GEP

A few months ago I posted some WIP photos of clock designs that I was experimenting with. Here’s how they are turning out:

 

Prototype dinner plate for a disabled family member, she has partial use of one hand, paralyzed on the other side. Theory is she will be able to push her fork to the curved in back edge of the plate to keep the food on the fork. Front edge of plate is smooth and rounded over so she can rest her wrist either on that or the table.

A few months ago I posted some WIP photos of clock designs that I was experimenting with. Here’s how they are turning out:

 

Impressive -all! Glaze is fantastic

Love that angled cylinder one, beautiful

A few months ago I posted some WIP photos of clock designs that I was experimenting with. Here’s how they are turning out:

 

A few months ago I posted some WIP photos of clock designs that I was experimenting with. Here’s how they are turning out:

 

Elephants!

If you know anything at all about Native American culture, you know that a 19 year old white girl running around Coachella in a feathered headdress is like dressing up as a "sexy decorated war veteran" and going to a Remembrance Day ceremony. It's super disrespectful, and it's in really bad taste. There's always going to be someone who says "hey, I don't mind looking at that," or "what's the big deal? It was meant as a compliment!" but if it's your culture and your tradition, you know more about it than an outsider. If someone says "hey, the way you're doing that is not okay!" as an outsider to that culture, you need to heed that. You don't get to tell someone else what they should or shouldn't be offended by if you have less knowledge on the subject. As an outsider to a culture, you may be well meaning as an individual, but many things have been done with good intentions that had catastrophic outcomes for the people on the receiving end.
There are some really big holdover attitudes from British colonialism to just assume that another culture's artworks, religion and traditions all carry equal weight within that culture, or that the weight placed on those things are somehow analogous to how we behave in our own. In a lot of cases, it's not true, and I think that's where white folks tend to get frustrated and confused. We lack important, accurate information, and it's a serious effort to track that information down because there's a lot less in depth information recorded about other cultures than the dominant one. So we do dumb things in the name of trying to learn about something that wind up being hurtful.
But what about artistic growth and cross-cultural influence? What about all the cross pollination that happened between China, Japan and Korea in terms of celadon development? What about blue and white ware's influence on middle Eastern ceramics? How about a more modern phenomena of European Christian missionaries going to Japan and teaching the locals about knitting, a handcraft they hadn't developed themselves yet? Japanese knitting patterns are now some of the most interesting and challenging out there, and the colours used in the yarn choices of Japanese knitting designers definitely shows a distinct sensibility from European choices.
That kind of cultural borrowing is totally okay, because no one places a religious or spiritual value on knitting. There are some interesting cultural traditions around knitting design, but the motifs that are traditional in different areas generally don't have a deeply emotional/spiritual significance attached to them. There is an active conversation being had between the two cultures. Or, in the ceramic cases above, there were some shared cultural points (Zen Buddhism throughout Asia) where people were starting from, and then taking the techniques in their own directions. 
So I suppose I think cultural inspiration is possible to do responsibly, but you have to be willing to put a LOT of work into the research and learning part in order to be properly informed. I think it's best to had some direct, meaningful contact with that culture. It ought to mean something to you personally, and not just be a cool subject you learned about in school or in a book. I think you also have to not look at the specific motifs or techniques that are being used, but look at what the artists that use them are looking at and being inspired by. You have to be able to continue the conversation that's being had in that area with your own voice and contribute something intelligent to that conversation.
Otherwise, it's like Liam says and you're just profiting off someone else's ideas, which isn't cool.

I used to tell my students “if it works for you, it’s not wrong.”
My “bad habit” is to skip foot rings on all pots that I am producing in high volumes. Foot rings are very time consuming. I still like to trim them on things I make in lower volumes. But for mugs and small bowls, no way!
I’ve heard potters say dogmatic things like “all good pots have foot rings,” but I'm like “nah.”

