Blog - Page 4 of 36 - Marian Williams Pottery

How I Made Farm Girl Sculpture

This farm girl sculpture came to me as a vision of my farm, the land and she represents that. She is the dirt, the furrows, the crops, the rusted nails and implements. But she needs love to produce crops, and water – thus the title of this sculpture: Tell Me You Love Me And Bring Me A Drink.

She’s also partly ME – I’ll always be a farm girl, but part of me wanted to be more…fancier, more dignified- but I’ll always be a farm girl, especially at heart.

I certainly don’t claim to be a sculptor, but I do like to try.

This current effort had its fits and starts, disasters, start overs, but….eventually…she showed up!

farm girl sculpture, figurative sculpture, marian williams pottery, farm girl pottery, marian williams — This was my first attempt at ‘farm girl’. Thankfully, she blew up in the kiln – so I started over.

farm girl sculpture, marian williams, marian williams pottery, farm girl pottery, figurative sculpture — I started by building the chest and adding the initial adornments – all in white raku clay.

The beads of her necklace were made from recycled clay with “farm glass” melted in the center. Farm glass is the old glass found around an old “dump” on a farm- back in the day when we burned trash and then dumped it in a hole, glass was often strewn around the site-it’s beautiful!!

The blue and white floral transfers are indicative of the sewing of all good farm girls- we had to do it- no alternative!

Her headdress is composed of rusty nails, a horseshoe and stems of cotton and wheat – crops of the farms I’ve been associated with,

farm girl is made of white groggy clay and recycled clay.each clay shows the contrast of the “dirt” of the farm and the “clean” of town. Farm girl is full of dichotomies.

I can’t even explain it, but I can be sitting in front of her and all of a sudden- she changes…she “becomes” someone.

I hope you enjoy her journey and I hope you can understand that, although I’m not a sculptor, the creativity comes and expresses itself through my hands- such a privilege!

Let your creativity flow!

Marian

How To Save Pots By Grinding Pot Feet That Have Stuck To The Kiln Shelf

Tutorials

First up, try to avoid this annoying problem by avoiding glazing too close to the foot or using runny glazes or not using kiln wash…but as we all know…s… happens! So when it does, don’t always throw in the towel, or the pot as it were, try to save it by grinding the foot.

This recently happened to me and here’s what I did:

grinding pot feet, grinding glaze drips, grinding glaze stuck to kiln shelf, diamond core tools, diamond core grinding disc — This mug had a drippy glaze that stuck it to the kiln shelf. Thanks goodness for kiln wash! All it needs is a little grinding to make it look great!

Attach a Diamond Core Grinding Disc (self adhesive) to a bat that will easily fit on your wheel.

Buy a simple water pump (like an aquarium pump), attach a piece of plastic tubing and figure out a way to have it drizzle over the grinding disc. (I used a VERY make-shift holder from a set of chopsticks and duct tape -my husband wasn’t around!) Have a bucket placed under the drain of the wheel table/pan to catch the run off water. It can then be recycled by the pump onto the grinding disc.

While running the wheel at a fast speed, and water drizzling onto the wheel, press the pot’s foot that needs grinding against the grinding disc. This will take a bit of time, but the result is AMAZING!!!

Diamond Core Tools also have a wide selection of grinding tips for your dremel tool and come in extremely handy! I recommend all of their products- excellent!

Good luck and let me know how it works or if you have any questions.

All the best

Marian

Llano Estacado Wine and Clay Festival

Events Pottery Selling

We have returned from Lubbock and have recovered enough to write this post! It was a great adventure and I was so fortunate to have my beautiful daughter, Liz, along with me to make all the work – loading, unloading, setting up, selling, etc – actually happen! She’s the best!

The market was hosted by the Llano Estacado Clay Guild and they did an outstanding job of making it work smoothly, making us feel welcome, and providing a great venue for the market. On top of all that, they had a hospitality room, fed us breakfast, lunch and dinner – plus t-shirts and goodies and on and on! Great group!

Llano Estacado Clay Guild, Janis Hubble, George Nalle — Janis Hubble and George Nalle

llano estacado clay guild, clay studio, clay, wheels — The Llano Estacado Clay Guild has a really great studio!

The venue was the Llano Estacado Winery just on the southern outskirts of Lubbock, so we were amidst the wine tanks, casks, and tasting areas – nice!

farm girl pottery, llano estacado wine and clay festival, llano estacado winery — Our booth was set up in the winery amongst the wine casks, barrels, and tanks.

It was a great experience and the booth looked great! Here are some pics of our booth. We had new cards, a new banner, handmade price tags, my grandma’s old lace table cloth, antique tables and rugs and lighting…it was awesome!

