginning at 5:00pm, so locals are invited to stop by before the concert.

Elk, Aspen Forest, Mountains and Hawk

Elk are the predominate wildlife theme in
Rocky Mountain National Park

Elk "Chip & Dip" Bowl: 12.25" diameter and 2.75" high

We will be showing at the Grand Lake Arts and Crafts Festival, on the western edge of the Park, presents July 9-10, 2017
SHOW HOURS: Saturday, 10:00 AM-5:00 PM and Sunday, 10:00 AM-4:00 PM We will be bringing a fine selection of Elk-themed pieces: platters and serving pieces as well as pie plates and mugs and steins; also elegant fruit baskets made of strong, washable stoneware clay. Note: This link:  Table of Contents    will help you find specific items of our work on previous posts.
Here I show you the slip-painting process of the large, wall-hanging serving piece that I call a "Chip & Dip," one brushstroke at a time.

first, the blank stencils

next, shadows under the branches

then all those wonderful knots and scratches on the aspen bark

and finally, the trunk wrinkles, horizontal but with a slight curve

The following is the side view, showing the open curved foot. See the face of the final fired piece at the top of this page.

What's in a Tray?

Note that this link: Table of Contents will help you find specific items of our work within this blog.

Serving tray, tea tray, ash tray, pipe tray, paint tray, jewelry tray, vitamin tray, teabag tray, spoonrest tray, business card tray, food try, mushroom sorting tray....

~How do YOU use a tray?~

My newest and most exciting (to me) work is a series of hand-built trays. Their forms are very free and the glaze in the flat bottom is over the top! with depths of glassy glaze in pools of colors and swirls. Here are a few examples:

This 9" tray has especially rich glazes:

2 1/2" x 9" x 4"

 I needed a wide shallow vessel for my big brush to dip water-based pigment; the smaller trays made handy brush holders for small brushes:

paint tray lg: 1 3/4" x 5 1/2" x 1 1/2" smaller ones 

When sketching--and erasing--the eraser will blacken with graphite. The bottom of stoneware pottery is a dry and slightly rough surface, perfect for cleaning the eraser. As a bonus, while doing art work you get to USE a sculptural little piece of art to hold your tools:

green one is 1 1/2" x 4 1/4" x 3"

One size small tray is perfect for business cards:

Amazing color under those business cards 1 1/4" x 4 1/4" x 3"

This 8" tray was just the thing for grading an abundant harvest of fairy ring mushrooms:

Fairy ring (Marasmius oreades) 

Art Market in Estes Park

Note: This link: Table of Contents will help you find specific items of our work within this blog.

Our first show of the season will be in Estes Park over Memorial Day Weekend, May 23, 24 and 25, 2015. We have LOTS of new work. 

14" platter of Rocky Mountain slip painting. Elk and Aspen Forest with Hawk and snowy mountains.

The rest of our summer schedule will include a couple of Western Slope shows:
Paonia Cherry Days on July 3 and 4
Carbondale Mountain Fair on July 24, 25 & 26

Then, allowing time for class reunions and fun festivals, gardening, making more pottery and custom commissions, we start up again in September:
Santa Fe Fiesta September 4, 5 & 6
Estes Park Fine Arts and Crafts September 19 & 20

As the holiday season approaches, you will find us at
Loveland "The Ranch" (Larimer County Fairgrounds) November 21 & 22
and back in Paonia for the Paonia Holiday Fair, December 4 & 5

Come see us at the Fair!

Examples of slip-painted work

Tara decorates much of her wheel-thrown work using stencils or natural objects to resist pigmented clay, painting around the objects to create surface textures and adding details with sgraffito technique (scratching off the slip to reveal the lighter colored clay body underneath).

Top: 11 oz mug showing mountains. The other side could be decorated with a variety of wildlife of muscle-powered sports figures. and a 17 oz stein with a moose.

Hummingbird design on a round platter with handles, 11 ½" diameter.

Oval Platter with Elk and Hawk with Mountains and Aspen Forest. 14" x 11" x 2"
The oval platters have an attached foot ring and hanging wire so they can be hung on the wall as well as used for serving food. The raised foot lifts the platter off the table to function as a handle.

Pie plate with Brown Aspen Leaf design, 10" diameter.
Real leaves are used to resist the pigment and the veins are painted in after the plate is dry.

Spoon rest with Hawk and Mountains, 5"

Cranes dancing and flying on a round platter, about 11" diameter

All work is dishwasher, oven and microwave safe.

Chip and Dip/ Pasta Bowl sets

Three examples of Chip and Dip/Pasta Bowl sets.
The large bowls are approximately 3 ½" x 12" x 12" and the accessory bowls are 2" x 6".
The top right is in multiple green glaze and shows the opening of the curved, pedestaled foot as it appears sitting on the table with and the dip bowl in the center as it would traditionally be used. The lower left, in the honey gold glaze reveals the detail of the curved foot from the bottom and the hanging wire. The Hummingbird design is "painted" with pigmented clay slip and this view shows how the rims are altered from round with small indentations around the rim. Each comes with an accessory bowl, which is also a nice size for desserts. The upright inner curve of the big bowl is traditional for serving pasta.

This form is available in various glazes: cobalt blue, columbine brushwork, and other slip-work figures, such as Elk and Mountains and Aspen Leaves.