Capitol Clay Arts World

New Work: Capitol Clay Art Wear

2011-05-27T11:39:00.000-07:00

Just completed a few new pieces and thought I'd share

Blue Moods

Top row, left to right:

Textured Denim Blues Pendant- Soft hues of blue breaking over texture. Accented with Argentiurm Silver wire, corrugated sterling silver beads and a single Swarovski Crystal.

Intergalactic Blues Pendant - Deepest shades of blue break to soft blue at adges with a starry band breaing in the center. Arentium Silver wire and a frosty sterling bead complete the looik.

Blackened Blues pendant - High gloss black and richest blue color combine for depth. Accented with Argentium Silver wire, plus sterling and Hematite beads.

Row two:

Breaking Blues Pin - Rich Cobalt blue over fine texture is accented with golden color breaking at left.

Neutral Gear

Above:

Box of Embers Pendant - Flowing shape with rich tones of yellow orange and brown. Accented with 14K nickel-free gold filled wire and a single agate bead.

Tiny Embers Earrings - Simple and sweet, yellow, orange and brown tones are accented with a pair of rich, orange carnelian beads. Ear wires are handmade from high quality 14K nickel-free gold filled wire.

GreenWear

Top row:

Green to Go Pendant - Turquoise Green over texture creates a mottled effect. Accented with Argentium Silver wire, sterling beads and a Hematite chip.

Gun Metal Green - Rich tones of aqua and pewter break to softest celedon at the edges. Accented with Argentium Silver wire and a trio of sterling beads.

Second row:

Green to Go Pin - Turquoise Green layered with golden tones at left create glow and movement.

Midnight Sky

Above:

Sun & Moon Pin - Rich black breaks starry white over texture and pools in tones of blacish-green. Accented with a hand made golden bead (Karen's personal favorite today!).

Workshop: Bowls - Exploring Form & Function

2011-04-29T09:40:00.001-07:00

Noted potter Keith Lahti returns to Capitol Clay Arts Company for an exciting new workshop, Exploring Bowls--Forms & Function, Saturday and Sunday, May 14-15, 2011. The workshop runs from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. each day.

Known for his exquisite bowls, Keith will bring his considerable knowledge to the workshop which wil focus on hand built and wheel thrown bowls; from throwing and trimming basic shapes to altered, fluted and (time permitting) footed forms. You will leave the workshop having created a wide range of bowls from tiny ingredient bowls, to indivdual serving bowls to large "centerpiece" serving bowls.

Workshop fee is $200 and includes instruction, firings, glazes, 25# clay and a tasty lunch. Fee must be paid in full at the time of registration; class size is limited and registration is on a first-come basis. (Tax is applied to all workshop fees). Workshop requires a minimum of six participants.

Please note: A full refund, less a $20 processing fee will be given to anyone withdrawing one week prior to the workshop. No refunds will be available for withdrawals after May 7.

For more information or to register, call Mike or Karen at 304-720-9851 or email Karen@capitolclayarts.com.

The First Wheel Classes of 2011 Start January 10

2011-01-03T08:04:00.000-08:00

Don't miss a chance to start your year off creatively! Gain a new hobby--or recapture an old one--take a pottery class. The next 6-week long session is filling fast but a few evening slots remain and our day classes offer a great opportunity to fill a day with fun. Check out the schedule below.

DAY Classes - 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. begin Monday, January 10; Tuesday, January 11; Wednesday, January 12; and Thursday, January 13.

EVENING Classes - 6-8:30 p.m. begin Monday, January 10; Tuesday, January 11; and Thursday, January 13.

For more information, call Karen at 304-720-9851 or email Karen@capitolclayarts.com.

This Is A Test, This Is Only A Test!

2010-08-16T12:13:00.000-07:00

I've been working on enhancing my jewelry photography and have been doing extensive research on aperature settings and f-stops to ensure my shots represent my work as closely as possible. Here is the most recent "crop":

By publishing these on my blog, I can get a sense of what they look like in a web environment--and decide how to proceed. Thanks for your indulgence.