I used to tell my students “if it works for you, it’s not wrong.”
My “bad habit” is to skip foot rings on all pots that I am producing in high volumes. Foot rings are very time consuming. I still like to trim them on things I make in lower volumes. But for mugs and small bowls, no way!
I’ve heard potters say dogmatic things like “all good pots have foot rings,” but I'm like “nah.”

I used to tell my students “if it works for you, it’s not wrong.”
My “bad habit” is to skip foot rings on all pots that I am producing in high volumes. Foot rings are very time consuming. I still like to trim them on things I make in lower volumes. But for mugs and small bowls, no way!
I’ve heard potters say dogmatic things like “all good pots have foot rings,” but I'm like “nah.”

Right now? What isn’t on my workbench!

No new one in the question bank, so I will post this question: Of the things that you make, do you use anything pottery wise, and what is your favorite piece to use?
I imagine, that many of us make things to use at home or elsewhere. I know that I use pots that I have made, and if they don't work well for me, put them aside for the next version. So in the household, we use large and small bowls, berry bowl/colanders, apple bakers, batter bowls, and mugs. We are more coffee drinkers, but do have and use some teapots, and I have gone through several of these until they are right. My wife likes the large bowls the most, then the next down is the berry bowl, that we use often.  Mugs come and go, but of late there have been some that are favorites that someone always reaches into the back for. We have a purchased handbuilt platter from GEP, that we use, but obviously I did not make it. 
 
best,
Pres

I think that what you get out of school is what you put into it. I know several people who came out of the same programs as me with little to show for it, and others who came out ready to take on the world. I found college and grad school to be a place of a million possibilities. It's where I learned to make pots, and where I learned a ton of technical knowledge that set me on the path toward a career in ceramics. In college and grad school I had far more clay and glaze materials available for testing than I could ever have in my private studio. I had kilns of every type available. I had the knowledge of dozens of other students who had come from other programs. There was no surrendering of free will, self-fulfillment, or creativity. In fact I would say there is far more creativity because a college program has far more resources and knowledge available, which allow you to work in directions you wouldn't be able to do on your own, or didn't even know existed. I had teachers that demanded and supported creativity and experimentation. If I didn't show up to the weekly critiques with something creative I was in trouble. In ceramics, and any art, lack of knowledge and technical skill are stifling. The more you know, the greater the possibilities. And all the non-art classes that I took? Those come in very handy too. Calculus, sociology, biology, writing, Spanish, music, economics, etc. They are all helpful to me as a business owner, husband, parent, and teacher. You can't live in an art bubble.
A college program also has a much faster learning curve, because there is a schedule that must be followed in order to get the grade. You either practice and learn the skill, or your grade suffers. An art center program doesn't have that kind of schedule, so the learning curve is much, much slower. Are you really 'wasting tons of cash and years of your life' if you get more skills in half the time? The whole purpose of an MFA program is to create a body of work that can then be produced and sold when you get out of school. I don't see how that is a waste of time or money.
It's not any cheaper to learn to make pots at an art center than at a college. Say you take a class at a local art center or studio and it costs $150 a month (which is a little low in many places), that's $1800 a year if you go all year. In that class, you're going to learn, at most, 1/2 of what you would in a decent college program (if even that). I know this because I teach community classes. When people only come into the studio once or twice a week,  it takes a lot longer to learn the skills, and the resources aren't there to provide a really comprehensive ceramics education. So if you do the math, you'd need to go 2 years, $3600, to get the equivalent education of one year of a college program. Add in the cost of clay, and in many studios also the cost of glazing and firing, and it's even more. And you probably don't get to load and fire the kilns, or mix glazes, or have formal critiques, or have the variety of kilns and raw materials available to you. Full time tuition at UW Whitewater for residents is $7,692. That's for 4 or more classes, so no more than $1923 a year per class.
Yes, there are some college art programs that are very expensive, but you don't have to go to those. I went to  state schools that were quite inexpensive at the time, and got a better education than my friends that went to the expensive schools. But I also worked really hard to make sure I got a good education. It wasn't just handed to me. I took advantage of all that was available to me and made sure I wasn't leaving anything out. I spent 40+ hours per week in the studio from day one, 70 hours a week in grad school. I helped our lab tech with all of his maintenance jobs. I learned how to fire every kiln. I built kilns. I ran thousands of glaze tests. Not all schools are the same, not all schools are good, and not all schools are a good fit for every person. You have to do your research and figure out what's best for you. I'm sorry if you've had a bad experience with formal education, but to say that all college is bad is inaccurate.
 
