Promethean Pottery

Mossy Mahogany Glaze

Persimmon Glaze

These are stoneware, wheel-thrown, canisters produced by a pair of artists (Robert throws, Emily glazes) at Promethean Pottery in Gainesville, Florida. The forms are nice and I like the ridges as a simple way to add interest. But what I really like are the glazes. They have a number of pictures on their blog (prometheanpottery.wordpress.com/) showing Emily's different glaze experiments. In particular, I like Emily's Mossy Mahogany. It is both rich in color and texture and I like the way it flows on the canisters above. Glazes with that much variation can greatly enhance simple forms.

Jenny Marie Smith

So, there actually isn't that much to be found out about Ms. Jenny Marie Smith. I recently came across her one night while procrastinating homework and stumbling. Apparently she lives in Chicago and her website says she's a Gemini. In my personal and "professional" opinion, she depicts beautiful women with full lips and then adds an element of creepiness. Hmm, maybe creepy is too strong of a word. Well, there is definitely a "dark" air about them. Anyways, above are some of her works so you can decide for yourself :) .
And here is the link for her website should you feel the need to peruse more.
Jenny Marie Smith

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DEKQjj6Ga0

Thank you for sharing.  Unique stringed instrument, brought this to mind.  African 12 stringed harp called a Kora. 

Laurie Anderson

I have found Laurie Anderson so fascinating and inspiring for many years. She is a musician, performance artist, and sculptor that has been working since the late 1960s. I first encountered her music from the mid-80s, as well as the album that http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifthhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gife link is excerpted from (The Ugly One with the Jewels). Every time I listen to her work, I find myself exploring new avenues of thought. She is utterly unique and has such a complex layering to her performances. She has also invented several instruments including the tape-bow violin (a sort of electric violin), talking stick, and several voice filters.

Fun fact: she is married to Lou Reed.

Squeak Conwath

I recently came across Squeak Conwath in Painting. I am not in love with all of her work, but there are some I love. This one is titled Trying Simply to Be Happy, her paintings focus a lot on process as well as human emotion and psyche, and rely heavily on text, imagined grid work, and areas she calls "guilt-free zones."

http://www.squeakcarnwath.com/artwork_top.html

Lynda Barry

Lynda Barry is one of my favorite artists and also influences my own art more than any one else. Her art has evolved from straight forward comic strips to art books that delve into the philosophy of "image" making. I was originally attracted to her strips because of the pure and relatable humor that she uses to tell stories about childhood. She has the ability to be extremely funny and to tell stories that are so they make you want to die. As her style changed, this humor was applied to deeper contemplations of the nature of ideas and "how" to make them into images.

Her art has promoted me to think about my own art in the same way regardless of what medium I'm using.

Sunset from Base Camp- 10,300 feet on Mt. Rainier in Washington.  Worked with a crew there rebuilding the corner buttresses of the public shelter.  We used local rock, from the mountain, to rebuild the original structure- which was built in 1923.

Loading 6 ft. tall wood kiln at Jeff Shapiros.  This is just in front of the firebox of his woodfire kiln, before bricking up the door.  Notice how pieces are stacked on edge.  Some of the open pieces have a piece of soft brick inserted for extra support.  this kiln is roughly 6 feet tall, 6-7 feet wide, and I think 10-12 feet long inside.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJgaSTuwp7I
Here is a Mountain Bike Trailer for LifeCycles.- Inspiring Rides, Trails, and Cinematography.

Jim's Clay Class Spring 2012

Please Make 2 weekly posts of any artist, any medium.  Please include a brief description of the work and your opinion of it.  Additional photos or links that you find inspiring may also be included.  I'll start.

This is a picture I took, during a studio visit to Jun Kaneko's last semester.  He is a ceramic artist living in Omaha, Nebraska.  These forms are hand (coil) built, high fired, stoneware.  I appreciate the pureness of form, coupled with the additional elements of line and decoration that he uses in his finished work.

The craftsmanship, dedication, and difficulty inherent in making work on this scale.  Observing one of the pieces first hand- is an entirely different experience then looking at a picture online, or in a magazine.  Prior to visiting the studio- I was "familiar" with his work - in that I knew what it looked like.  While visiting his studio I became "familiar" with the experience of his work, in close proximity and was able to see what it "feels" like.

He is in the process of building a new kiln which, if I recall correctly, the roof of the kiln is going to be 19 feet high.  The new heads he is constructing are going to weigh 6,000 lbs. each and take 6 months to dry.