Do As I Say. Not What I Did.

2010-05-03T14:26:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has visited the studio more than once knows how much I nag about being constantly aware of the clay that you are using. There's a reason I'm so unrelenting on this point--which I reminded myself earlier today.

Yesterday, Mike and I spent several hours in the studio doing catch up work and I found myself with a couple hours on my hands and two slabs of white clay we had rolled out a few weeks ago. Although I couldn't remember which of the myriad of recent projects we'd rolled the clay out for, I must have been certain it was Standard 240 White clay because I got right to work and, within just a few hours, I had made 59 pendants and absolutely loved 58 of them!

Here's the problem: I got into Capitol Clay this morning and uncovered the pieces, I was surprised to see that, as they dried, they were looking less like the Standard 240 and more like Standard 910. Which is a self-hardening clay. No, go with me here: Self-hardening clay can't go in the kiln. Can't be glazed. Will likely end up a puddle on the kiln floor.

So, we tucked one piece into the current bisque load and here I sit waiting until we can open it on Wednesday and reveal whether I have 59 new pieces to glaze and wire, or one melted mess and 58 pieces of trash. Note to self: "Document your clay!"

UPDATE: Pulled the test piece out of the kiln this a.m. and, hooray, it's real. Dodged that bullet and won't make that mistake again. Although I am confident I'll make others. Many.

Just in Time for Mother's Day!

2010-04-24T08:56:00.000-07:00

Give Mom a flower and a hug! That's our recommendation this Mother's Day. Our whimsical handbuilt flower pencil cup features long leaves that appear to hug the cup and is perfect for Mom's desk at home or at the office. We made this using Standard 910 White Self-Hardening clay. It dries completely within 48 hours and takes craft store acrylic paints beautifully.

We tried the project in a few different sizes and with different sizes of flowers. We deeply indented the center hole on the flower (using a soda bottle cap) which would be perfect with a photo of your child's picture--or tuck a "Happy Mother's Day" message in the center for a gift and card all in one.

Above: I finished my flower with White and Yellow and painted the leaves Spring Green, tipped with Yellow. I used used Soft Lavender as the base color on the pot, accent with White and Yellow dots and lines.

At right: Mike used a soft Pool Blue and White on his flower, accenting the center with Yellow layered over White. He boldly striped his leaves in Spring Green and Yellow and finished his pot with Brown and Pool Blue.

Below: I used Pink as the base color for my flower petals, using Lavender as a shading color and White to highlight. I basecoated the flower center White and added lots and lots of Yellow dots (using the end of a paintbrush) for texture. Finally White, Lavender and Pink dots and lines complete the look. Enjoy!

30th Annual Potter's Gathering - Day 2

2010-02-24T11:45:00.001-08:00

With so many pieces thrown on Saturday, Day 1 of the 2010 Potter's Gathering, guest presenter Robin Hopper spent Sunday, Day 2 finishing and applying surface decorations.

First up: Handles. Lots and lots and lots of handles. Robin shared his preference for handles that are accented to disguise their point of attachment and, once attached, showed his technique for just ever so slightly flattening his handles at the point where fingers grasp them for a more comfortable fit.

With just his trimming tool (okay, his $75 Bison trimming tool), he quickly created a pineapple design and was on to the next piece!

With all pieces assembled, Robin then turned his attention to surface decoration. He mixed three different colorants (Copper Carbonate, Red Iron Oxide and Manganese Dioxide) with porcelain slip and a bit of CMC (liquid) to create the ideal consistency for painting on his pieces.

At right: Robin steps back to contemplate his design. The vase was formed from a simple cylinder at the bottom and a larger oval-shaped bottle on top. The oval shape provided an ideal surface for this painted design.

Below, at left: Robin applies his signature floral design to a very large lidded jar; the lid is accented with one of Robin's Phoenix birds.

Finally, all pieces were auctioned off with proceeds to go to the Tamarack Foundation to help fund scholarships for the 2011 Potter's Gathering and to the Canadian Red Cross for Haiti.

