First, just a reminder that there are chores that need to be done in the clay studio. I'm not sure who signed up for what (I need to find the list and post it, I'm sorry about that, I brought it home and that was a mistake!!) but the floors need to be cleaned, both rainbow vacuumed and mopped and shop vacuumed for whoever signed up to do those things. Maybe you can team up and get the floors cleaned in one shot. That room isn't so big it can't be knocked out completely in about thirty minutes with two people doing it. There is also laundry to be done and just in general, when you are in there, please remember to wipe the clay crumbs off the tables and squeegee the floors, I have been cleaning up a lot of those types of things when I'm there. I have entirely too many other things to be doing to get us fully up and running as a school, not just a clay studio, to have to spend time cleaning up after you. We are all volunteers, myself included, I do this out of a love for the arts and to make sure we can survive as a non-profit. Please leave the studio in better condition than when you arrived, if you see a need, take a few minutes and take care of it. If everyone sponges down one thing that is dirty when you are there the space will be a clean and healthy work environment for everyone. I have been there nearly every day working on some aspect of getting things completed, I have a very tight schedule right now between some personal things and teaching so please respect my time and take a few minutes when you are there to clean up. I really don't like to fuss but I have been working very hard to get things done, have reached out for help with limited response, and I'm getting to the point where little things like dirty work tables and clay crumbs on the floors are a big problem. If you don't know how to clean up, ask. (That is not meant to be snarky, there are safer ways to clean up clay and if you aren't sure about that, please ask.)
I am talking with Donna about teaching a class. You as members choose when you want to get together. Tuesday nights was started to build community in the studio but if you're all interested in a class on Tuesday nights I have no objection to that! If anyone feels like that would intrude on member time, please speak up. If the school offers a class with Donna on Tuesdays, you will have the first opportunity to register for that but I would like to open it up to others as well. Her classes are popular and it's great having a lot of activity in the studio! I will be starting up with Beginner's Wheel again in March. This time we will be meeting on Thursdays. There are two outside of members registered, if you are interested, please go ahead and sign up for that!
Several of you have asked about bringing guests to the studios. We are happy to allow you to bring a guest up to three times with you. Once they've been three times, they know if they are interested in working in clay and need to join to continue to come to the studio. Because you can come and go on your own, this is on the honor system but please respect this. During Empty Bowls work sessions, anyone is welcomed to join in and please encourage them to do this! For other times however, please let them know after they've joined you for three times they will need to become members to continue to work with you in the studio. The school runs on a very tight budget and if we have folks coming in and using the space and equipment we do need their financial support to maintain that equipment and help us meet our expenses. Please remember this to keep things fair to all members since not everyone brings a guest.
February 24-26 from 9-4 daily, we are once again hosting Carol Hallock and her following of oil painters. She is a lovely teacher and these workshops are popular. Parking during this weekend may be tight but we have asked them to carpool from their hotels and Airbnbs as they come in friend groups and tend to stay together so I hope it won't be a big problem! Next week is very packed for me and there is a lot to do to prep for them coming, if you are available to help out, please let me know.
I plan to fire the kiln with the last of the Empty Bowls greenware on the morning of February 22 so that the bisque is completed with time to glaze. This is a tight timeline!!! If you plan to glaze your own bowls, please do so by February 27th. If you have anything in the greenware that is not an empty bowl, you must get it before February 27th or I will glaze it and fire it and drop it to Donna for empty bowls. There is not going to be time to wait for anyone to grab things that are not meant for empty bowls so I'm going to assume it all goes unless you remove things from the bisque after the firing. This will give you several days to stop in and grab anything that is personal work. Please don't call me to ask that I pull anything for you, I want to be sure you're removing personal pieces yourself so there are no mistakes made. I will unload February 23 when it has cooled. On the morning of February 28th I plan to glaze everything from those loads that is not glazed and start firing, we will need to turn around and fire another load March 2nd so we have them done and packed up by March 4th. Any help with glazing is appreciated! When I unload the kiln for these two glaze firings, it will all go directly into boxes and head to the event, no personal work on the glaze shelves during this time, please. Once I have loaded and fired the kiln on March 2nd, any personal pieces that you have glazed can go out for firing. Thanks for understanding, I just don't want any confusion about what is meant for empty bowls or not! Also, if you have anything for empty bowls already finished, I will have a shelf for those pieces, just have them at the studio by March 3rd please!
If you plan to volunteer for the event, let me or Patricia or Donna know. There is plenty to do during the event and hands are always needed for things! Patricia is asking if you're available, please be at the gazebo Sunday March 5th at 10am for set up. If you have other commitments that morning, please come when you are available, the event begins at noon.
I know several glazes are low. I am trying to find the time to mix glazes but there have been other priorities ahead of that job. Please let me know if there is a particular low glaze that you really need and I will try to get it mixed. Our test tiles are in buckets still and I hope to get those displayed sooner than later but feel free to root around in there to find interesting ones when you're glazing for empty bowls!
You may have noticed that we have a "resident artist", Elizabeth Wolf has moved into her studio space! She needed an ADA accessible spot to work and we are thrilled that we could accommodate her. She is a ceramic artist as well and will be joining the clay studio as soon as she can work it in her schedule to get some refresher lessons since it's been a while. Please introduce yourselves when you see her there.
If anyone is interested in working with transferring underglazes from tissue or other work which requires a light table, we have set up the one Jacque donated to the school some time ago and it is available for you to use. Please feel free to take advantage of this equipment!
I hope that you are all enjoying the new space. We think it's the best solution for the school and having enough room for everything we are doing and plan to do in the future is exciting! Thanks for being a part of things!
Sarah
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