Creative Tension

I am just unloading the kiln . Wow. Magic. Here I am at the very last shelf. This is the second and most important firing. The high temperature  melts the glaze, and voila,  the finished product! The turquoise color is just what I wanted. No obvious cracks or runs. It is a good firing. 
I never quite know how things are going to turn out. Did I mix the glaze to the proper consistency? Are there any weak spots that are going to crack? Is the atmosphere in the kiln going to give me that certain glow in the color I am aiming for? Will the kiln gods smile down on me that day?
You would think after all these years I could be sure of the outcome. However, there are so many variables in high fire ceramics. It is never a sure thing, until  the shelves are emptied. Two months of  my hard work, and I do not know the outcome until the last unveiling. 
An artist friend often speaks about the tension involved in the creative process. That tightness in your stomach as you attempt to reach whatever mountain top of creativity you are climbing. The uncertainty of outcomes, as you spend so many hours working. 
It is just that part of what we go through, striving to do our very best. 

Why Tango is like Art

I just got back from my first Tango Festival in Tucson. It got me thinking about how Argentine tango is connected to creating any art form. First you must pay attention to your body, your form , your axis, as you go out onto the dance floor. In art we start with the idea or what we want to create , and then the media we are going to use. Is it pen, paper, watercolor, or clay that best expresses our design. For me , it works best when I see the creation in my mind, then all the rest seems to follow. In fact my idea of success is wheher I can translate my idea as well, or better than my visualization. Then there is the tension. Tango is about the male and female; the smooth and abrupt; the moves and counter moves. When you look at a piece of art you are drawn in by that tension, however subtle. Well, time to get to the studio and try out some of these ideas.