Ceramics Monthly Articles (Simple)

  • Exposure: February 2018
    Images from Current and Upcoming Exhibitions
  • Clay Culture: Influencer Marketing
    Social media is a big part of our world these days. It has been a huge boom for many emerging artists who are building networks, trying to share new work, and maybe, just maybe, trying to make some sa
  • Retirement, Meaning, and Generativity
    Another generation of American clay artists is approaching age-out—the end of their careers. Because it’s our first time to retire, we may not know how to do it. We could benefit from a few more posit
  • George Rodriguez: Sanctuary
    Sanctuary. I used to associate the word with church, all stained glass and high ceilings. It evoked thoughts of Victor Hugo’s hunchbacked bell-ringer Quasimodo valiantly rescuing the gypsy Esmeralda f
  • The Venus: A Legacy in Clay
    I visited George Rodriguez in his studio shortly before his 2017 solo show for Foster/White Gallery in Seattle, Washington. A piece that stood out amongst his sculptures was The Venus. A couple of wee
  • Crowdfunding
    Funding in the arts is a constant topic of discussion for many, especially for individual artists, independent galleries, museums, and community art centers. Even though a rare few are self funded, mo
  • Joan Takayama-Ogawa: Climate Change
    Global warming’s effect on the planet has been a driving theme in Joan Takayama-Ogawa’s creative career for more than a quarter century. Her past work is best described as exquisitely crafted sculptur
  • Clay Culture: Skincare for Potters
    It’s the middle of winter. You’ve just unloaded a very toasty (hot) kiln to get ready for a show after weeks of long days working with wet clay, abrasive bisque, and buckets of glaze. Your skin needs
  • Tips and Tools: Foam Support
    One of the things that really excited me when I started to work with porcelain was how lightweight my pieces could become. The desire to roll ever-thinner slabs for my cups also came with some issues.
  • A Portrait of Daily Life
    My ceramic work acts as a portrait of daily life. The porcelain forms are illustrated with narrative drawings and observations of my local environment. By showing details of the day that can often be
  • Behind The Kiln Door
    “Experience keeps a hard school but we shall learn in no other.” These words, reportedly uttered by a bystander upon the opening of one of the first kilns ever fired at the Leach Pottery..."
  • Studio Visit: Joseph Sand, Randleman, North Carolina
    My wife, Amanda, and I bought this property in 2009 from the Hurley family, who were descendents of the original homesteaders going back to 1840. The original farmhouse still stands to this day, altho
  • Sue Tirrell: Contemporary American Frontier Ceramic Artist
    The story of drawn or painted pictorial images on ceramic forms is not new. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City houses a collection of early historic ceramic pieces with hand-painted image
  • Recipes: Mid Range to High Fire Underglazes and Glazes
    Calandra Beller Diesel, Mark Cortright, and Autumn Higgins share recipes for the underglazes and glazes they use in their work.
  • February 2018 Call for Entries
    Information on submitting work for exhibitions, fairs, and festivals.
  • Quick Tip: Old Item, New Use
    I use homemade ceramic watercolors to decorate my work. An old ice cube tray works great to keep the colors separate and to provide enough of each color so that I don’t run out while painting a piece.
  • Spotlight: Raku Workshop
    Coming on its sixth year in 2018, the workshop is held in June at my studio and ranch in Haines, Oregon, and always fills to capacity a year prior. It all started in 2012 when I contacted Kevin Flynn
  • January 2018 Call for Entries
    Information on submitting work for exhibitions, fairs, and festivals.
  • Spotlight: Stop, Collaborate, Listen
    Students in Talon Smith and Ben Pyles’ class at Manchester Craftmen’s Guild in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, teamed up, combining ceramics and design.
  • Tips and Tools: Bed of Nails
    A simple bed of nails can be used in the spray booth to prevent glazes and slips from pooling at the bottom of your work. Have you ever sprayed glaze on a piece only to realize afterward that the glaz