If you haven't attended a Potter's Gathering, please consider coming to the 2011 event. Guest presenter is Tom Turner so this one should also be fantastic. You'll find the gathering equal parts inspiration and fellowship!

30th Annual Potter's Gathering - Day 1

2010-02-17T09:45:00.000-08:00

While it was the 30th annual Gathering, it was my first trip to West Virginia's largest annual gathering of potters and this year was extra special (nothing to do with me, of course!) due to the prominence of the presenter: Robim Hopper. Internationally known teacher, artist and author, his works, books and DVDs are collected around the world.

He's a funny guy: equal parts charm and grit with a twisted British sense of humor. Via his demos, DVDs and PowerPoint presentations, he shared his history, and sources of inspiration, along with potters whose work he admires.

With over 40 years of production pottery experience, watching Robin throw was like watching something on fast forward. One second you see the ball of clay and the next, something beautiful--and in porcelain, no less.

The first day was devoted to throwing the shapes he would decorate on Day 2. Here are just of few of the pieces he created:

Above left: Robin threw a tall cylinder, then choked it in to form a graceful bird's head.
Above center: With a few cuts and bends, he angled the head into position. Later, the head and a wheel-thrown tail were affixed to an elegant shallow bowl with sloped shoulders. It was beautiful!
Above right: Just a small portion of Day 1 work.

The final "event" of Day 1 involved creation of some beautiful agate work, layering regular porcelain with clays pre-tinted (by Mike) with oxides. He took sections of regular porcelain and layered it with section of porcelain tinted with red iron oxide and layers of clay tinted with manganese dioxide, carefully connecting them without wedging or muddying the colors. Then, he threw his forms as usual.

The magic happened when he fluted the pieces (see bowl) or faceted them (see bottle below) to reveal and give organic shape to the colored layers of clay.

I'm delighted to report that the faceted bottle will be residing at Capitol Clay Arts Company, a gift to Mike for our donation of his Tom Turner Porcelain (Standard Ceramic Company) and Mike's work wedging the colorants into the clay. We're honored to have it!

And to all you pottery students at Capitol Clay Arts Company: Get your wedging muscles ready! We're going to be working with colored clays during our next class session beginning March 1.

Special Thanks: To Dale Porter of Pots by Porter for sharing some of his wonderful photos since my batteries died. Thanks much, Dale.

Empty Bowls Help Fill Stomachs

2010-01-29T09:45:00.000-08:00

Each year, the Marshall University Keramos Student Potter's Guild supports the Empty Bowls event, to raise money to feed individuals and families in financial distress. With this year's tough economy, the need is great. Let's help!

Call for Pottery
If you are attending this year's Potter's Gathering (February 12-14 at Cedar Lakes) please bring a bowl (or several bowls) or another ceramic piece to donate to the annual, upcoming Empty Bowls silent auction. Earline will collect your works at the Gathering and transport them back to Marshall.

Can't make it to the Gathering but still want to help? Drop your pieces by Capitol Clay Arts Company at 721 Crescent Road in Charleston; Mike and I will make certain they get safely to Earline. Your pottery can help families in need. Please donate to this worthy cause.

About Robin Hopper

2010-01-13T10:40:00.000-08:00

Internationally-known potter, teacher, author, garden designer and arts activist, Robin Hopper's ceramics works are held in private collections around the world and has taught in Canada, the UK, the US, China, Israel and more.

Born in England in 1939, he studied at Croydon College of Art (1956-61) and set up studio. He immigrated to Canada in 1968 and began teaching at Central Technical School where he set up and headed the Ceramics and Glass Department at Georgian College in Barrie, Ontario.

In 1972, he resigned from teaching to devote himself to his ceramic exploration full time. In 1977, his work was honored with the Bronfman Award, Canada's most prestigious annual award in crafts.

Hopper has authored numerous indespensible books on pottery, including The Ceramic Spectrum, Functional Pottery and Making Marks. He has also produced a series of six DVDs on ceramic decoration processes.

With over 50 years work in ceramics, Robin Hopper's exploration have included both historical and technical research and on-going studio involvement with both functional, production pottery and one-of-a-kind works of art. Porcelain is his preferred clay body.

