When I was at NCECA Seattle two years ago I couldn't resist buying a fine soda-fired beaker made by Ryan Mckerley. He is one of the artists who set up a display of work from Artstream, a travelling ceramics gallery/shop. The beaker is sculpted using a wax-resist technique and has fine orange-peel turquoise texture. So recently when Alan and I found ourselves in Austin TX,…
Last Thursday was the Opening Reception for two shows at Port Moody Arts Centre. Maggie White is a well-known Port Moody painter and a member of the Federation of Canadian Artists. For a long time she specialized in water-colours. I remember the opening of a show of hers at Coquitlam's Place des Arts in the late eighties, mainly because one needed to get there early…
Here it is, the end of Easter Sunday and I've just turned on a bisque firing. What would my father have said? But today, somewhat rainy, was treated as a work day. The pleasure of having the family here for a meal will happen tomorrow. But I had promised the most recent group of 'Raiders' that I would be filling the kiln…
Last weekend Susan Delatour Lepoidevin presented a hand-building workshop in Maple Ridge, 'That Special Place: Hand Building Houses. She has made a career from her passion for ancient, idiosyncratic buildings found all around the world. They form the basis for a clay dwelling,lighthouse or castle and she makes each one into a little story. She adds birds, bricks, windows, flowers, people and chimneys and…
A couple of weeks ago we spent a few days in nearby Bellingham, in Washington State. Alan attended the North-West Anthropological Conference and I took the opportunity to be a tourist in this charming city. My first destination was Baker Street Ceramics studio where the resident artists are Deb McCunn and Jason Walker. Jason was our presenter at the February TriCity Potters' meeting and I…