Guinomi from the anagama firing......

Guinomi from the anagama firing......, originally uploaded by claycraft.

All glazed with Hank's Shino, from all parts of the kiln, showing a
range of place-dependant effects.

Shino Chawan with flyash........ a racer.

Shino Chawan with flyash........ a racer., originally uploaded by claycraft.

All these woodfire pots use a non-vitreous body that remains 'soft'
after even a C14 firing.

Two of Hank's Guinomi and a Katakuchi.....

Two of Hank's Guinomi and a Katakuchi....., originally uploaded by claycraft.

...... made by John Dix of Kobe, Japan.

Tea jar & Shino Chawan

Tea jar & Shino Chawan, originally uploaded by claycraft.

Porcelain tea jar and woodfired chawan with Hank's Shino....... 100
hour firing, 1 week to cool.

More from the Jewel Creek Anagama.....

More from the Jewel Creek Anagama....., originally uploaded by claycraft.

Pulled black chawan, re-glazed with Hank's Shino and re-fired in my
gas kiln.

American Redware.

This Issue Of American Craft Magazine

Wide World of Craft

The Twin Cities—A Mecca for Craft

In the last several decades, Minnesota has developed a rich array of craft institutions.

BY Michael Fallon
PHOTOGRAPHY BY Cameron Wittig

Minneapolis and St. Paul may struggle with an image of long, ice-cold winters, but craftspeople can warm to the many opportunities and organizations that present themselves in the beautiful land of 10,000 lakes. Lovers of craft in the Twin Cities of Minnesota have an enviable number of options. They can visit nationally renowned member-based organizations such as the Minnesota Center for Book Arts, the Northern Clay Center, the Textile Center of Minnesota and the Gallery of Wood Art. They can see exhibitions of valuable museum-based collections of craft at such institutions as the Goldstein Museum of Design, Weisman Art Museum and the Minneapolis Institute of Art; or they can shop at sundry for-profit and artist-run ventures like the Xylos Gallery, Century Studios, the Grand Hand Gallery, the Art Resources Gallery and the Frank Stone Gallery. (Even the Walker Art Center, not usually focused on craft, is presenting a clay show this fall.) With so much to choose from, it’s difficult to imagine that only 30 years ago none of this existed.

http://www.americancraftmag.org/toc.php?id=8226

Boldness has genius, power and magic in it!

I like to share this quote at least once a year:

"But when I said that nothing had been done I erred in one important matter. We had definitely committed ourselves and were halfway out of our ruts. We had put down our passage money--booked a sailing to Bombay. This may sound too simple, but is great in consequence. Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, the providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way. I learned a deep respect for one of Goethe's couplets:

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it!"

W.H. Murray

Source: The Scottish Himalaya Expedition

Read more: http://www.gaia.com/quotes/WH_Murray#ixzz0Nn6fQTPk

From Ann Holme's The Transition Of The Artisan-Potter To The Artist-Potter In Mashiko, A Folkware Kiln Site In Japan.

In 1924, Hamada held his first one-man exhibition at the Kyukiodo Gallery in Tokyo. It was a sell-out, shocking the Mashiko potters who had not taken his work seriously up to that time. They were astonished at the high prices asked by Hamada, and even more so, that the work actually sold. Gradually, the Mashiko potters began to take pride in the recognition Hamada received from the public and the honor conferred upon the town, which was brought out of its former obscurity by being acknowledged as the home of the famous Shoji Hamada.
In his early pottery, Hamada tried to adapt old Mashiko folkware designs and forms. His extensive knowledge of the Chinese Sung pottery and Korean Silla and Yuan pottery served as a resource for his own developing style. The pottery he made when he first came to Mashiko bore little if any resemblance to the native Mashiko kitchenware and tableware, yet it was compatible with the folk pottery genre. Hamada was able to bring out the best qualities from past and present folkware, imparting his aesthetic awareness to an age-old tradition. He researched glazes and design from the history of Oriental ceramics and rediscovered old techniques which he adapted to contemporary folkware.

As Hamada investigated these elements from the past, another dimension came into his work. He was no longer a researcher but an artist-potter who consciously directed the outcome of his pottery. Although his approach was eclectic, his experimentation and manipulation of the Oriental techniques imparted a freshness and vision to folk pottery which had formerly been a tradition of skilled technicians. He was a known potter working in the tradition of the unknown potter. The unpretentious beauty of everyday pottery turned out by artisans with an instinctive feeling for function and simplicity of form was revived by Hamada as an aesthetic for the new artist-potter.
(Lee's note: The bottle is a Chinese shape, the sugar cane decoration is from Okinawa and so is the enamel decoration.)