Heading North in California

Here I am on the beach in San Francisco. I know, the sun never shines in that city, but it did last week when I was there. A heat wave. The sand was actually hot as I ran toward the cool Pacific. I brought all my warm clothes, but pulled those out earlier that week, while staying  around Santa Barbara,where the cold winds were blowing.
The sun was shining  while driving up Route One, along the Ocean. Past Esalen, where I loved  to sit in the hot tubs overlooking the crashing waves at night. Stopping at the formerly quaint restaurant, Nepenthe. Very upscale now, not like when I used to have breakfast along with all the flower children in the van heading up to San Francisco to hear music, and hang out.
Things don't stay the same, but how glorious are my memories of California back in the sixties and seventies.
I am grateful for those days. I know somewhere seeds of creativity got lodged within me, to bloom later.  

The Inspiration of Sedona

It is a beautiful day here in Sedona. I peer between the evergreen branches at the awesome red rock vista ahead of me. I have lived here a long time, but I never cease to feel a sense of awe at my natural surroundings. 
For me, where I am is important to my sense of creativity. Nature is my truest mentor . Being here  seems  like living  in a national park.  It never gets boring.
 Certainly people produce great art in gritty surroundings. Essentially, we must look inside our own sense of imagination for the creative process. It just seems easier here, more inspiring.
I lived near the ocean before I landed in this small Arizona town, some  thirty years ago. I resided in an area full of people doing creative things, along with the bizarre. That was OK. I think Sedona has an element of the unusual in some of its residents. And why not? Sometimes going far out brings us closer to our inventive side.
 But always, there is the humbling reality of those beautiful mountain vistas all around us. It shows up in my ceramics, my calligraphy, my sense of being.
 Inspiration is all around us here in Sedona, Arizona.
   

The blue green

The blue green of the ocean; of nature; of my ceramics. Color is something that  reaches out to people, I have noticed. First there is a recognition of the form, but a visceral reaction comes from the color we are seeing. I guess it can bring up a mood; a memory; reflection, or something that hopefully makes us feel better from that visual. If a person sees my bowl  and smiles, well then we have that first connection.The second connection is when they buy it, the ultimate compliment for an artist.  

 I hope they are also admiring the shape and all the little decorative touches I have added to my porcelain configuration.The rough exterior with the brownish stain adds another color, but also works to contrast that turquoise hue. 

In the art world, one must have a signature to their work, a recognizable  style. This is one of the things a gallery wants in order to carry your work.That way, people have an idea of what that artist is known for, and how to find them.  I think this shape, and especially this color, is one of  my signature pieces. It does not displease me. I like the color and feeling of my blue green  ceramics. You can even call it turquoise! Enjoy.

Art and the Ocean

Here is a recent view of the Pacific ocean at sunset. I really enjoyed the ebb and the flow of the tides. I did some body surfing, and I noticed that coming into shore is  relatively easy. It is the current that then pulls you out to sea that is the forceful one .

So it seems with the creative process. There is an ebb and a flow to most art work. I tried  to go against the current last night, and I got my hand slapped. The ceramics broke. All my hard work must  be thrown away.   I know before I do my primitive firing that the clay must be at least  warm. Then the difference between the temperature going into the fire is not such a shock to the clay body. But I wanted to do it right then, so I tried could going  against the current. Crack. The clay did Not like that sudden shock. So it seems like not staying with the knowledge that I have, be it ocean tides or heat variables, gets me into the undertow of life , or art. Lesson learned. 

 I got up this morning and preheated all my remaining pieces before they went into the flames. I was rewarded by no breakage, and some lovely pieces. Masks; plaques; and platters. Next I will decorate these unfinished creations,  and show you some finished pieces in the future. All in the right timing, or current of my creativity.