Holiday Ornament Ideas

2009-11-18T09:44:00.001-08:00

There's still plenty of time to create festive, one-of-a-kind ornaments--made faster still using Standard 910 air dry clay. I created these and painted them using regular acrylic paints from your craft store. This is a fun project for grown ups and a great idea for kids. Enjoy!

Charms & Frames

These ornaments start with cookie cutter frames, then either use very small cookie cutters or hand cut/made charms to dangle via ribbon.

At right: Snow Daze. A simple painted snowscape frames a dangling snowman charm. White ribbon is used to hold both the ornament frame and the snowman.

At left: Tree Trio! The star and tree are cut from a thin slab and held in place with ribbon. The ornament is a hand-rolled bead that is suspended with jewelry-stringing wire and held in place with crimp beads.

Simply Shaped

Just cutting out simple shapes can result in a really special look. At right: Dancing Star.

A series of these simple stars will adorn the tree planned for our front window this holiday. I drew several shapes until a found one I liked then scanned it, printed out several copies on card stock and used it to cut multiple stars. Easy and they actually match!

At left: Gift Tag/Ornament.

Finally, a simple round, cut with a small cookie cutter is adorned with a furled ribbon and personalized. This idea could begin as a gift tag and become an ornament to be treasured for years to come.

Here's hoping clay plays an important role in your holiday decorating.

First Anniversary Special!

2009-10-05T11:50:00.000-07:00

In appreciation for your support over the past year, we're planning an array of special sale events over the next couple of weeks. This week's event: A Clay Sale!

Buy any selected, in-stock clay and receive the next highest weight price break:

Buy 25# (regularly .52-53/lb.) and pay the lesser 50# price of .48/lb.
Buy 50# (regularly .48/lb.) and pay the lesser 100# price of .43/lb.
Buy 100# (regularly .43/lb.) and pay the lesser 500# price of .38/lb.

It's a great time to stock up save on these quality clay bodies:

Highwater High Fire Stoneware
Aurora - c7-10
Trina Buff - c7-10
Phoenix - c7-10
Zella Stone - c7-10

Highwater Mid-Range Stoneware
Brownstone - c 4-6

Highwater Earthenware
White - c06-02
Raku - c06-6

Laguna High Fire Clay
Laguna B-Mix 10 w/Sand - c10
Laguna B-Mix 10 w/Grog - c10

Laguna Low-Fire Clay
Laguna #20 - c06
Laguna #20G - c06

Standard Mid-Range Clay
266 Brown - c4-6
308 Brooklyn Red - c4-8

Standard Low-Fire Clay
104 Red w/Grog - c06-4
105 White - c06-04
105G White w/Grog - c06-04
239 Raku - c04-6
417 Low Fire Red - c06-02

Sale prices apply to in-stock quanities at time of purchase. Sale in effect through October 24, 2009.

Happy Birthday, CCAC!

2009-10-01T13:16:00.000-07:00

Later this month, Capitol Clay Arts Company will celebrate its first anniversary--how time flies! To celebrate, we plan:

Weekly product sales
A special thank you event for our pottery students
Frequent news about latest projects fresh from the studio

Stay tuned and, if you haven't visited us recently, please stop by Capitol Clay Arts Company at 721 Crescent Road, on Charleston's West Side.

More Fun with Glazes!

2009-08-08T11:58:00.000-07:00

We've been testing assorted Coyote Crawl glazes on the really cool Laguna B3 (near black) clay with really fun results:

Above:
White Crawl Pendant: Glaze applied very thickly (dipped).
Croc Crawl Pendant Pair: The one at left had thicker application than the one at the right.
Blue Crawl Pendant: Glaze was medium thick at the top, getting thicker at the bottom which produced richer blue tones and wider cracks.

Underglazes Have Been Getting Their Share of Attention

The vase below (stolen from Mike) was painted with Violet, Red Orange and Black underglazes with a few accents of White and Yellow. Interior was poured with Coyote Cone 6 Glaze in Violet.