It was a great kick off to my new farm girl pottery series of work. New cards, new website, facebook, instagram – the works! So follow along and see what’s happening with farm girl pottery

Introducing “farm girl pottery”!!!

Selling

I’m so excited to announce that I’m relaunching my pottery in the USA as farm girl pottery!!!

It’s going to be fun and interesting to veer off in a new direction, but I’ll continue to blog here on general pottery topics. Marian Williams Pottery won’t be going away…I’ll just be adding a new selling component: farm girl pottery

I hope that you will follow me on my new instagram, facebook and website!

Instagram: @farm_girl_pottery

Facebook: farm girl pottery

Website: www.farmgirlpottery.com

Growing up as a “farm girl” on a farm in the Panhandle of Texas has left indelible impressions on me which are now evident in my work. The new direction I’m taking feels so right and good.

Ronnie and I returned to my farm after college.

My mom died shortly after moving back to my farm. I think Ronnie built me a kick wheel to help me get back on track…it was devastating. The wheel had a tractor seat and I set up a “studio” in the barn adjacent to our house. Little did we know that the shaft that held the wheel head was off-centre, so I had a lot of difficulty centering pots! But I loved it then as much as I do now. And as most potters know, pottery has a healing effect.

This is me – I was 27, my mom had just died that year, and this wheel was the bomb!

So the circle keeps turning and I’m back in Texas with a pottery studio and work that is reflecting my earliest recollections – plowed ground. It just feels so right.

farm girl pottery, marian willialms pottery, vessels, llano estacado winery wine and clay festival,

Tell Me You Love Me And Give Me A Drink

Musings

Since moving back to the USA after living in Australia for 15 years, I’ve been amazed at the creativity surge in me that has occurred! Different than in Australia – I never felt that there.

In Australia, I learned so much – from so many wonderful potters. I was amazed at their creativity, centeredness and focus. I, on the other hand, floundered – chasing every bunny down every bunny trail and never really sticking to one thing! The great part about that is that I got to learn so much, experience so many types of pottery, firing types, and glaze techniques. And each potter in Australia seemed to be so inspired by something….the beach, the ocean, the landscape, the culture…but I never found that. Instead, I focused on glazes, chasing gas firing nirvana and trying to achieve copper reds.

When I started making again here in the USA, I just KNEW! My hands just worked and my mind KNEW what it wanted to create and especially what it wanted to SAY!!!

As a result of about 6 months of work, I have created a body of work that I have entitled, “Tell Me You Love Me And Bring Me A Drink”.

This series of vessels came from my background as a “farm girl”.

Watching my father plow the fields, check his irrigation water fill the rows, dance when it rained that precious water and praise when harvest came in – gave me a rich vision for these vessels.

His love of these furrows, and ultimately mine, give my work a voice saying, “Tell Me You Love Me And Bring Me A Drink”.

My first marketing venue is coming up this weekend in Lubbock, Texas (in the Panhandle of Texas) at the Llano Estacado Winery at the Llanco Estacado Wine and Clay Festival. I’m really excited to see how this new work is received. Actually, it doesn’t even matter if it sells, it’s just going to be great to see it displayed and get people’s reaction to it! I feel like the people in Lubbock will “get it” as that is a huge agricultural area, but who knows. Maybe I’m the only one that the work speaks to…if so, I’m ok with that. It feels good to be speaking my truth.

How To Make A Pottery Apron

Tutorials

My previous post on how to make a pottery apron is my most popular post (thanks to Pinterest!) so thought I’d put it out there again for those of you that did not see it previously.

One of the downsides of doing pottery is the mess…unless you have an awesome pottery apron that keeps the dirt from overwhelming your outfit (and I use that term loosely, as I NEVER would call what I wear to the pottery studio, an “OUTFIT”-LOL!!).

The best apron that I’ve found was in a sack of rags from the lady that I bought the kiln from. As she had me load up “everything”, I took a bag of rags and in going through them found this old, but fantastic apron.

See video here (I apologize now for this very cheesy video):

I made a pattern from it and made a few minor changes and have made several since. You can actually pull it over your head, no ties, no need for clean hands, and it splits in the middle, so it is perfect for throwing. I make them out of curtain fabric that has a light rubbery lining-helps to avoid too much soakage!

Here is an article I found on how to make a pottery apron from a Pottery Making Illustrated, Special Potters Guide issue from 2001-2002:

Keep it clean!

Marian

It’s Been Amazing!

Events Videos

My years (15) in Australia – first as a professor at Bond University, then as a full-time potter – have been amazing!

