Three weeks to go!

These past couple of weeks have been a large lesson in letting go, sometimes your agenda doesn't get done the "right" way. I have found that I'm not a superhero, for sure. So, on to catching up with my blog posts--alot has happened! Last week I spent over 24 in the studio, whether painting or throwing. Although I got a lot done, managing my time better would have been a huge stress reliever. A big lesson to any procrastinator out there.

We finished up the modules project this past week, it was alot of work but I must say that I was happy with the results! It was definitely worth 3 tubes of superglue and 5 hours spent winding thread around spools.

Before hanging the spools from the ceiling I set them on a shelf to keep the strings from getting tangled together. Even though I had not thought of this as a way to display them, I loved how they looked. I would love to further explore this type of installation and possibly have a space lab show. I plan on making spools over break for next semester so I will have more to experiment with.

First spool up! 

 Final installation. 

For the final project, I have finished throwing the bowls and they are currently drying. I have 20 bowls to use for the project. Depending on how the glazes turn out, I may or may not use all of them. After they are glazed they will go to one of my 20 participants, after receiving the bowl I will have them take 3-5 pictures depicting how the bowl is being used--whether it sits in the cabinet, is used for dinner, or is used to hold random items from around the house. I want to get individual prints for each image and display them on a wall. I would like to have a picture book made to document all the different uses, but depending on time constraints, I'm not sure if I'll be able to do that component of the project. I will, however, make sure that the images I have will be printed off and be ready to display. 

I threw 15 bowls last Tuesday, definitely the most I've ever made in one day (or week for that matter!). The last wet clay day was a success. All that's left is glazing and documentation.

Week 11

First of all, I cannot believe how fast this semester has flown by. The wet work cut off date is less than two weeks away. Crazy. For ceramics, I'm finishing up my modules/units piece. Our final critique date is this Thursday. All of the spools have been sanded down, bisque, and slotted. Which I must say was quite a task, considering I have 83. I'm excited about the installation. I have already purchased the string to hang them with. I'm a little apprehensive about hanging them, they still seem very fragile, even after being fired. But if some of them did fall and break it could offer an interesting element into my final project.

For my final project I was really interested in incorporating a throwing element. I have been throwing some cups and bowls, but I would really like to be able to make successful vessels before the end of the semester. After seeing the examples of the next project, I was inspired by the artist who took pictures of individuals drinking out of her mugs. As I started thinking about this a little more, I became more interested in the process and story of inanimate objects. From the wheel to the recipient of the gift, where does it go? What happens to it? Does it get used for its intended purpose? After talking to my professor, we thought it would be much cooler and more interesting to have the participant get more involved. I want the participant to actually take pictures of what they're using a bowl for, do they eat their dinner out of it? Does it sit in their cabinet? Or is it a dish for their dog's water bowl? I want to get alot of people involved. I would love to get around 50 images from this project--images taken by the participants and images taken myself.

In the painting world, the palette knife is no longer my worst enemy. I find it comical that most things that I start out hating become some of my best pieces. Though I'm not complaining. I'm excited to get this piece finished up and start on the next two.

That's all for now, I plan to post pictures of my bowls this week, as well as my finished modules/units project!