Finally, the test tile below was a combo of Crawl glazes and underglaze. The tile was basecoated with Black underglaze, then had alternating swaths of White Crawl, Croc Crawl, White Crawl, Blue Crawl and, finally, more White Crawl to create a really interesting texture. There are additional test tiles in the kiln now so stay tuned for more fun with glazes.

Getting in Gear--Finally

2009-06-08T12:48:00.000-07:00

When Mike and I first opened Capitol Clay Arts Company, I began experimenting with different clay/glaze combos by making pendants. They are a quick way to get from idea to finished product and have proven reasonably effective in showing what results potters might expect from certain combos.

Of course, a by-product of all that experimentation has been a proliferation of pendants taking up valuable office space. For the past several months, I've sold a few pendants to people who love to make their own jewelry pieces but, over the past week or so, I caught the bug. For some reason, I've been compelled to take some of these (many) pendants and finally finish them into necklaces.

I wanted to share a few samples:

At right: Karen's Favorite

Clay body: Standard Raku
Glaze: Coyote Ice Blue
Beads: Assorted glass, shell, pearls and metal
Length: approximately 36"

Current location: Around my neck!

Below: A grouping featuring Standard 266 Dark Brown clay with Coyote Ice Blue glaze. The second from left includes a shot of Coyote's Really Red--an amazing, bold cone 6 red like no other. The two pieces at left were made with an assortment of glass beads and shells. The one at right is made entirely of wooden beads and shells.

Below: A pair of pendants that resemble lichens! Linda Sweeney purchased Ohio Slip, while attending a workshop earlier this year and invited Mike and I to experiment. These pieces were made of Highwater Little Loafers. Ohio Slip served as the base glaze (brushed on), then I dipped each into Coyote White Crawl Glaze. I purposely kept the glaze on the pendant at left very thick and removed some of the glaze from the pendant at right. The brown of the Ohio Slip leached into the white crawl, adding a wonderful, organic quality to the finished, crackle appearance. That was a fun experiment! Next up: I have 16 pieces made of Laguna B-3 Dark Brown clay and will be testing some of the same glazes as the ones shown here. I'll share results soon!

Pottery Chronicled

2009-05-20T10:55:00.000-07:00

We recently completed Capitol Clay Arts Company's first featured artist workshop, Terra Sigillata with Keith Lahti, and the results were fantastic. The workshop was super-educational and Keith was a fantastic source of education, information and inspiration. He can teach a workshop at CCAC any time.

I was drawn to one of his pieces early in the workshop and followed it through the entire terra sig process. At left is the vase, still on the wheel, freshly thrown and featuring a very precise split lip opening. Beautiful.

Up next: Texture time. Keith used hand-made stamps, carving and taught techniques for adding delicate and bold accents of slip to add even more texture.

The photos show stamping in progress and the piece with all texture added. Now, we're ready for the terra sig!

Now comes the science part! Terra sigillata is mixed, siphoned and ready for colorants.

The frothy pink mixture will produce an electric blue color while the green mixture turns, well, green.

The terra sig/colorant mixtures are then artfully applied. They can be brushed on or, as in the case at left, strategically applied with a spray gun. Keith shared spraying techniques that helped the potters apply the colorants to maximize the textured effects.

The pieces were then fired to cone 04 or about 1940 degrees. The firing really brings the color out and makes them pop. The pot at left is before firing; at right, after. Quite a difference! The strong blue was produced by the lovely pastel pink colorant which was cobalt carbonate. Guess it's not so unexpected.

So, now that you have this beautiful, richly colored finish, what do you do? Why not completely obliterate everything with black patina. At left: Keith brushes on the patina while Homaira looks on. The patina is brushed over the entire piece then, as the center photo shows, is sponged off until the desired color is achieved. At right: The piece with patina applied and sponged away. This looks very similar to how the piece will look when finished.

The inside of the piece is then glazed and fired, again, to cone 04.

At left: The beautiful finished piece.

