Playing with Clay

The first head to leave the family

2009-11-13T22:21:00.002-06:00

This guy left home about a month ago. He was the first to find a new home. I'm so happy he emailed to let me know what he's up to. Look! His new owner gave him an ipod! Happy heads are busy heads!

Flashback -- The Wheel Phase

2009-11-11T17:28:00.008-06:00

The wheel was much more than a series. It was a phase. It is why I started playing with clay to begin with. I had such trouble at first that I was determined to stick with it until I felt comfortable producing and producing and producing.

I was fascinated by the wheel because I respected the symmetry so much. I am a numbers girl after all. And really -- when I tell anyone that I play with clay, the first response relates somehow to the wheel.

So that’s what I did week after week until I could sit down at the wheel and make something without even looking down or really thinking about what I was doing. Then it struck me! I don’t like symmetry and repetition! That’s when I validated that I was not destined to become a production potter, and I was very glad that I had not invested money in a wheel of my own. I did make some great pieces during my wheel phase. And I learned to listen to the clay. And I played with wedging two clays together. And I spent a lot of time learning the glazes and playing with underglazes.

All in all, it was a good. But I just don’t foresee going back to the wheel anytime soon.

Flashback - The Crinkly Bowl Series

2009-11-11T17:01:00.004-06:00

When I first started playing with clay for the high fire kiln I was fidgeting with it as usual. For some reason, I grabbed a rolling pin and decided to see just how thin I could roll the clay and still work with it. I was amazed at the result. And more amazed that the bowls made it through the firing process without breaking. I make three legged dishes, and four legged dishes. Medium sized dishes. And small dishes. It was definitely a good series. Fragile, but good.

I suspect there is more to come in the future with thinly rolled clay.

Flashback -- The Birdhouse Series

2009-11-11T16:44:00.002-06:00

I like to mix it up a little when I'm playing with clay, so each year has a new theme. Sometimes it builds on work from my past and sometimes it is just completely different. Last year I had a birdhouse phase, completely inspired by my grandma in Memphis, who has a collection of cool birdhouses. Like with most of my work these days, I focused more on the creative side than the functional. This was one of the early birdhouses. The top was from my crinkly bowl phase.

Then I got a little more traditional with most of them:

Then a little funky:

And then the birdhouse phase was over. Or maybe it was just paused. Humm.... I think I will revisit this phase again in the future with a more emphasis on the funky and less on the traditional.

The Head Series

2009-11-11T16:19:00.001-06:00

Clay heads, that is. A couple months back I was debating what my next step was with clay. I had this crazy idea that I wanted to go back to the wheel. I bought gruene butter clay just for the occasion because it feels great on the hands when you are throwing. That lasted about an hour. I made 4 bowls. I cut them in half. Decided I had not completely lost my throwing ability, but I was just not getting that vibe from the wheel. And I had flashbacks of the boredom I experienced after a solid year only on the wheel. So I wadded up the clay in balls and started fidgeting with it. The result was a hollow ball which emerged into a head. The guy the right here was the first one. And interestingly, the only one that got stringy hair.

Thus, the head phase began. And the family grew. And grew. And grew. As the generations multiplied, the tongues got smaller or vanished. Such appendages are really just asking for trouble from the kiln gods. Same with the hair. It's amazing how things just fall off, as if they never wanted to be there in the first place. Here's a family photo. Everyone posed so nicely!

To blog or not to blog, that is the question ....

2009-11-10T01:29:00.044-06:00

I've been inspired by other bloggers, so Blog it is! I'll be sharing my art and other tidbits that inspire me.

Just who is this Amy chic you ask? Good question! Let’s start with the last name. Yes, it is French, thanks to dad’s French Canadian heritage. No, it is not pronounced “4-get”, it is “4-zhay”. Now that I’ve covered that, on to the good stuff!

I'm a relatively laid back low-stress girl most of the time. I like to think that I am creative. I have been expressing my creativity through clay for the past 5 years. I also enjoy cooking and gardening (though my yard does not currently illustrate this). I have a few backyard chickens that lay fabulous eggs. I finished my BBA at St. Mary's in San Antonio and proudly earned my MBA from UT-Austin. I am currently in between jobs, thanks to MF's acquisition of Borland. So far, unemployment has been phenomenal! I know, I know. It’s not the normal response you hear from a RIF casualty. But it has given me the opportunity to take a step back and contemplate what direction I would like to go from here. Plus, I have more time to play with clay, finish some remodeling activities on my house and catch up with old friends. So for now, life is good!