It is that time of year again, the Sedona Film Festival happening in my hometown. Here I am in my shirt from years past.
This is their 20th anniversary.
I have been here all those years. I used to volunteer dating back to the days when we only got to preview the movies at 8 am. Now that is true love of film and a limited budget! I kind of miss the good old days when I worked together with all my buddies.Things change. Now I pay my money and stand in line with all the other film aficionados.I have seen four performances thus far. Only Le Weekend impressed me. Film as an interpretation of life, or why do people hurt the ones they love? Sadly, I see that often enough around me.
Film is such an interesting art. I dabbled in theater at Northwestern. I graduated from UCLA, located in the land of film. Living in Venice Beach for many years, I always saw stars, or lived next door to them. But we were cool, so we ignored them. Much as I take a lump of clay and transform it into my piece of fantasy, so can these actors take us with them to another place. Film, yet another creative art form.
Here I am at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show last week. I create and sell jewelry myself. Making my own beads from porcelain clay, I then stain them in a blue, green, or brown oxide.When high fired they are strong and durable. I string them with chips of crystal, and some type of Arizona bead for spacers. Long necklaces and short; bracelets; and earrings make up my line I call "Jewels". That gives me a good reason to head down to the fantasy world of the Tucson Gem Show in February. People come to buy and sell from all over the world.
I remember back in the 1970's when I first visited. Then it was all focused in the Convention Center. Now the whole town has venues. To get inside the tents takes a resale license. Other outdoor booths will take anyone's funds. It is a rush to find those good deals that will make my jewelry glow. Of course, buying a bauble or two for myself is to be expected. Temptation abounds! This picture below really shows off the richness and sparkle that were present at this show.
Here it is! The magic is revealed as I unload the kiln. The end result of a month or more of hard work. This is a photo of the second shelf down. The posts you see with the holes are called the furniture, on which the shelves rest.
My heart always beats faster at this moment. Will there be success? Are the colors what I wanted? Are there any flaws that will make it not refined enough to sell in the gallery? I do everything my experience teaches me to insure the best results. I like what I see here.
However, there is always the element of chance in high fire ceramics. The clay is a large factor. Is there a hidden weakness that will result in a crack? Then there is the application of glaze. Did I put on the right consistency? Did I rub too hard at a drip and leave that spot bare? An important question is whether or not the kiln gods are smiling that day. Yes, we clay artists are superstitious folk. I did have an unexpected crack. I can live with that. It is a good firing.
Today is an exciting day. This is what my kiln looks like when still red hot. It is full of glazed pots that have been firing for many hours. My kiln is an older model, electric, not a computerized model like is currently used.I am in charge of how I choose to fire.
I use a high fire porcelain clay body, which has a smooth surface after glazing with my choice of turquoise, blue, or clear glaze. This is my second, and final, firing.
The first firing, called the bisque, makes it dry and hard enough, or vitrified, to apply the colorant.Some shrinkage occurs.There is still some porosity, hence it can absorb the glaze.Once it is in that form, I can dip each pot into the liquid glaze, containing various chemicals and oxides.Their melting point is a temperature of 2236 F. At that point, there is a small triangle, called a cone, resting on a sensor rod.When it melts, the lever falls, the kiln shuts itself off. The results will result from my skills, and the luck of the kiln gods.
I will leave it alone overnight. Slowly I will pull out the white peeps in front, crack the lid, and bring it to room temperature. Finally, I will see my results...
This is a sculpture with a vase like quality I made a while ago. I was experimenting with using the potter's wheel to give me some different possibilities in size and shape.
It is a large piece, about 14' tall by 8" wide. The round shape is a complete unit that sits on its pedestal. One could put something inside if desired. I chose a white crackle glaze,with stones of real Arizona turquoise to add a bit of "magic "to this monochromatic sculpture.
It is actually a low fired piece, which makes it more decorative than functional. To get the crackle from this glaze, I put the entire piece into a primitive fire and the shock of it made the glaze go crazy. Yes, we ceramic people like to go to the outer limits whenever possible. Isn't that part of the magic?
Here is my latest creation, "The Glass Book." The covers started out as drinking glasses. They were fired in a kiln to a high enough temperature until they melted flat. They measure approximately four by six inches. Although my decorative lace hides it, the bottom section is heavier, because the base is thicker and rounded.
This was a real technical challenge, having never done this before.I chose lace for the outer covers, because of its transparency . Choosing to put a pastel blue paper gave a dimension to this creation.A lace piece floating on the inside served as a decorative front page. I used the long stitch style of sewing the pages right to the lace, and then gluing that right to the glass itself. Herein lay the problem.The weight of the glass made the book move when turning the pages. This was not what I wanted.
So I had to do what all artists do. Take the challenge to invent a solution that looks like part of the design. I realized I had to strengthen the support system. Since my theme was white and lacy, I used additional ribbon, both thin and more decorative, to create hinges, and make a tie closure. More cut out flowered pieces made the symmetry of the front and back more pleasing.
I am happy to say it worked. Below is the finished open book. Lots of lessons when undertaking something never tried before. I am pleased with my glass book.
What is a birthday without a cake? Here is the scrumptious start of my birthday celebration in the form of this gorgeous, homemade carrot cake. The handmade card made it even more special.
Birthday cakes are an old tradition, possibly dating back to the Romans and Greeks. Tradition has it that Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt and the moon, would be honored by a cake with candles. Smoke was a means to get your wishes to the gods. Perhaps that led to the honored custom of making a wish and blowing out the candles to make it come true.
Modern western tradition is attributed to the Germans, back in the 19th century. They had celebrations for the kinder, or children, and traditions of one candle for each year of the celebrant's life. The English and other Europeans adopted these habits, which made their way to the new world.
I was touched by the efforts on my behalf. I loved the white of the icing against the chocolate of the writing. Calligraphy on cake. All of it combining to be a truly elegant presentation. Alas, it is all gone now. Only the art lives on!
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