And, that's a chronicle of the life of this piece. So, where is it now? In our lobby, generously gifted to Mike and I by Keith. We loved every minute of this workshop--as did all the students who participated. Keith, we'll display the piece proudly and, don't tell Mike, but I anticipate some shelf construction in his immediate future to create the ideal home.

And, as always, happy sigging.

Pottery & Social Media

2009-04-21T10:49:00.000-07:00

I fear I've spread myself too thin! I started with Twitter. And, if you follow me there, you'll discover that I'm not a natural born Twitterer or Tweeter or Twit, as the case may be. It's great for announcing weather-related class cancellations, kiln updates, etc., but either it's not a great forum for me or (extremely possible!) I just don't get it. Got ideas? I'm so open. Please share.

I then moved on to this blog, which I'll update more frequently now that it's linked to the website. I have great plans for it now so check back often.

Finally, I relented and have a FaceBook account which is great! Love the immediacy of showing pieces fresh from the kiln, new glazes and other random announcements. In fact, I plan to post photos throughout our upcoming Terra Sigillata Workshop with Keith Lahti so check back to see what's going on. Should be fun so, come on, let's be friends!

Exploring Terra Sigillata

2009-03-26T13:28:00.000-07:00

Left: Earthenware Dragon Urn, by Keith Lahti

With the upcoming Keith Lahti workshop at Capitol Clay Arts Company, let's take a few minutes to explore the art and the process of terra sig.

Meaning "sealed earth", terra sigillata is a smooth, lustrous coating of clay which resembles a glaze and is virtually waterproof. The characteristic silkiness of terra sigillata is due to the plate-like shape of the clay particles and to the use of only the smallest particles.

In fact, most terra sigs are made by a process of levigation, allowing the larger particles to settle to the bottom, leaving the very finest, sub-micron sized particles in suspension. These very fine particles are siphoned off and become the terra sigillata.

Check out Keith's gallery to see more samples of Keith's work. And, check back--we'll publish samples of pieces created at the workshop.

Announcing New Class Scheduled Beginning March 16

2009-02-28T12:58:00.000-08:00

Because I am horribly behind in my web duties, I am using the blog to share our new class schedule. As noted in the newsletter, and at your request, we are expanding classes to six weeks to allow more time for creative exploration. We hope you like the new format.

New evening classes are as follows:

Class #0904A - March 16-April 20: Monday 6-8:30 p.m.
Class #0904B - March 17-April 21: Tuesday 6-8:30 p.m.
Class #0904C - March 18-April 22: Wednesday 6-8:30 p.m.
Class #0904D - March 19-April 23: Thursday 6-8:30 p.m.

New daytime classes are as follows:

Class #0904D1 - March 17-April 21: Tuesday 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Class #0904D2 - March 18-April 22: Wednesday 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Class #0904D3 - March 19-April 23: Thursday 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

Class fee: $112.50, includes 25# clay, plus all firing and glazing fees. Click here to get registration form. For more information, contact Mike or Karen at 304/720-9851.

News from the Studio: How About A Community Garden?

2009-02-23T17:21:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the Capitol Clay Arts World blog. Our goal: To bring expanded news and information to the West Virginia clay community. We'd also like to provide a window to the larger world and how potters are contributing to creating a better one. It seems appropriate our first posting will focus on a potter, a pottery student and a shared vision to make their community a better place to live.

Inspired by the vision of West Side Charleston potter Renee Margocee, Doug Minnerly, pastor of the Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church and a new pottery student in our Thursday morning pottery class, is pursuing development of a community garden on Price Street, where the church is located.

To this end, Doug invites you to attend an informational meeting on Sunday, March 8 at 3 p.m. at Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church, 805 Price Street, Charleston. John Porter of the Kanawha County office/WVU Extension Service will present a program on how to get a community garden started.

Improve your neighborhood and your nutrition while you lower your food bills. Not a bad proposition. And, if the garden goes forward, I've volunteered Mike (wife's perogative!) to create a fountain for the space. Here's one he installed in our back garden in Atlanta. I'd love to see one on Price Street soon. What are your thoughts on making the world a better place? Please, share them with us.