Plates in progress!

Thought I'd share a few new things I've been working on for the upcoming Deck the Halls show here at Sawtooth the month of December!

Up and Running

So, I finally managed to get my Etsy store up and running. (Etsy link: http://www.etsy.com/shop/biancawilliams) This last batch of pots came out really well. I have lots of small pieces and a few big ones. Which will be for sale while they last. So, check em out. I've posted some examples of the work for sale below. Right now I am trying to do two things: I am developing a narrative that will be populated by my own characters. This is something that I have been wanting to do for forever, and I finally have some time to do it, I can't even describe how happy I am about this! There will a long paper on what the my narrative's goals are, how it came about, and how I want it to function in society that I will post here when it is finished. Probably not to everyone's taste, but with my background in creative writing and English I can't resist. The pieces are scheduled to become available as they are finished but the very best ones will be saved for Sawtooth's Deck the Halls Christmas sale event in the beginning of December. (Here is the link to Sawtooth's website: Sawtooth.org) Community studios are priceless and they need to be supported so if you are in the area in December I highly recommend stopping in, you won't be dissapointed.

In other news my business cards have arrived, and if you haven't seen them they look terrific. The folks over at Moo.com did great job and the process couldn't have been easier. You can see the pictures below as well.

I feel like I am finally starting to edge my way into my studio's inner workings (all it took was an absurd amount of questions from me and one very timely cleaning of a very dirty spray booth, or in other words two hours of me scraping dried glaze out a box the size of a refrigerator). I work in a community space and I am really appreciating all the input I am getting from these great new people.

In my next post I will be giving a short tour of my sketchbook. I love looking at other artist's sketchbooks so I hope you will enjoy mine!

TTFN, Bianca

Learning Curve

So, I'm finally settling in, after what seems like forever but, in truth, has only been a month, to my new studio. I haven't been the new person anywhere in a long time, and there are a lot of adjustments that I will have to make whether I want to or not. The most important one being that my new studio fires in a reduction gas kiln... as a person who almost exclusively uses clear glaze to coat the outside of her work this is a huge problem. The clay and the glaze absorb a huge amount of smoke from the atmosphere coating everything in gray, which obliterates a lot of my designs and colors. I have managed to procure an electric kiln for this batch of pieces because they are already scheduled to go to different spaces and people, but this means that I will have to do a lot of testing to figure out what I can and cannot do, and I am kicking myself for not thinking of this earlier. Sooooo, if anyone has a recipe for a clear glaze that stays clear in reduction I would love to hear it. Otherwise, if you need to find me, I'll be the one with the huge stack of test tiles in the glazing room.

On a happier note, I went to Asheville the other weekend with my awesome family to check out some of the art galleries and studios, and got to tour Odyssey and talk to several people in their studios. They all made it seem infinitely more reasonable to go there than I thought it would be, and I have renewed hope for applying there in the future.  Also, on this trip I went into a few stores that I think would be willing to sell my work (provided I can actually make some). I hope this works out, but it will be along time coming because of the learning curve that reduction firing has given me. I've been at the studio a lot these last two weeks but I haven't really managed to make anything that I would consider a success yet.

And........ the video that was made about my last body of work is finally finished and making its rounds on the internet. I posted it below with a picture of my first finished mug, and a snapshot of my new studio. Enjoy!

Waiting game

Just two more weeks until I can start at the new studio I joined!!!! Not having a space to work has been very frustrating because I want to start working on some new, more involved, large pieces for my portfolio, as well as re-stocking my etsy store. It will have been almost two months when I finally do get to start throwing again (that is a loooooong time). I am super excited to get back to work now the little details of moving to another state have started to settle down. Still have to go to the DMV *sigh*. I'll keep you posted.

The Last Ones

Lots of things have been going on and the momentum of these last few weeks is gaining on me. While I am very excited, the mountain of things I need to do between now and June 9th is daunting and a little sad. Yesterday was my last day at the studio (except for glazing which in my mind doesn't count) that I have been in and out of for the last nine years! I am curious to see how a new studio will change my style, but I will miss the friends that I have made there over the years. Anyway, I'm keeping this short because I have to pack eeeeek! So, here are a few pics of the last pieces in this studio.