We moved to Australia accidentally. We never really “planned” to be here. But life has a funny way of leading you where it wants you to go.

I was working in Texas-doing pottery on the side – as I have done most of my life. Then we moved to Australia and I got a great job teaching at Bond Uni.

After teaching at Bond Uni, I started doing pottery full time, moved to our bush property, and began writing this blog. The blog has been a great way to document my progress, the people in my life and all of the fabulous pottery opportunities that I was so fortunate to enjoy.

I’ve put together this photo memory piece for you, but feel free to go through the blog to see what all has happened here!

The blog will undoubtably change in the upcoming months to reflect my new life and work in Texas, but I plan to stick to a similar format with similar information.

Hope you enjoy this as much as I’ve enjoyed reliving it all in photos!

Australian Ceramics Open Studios 2016, North Coast Mud Trail 2016

It’s all happening!

Studio and Equipment

I really wish that I had taken more photos of the process of selling off all of my pottery studio equipment…especially of all the people that came to shop, say hi, and talk pottery! It’s been an arduous, dirty (so much friggin’ dirt in the barn), super hot and humid, exhausting and super fun process!

I’m almost done…all of my kilns, raku kilns included, have found new homes and loving owners. It feels really great to see each piece/part of my studio go on to where they will have a new and different life.

It’s sorta like MY transition – I’m moving from my huge, crazy, out there studio to my 2-car garage studio (which I previously had in the USA) which is smaller, but well-equipped and full of possibilities! I’m moving to a new and different life that hopefully, will be as or even more rewarding than the one I’ve had here in Australia.

I’ll be back and forth, but for the moment, Peace Out Australia!

See ya on the flip side!

Love to you all!

Marian

Moving My Studio!

Studio and Equipment

All of my pottery studio equipment, tools, etc will soon be up for sale. I’ll be posting them on facebook and other sites. Two sites on Facebook where I’ll be posting things are Pottery Equipment for Sale in Queensland and Pottery Equipment for Sale in NSW.

We have great news and sad news! We have been in transition for some time…it isn’t easy, but we are moving back to Texas.

Or just email me or ring me: marianhwilliams@mac.com or ring me 0408684567

I’ve loved having such an amazing opportunity to work in pottery in Australia – I’ve had so many wonderful experiences and have learned so much. Leaving behind my two gas kilns will be hard- and all that space!. But it also is a killer! Lots of physical labor involved! Moving to cone 6 electric seems to be a good option at the moment. You just forget how easy it is to set your electric kiln controller and it does ALL the work!

Our barn/studio in Australia was so mammoth that just keeping it swept was daunting. And I found myself actually confused on a daily basis as what I wanted to accomplish. Less choice, easier decision.

I previously had a studio in Texas, so I’m pretty well sorted there already. A smaller studio is nice…less upkeep. I have no complaints! It’s awesome.

I’m really looking forward to getting myself sorted and productive in my studio in Texas!

As for creativity, I find that since I align more – mentally, physically, historically – with Texas, my farm, my lake … these are my inspiration and it is flowing!! Can’t wait to show you my new work, lines, and creativity.

I’ll miss you, but will be back and forth during the transition.

Love you all!

Marian

eye of the dog art center, myra douglass, atmospheric firing, ceramics, woodfiring

Atmospheric Firing Workshop

Workshops

Feeling LOST!! Take a Workshop!

As I’m in an in between world at the moment – half in the USA and half in Australia – I’m feeling a little lost and am trying to make some connections in the USA. ‘

I recently saw this announcement on Instagram and decided to sign up!

I’d seen Myra Douglass’s work at the Texas Clay Festival and loved it!

Myra was teaching the workshop and it was at Eye of the Dog Art Center, which is a big hub of potters in the Texas area, so it was a win/win as far as learning/connecting.

Eye of the Dog Art Center is an amazing place run by Billy Ray and Beverly Mangum.

An entire group of sculptures sitting in the bleachers, welcome you as you enter.

eye of the dog art center, myra douglass, atmospheric firing, ceramics, woodfiringeye of the dog art center, myra douglass, atmospheric firing, ceramics, woodfiring — Entry way to main studio.

The Mangum’s are very collaborative in their approach to fostering the talents of up and coming young potters. Such a great model for the arts, especially ceramics!

It’s a very welcoming place with a big sign welcoming potters in the studio!

Myra’s workshop covered the creation of works and the treatment of the surfaces for atmospheric firings, specifically woodfiring in this case. It was really awesome that she gave us great information on vessels, techniques, and slip application to ensure a successful wood firing – everything from the form, the clay, the texturing, and the glaze/slip to use.