I have FINALLY set the dates for the Fall workshops. See the "Classes" tab at this website for more information, or check out the Event listing on my Facebook page or talk to me at the Wolfville Farmers' Market.
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Tuesday, September 2, 2014
My Slow Pottery Movement
So... you may know that I'm into "Slow Food". I guess I could even be accused of being "a Foodie". I like to imagine that my foodie traits are primarily rooted in eating well (with health in mind, for the body AND the environment... as if you can separate the two) rather than some kind of food elitist constantly in pursuit of a rare and/or difficult to acquire edible item.
Creating food that's really worth consuming takes time. That's what slow food is about. Sure, you can pick a fresh juicy peach from a tree and eat it in the sun in all it's naked, dripping glory and say "how is this slow food?", but you'd be ignoring the time it took to select and cultivate the tree. The time it took for the bee to pollinate the flower, the time it took for the blossom to transform into the 'sparkle in your eye' of the juicy fruit that you have just picked. That's slow food... the time and also the acknowledgment and the appreciation that it takes time.
I've been eating for quite a few years now... Pottery on the other hand is a more recent occupation. But, it's been a few years (more than a decade) that I can say I've been hacking away at clay and I think I can officially say (based on keen scientific observation) that I am a "slow potter". That is to say, not the kind with immediately obvious talent, or the kind that overwhelms with productivity. I am the slow, plodding kind. If I am going to truly embrace "slow pottery" I need to accept that. To embrace that it takes time.
In the spirit of Slow Pottery... here is the result of the project I started nearly a year ago. A large mosaic, that I'm using as a sign. I would do some things differently if I were starting over, but in the end I am sufficiently satisfied that, in my slow and plodding way, I managed to hang it up next to the entrance to the studio. It'll be there to welcome all who come here to experience slow pottery with me.
I should probably also note that you can now find my "slow pottery" at my booth at the Wolfville Farmers Market every week for the rest of 2014! Look for this fabulous old cabinet... I'm working on filling the shelves with new and always unique stuff.
Creating food that's really worth consuming takes time. That's what slow food is about. Sure, you can pick a fresh juicy peach from a tree and eat it in the sun in all it's naked, dripping glory and say "how is this slow food?", but you'd be ignoring the time it took to select and cultivate the tree. The time it took for the bee to pollinate the flower, the time it took for the blossom to transform into the 'sparkle in your eye' of the juicy fruit that you have just picked. That's slow food... the time and also the acknowledgment and the appreciation that it takes time.
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| Some of my recent mugs. Be kind to bees, they're kind of important if you like to eat. |
I've been eating for quite a few years now... Pottery on the other hand is a more recent occupation. But, it's been a few years (more than a decade) that I can say I've been hacking away at clay and I think I can officially say (based on keen scientific observation) that I am a "slow potter". That is to say, not the kind with immediately obvious talent, or the kind that overwhelms with productivity. I am the slow, plodding kind. If I am going to truly embrace "slow pottery" I need to accept that. To embrace that it takes time.
In the spirit of Slow Pottery... here is the result of the project I started nearly a year ago. A large mosaic, that I'm using as a sign. I would do some things differently if I were starting over, but in the end I am sufficiently satisfied that, in my slow and plodding way, I managed to hang it up next to the entrance to the studio. It'll be there to welcome all who come here to experience slow pottery with me.
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| mosaic piece (the poppies have a special significance at the studio) |
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| the sign - finally mounted on the wall of the studio |
I should probably also note that you can now find my "slow pottery" at my booth at the Wolfville Farmers Market every week for the rest of 2014! Look for this fabulous old cabinet... I'm working on filling the shelves with new and always unique stuff.
cheers!
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