 

This is an interesting topic, people on both sides of the debate with very strong points of view. Just a friendly reminder that even though we may agree to disagree we need to avoid being disagreeable. Lets keep the tone civil so the discussion may continue.
Thank you.
 

My ceramics education was not formal. It consisted of informal recreational classes, plus some excellent workshops, lots of reading, plus the most important element which is years and years of hands-on experience and practice. It can be done, but it certainly takes a lot longer than 4 years. And you need to put together your own "curriculum" so to speak, and research where to get the training you want. Even advanced topics like kiln-building and fuel firing can be learned this way, if you search for it. On the plus side, it's a lot cheaper than college tuition. You can also be working full-time while you do it. 
I recently gave a throwing demo at a local community college. The classroom and facilities were beautiful! I was a little envious, and wished I could have learned in a setting like that. But at the same time, Mark mentioned this above too, if you get a college ceramics education, you are still short of the years and years of hands-on experience and practice that it takes to realize your goals. So condensing all the education into 4 years doesn't get you there any faster. 
I have a college degree in design, and I would not trade that educational experience for anything. It transformed me from a talented but naive/immature high-schooler into an adult who could navigate the professional world. This is not something you can teach yourself. It takes role models and a lot of guidance. 

My ceramics education was not formal. It consisted of informal recreational classes, plus some excellent workshops, lots of reading, plus the most important element which is years and years of hands-on experience and practice. It can be done, but it certainly takes a lot longer than 4 years. And you need to put together your own "curriculum" so to speak, and research where to get the training you want. Even advanced topics like kiln-building and fuel firing can be learned this way, if you search for it. On the plus side, it's a lot cheaper than college tuition. You can also be working full-time while you do it. 
I recently gave a throwing demo at a local community college. The classroom and facilities were beautiful! I was a little envious, and wished I could have learned in a setting like that. But at the same time, Mark mentioned this above too, if you get a college ceramics education, you are still short of the years and years of hands-on experience and practice that it takes to realize your goals. So condensing all the education into 4 years doesn't get you there any faster. 
I have a college degree in design, and I would not trade that educational experience for anything. It transformed me from a talented but naive/immature high-schooler into an adult who could navigate the professional world. This is not something you can teach yourself. It takes role models and a lot of guidance. 

My ceramics education was not formal. It consisted of informal recreational classes, plus some excellent workshops, lots of reading, plus the most important element which is years and years of hands-on experience and practice. It can be done, but it certainly takes a lot longer than 4 years. And you need to put together your own "curriculum" so to speak, and research where to get the training you want. Even advanced topics like kiln-building and fuel firing can be learned this way, if you search for it. On the plus side, it's a lot cheaper than college tuition. You can also be working full-time while you do it. 
I recently gave a throwing demo at a local community college. The classroom and facilities were beautiful! I was a little envious, and wished I could have learned in a setting like that. But at the same time, Mark mentioned this above too, if you get a college ceramics education, you are still short of the years and years of hands-on experience and practice that it takes to realize your goals. So condensing all the education into 4 years doesn't get you there any faster. 
I have a college degree in design, and I would not trade that educational experience for anything. It transformed me from a talented but naive/immature high-schooler into an adult who could navigate the professional world. This is not something you can teach yourself. It takes role models and a lot of guidance. 

Formal education is  a key element in the whole process. I was raised in a art friendy home by educators. I was exposed to ceramics in 5th grade and again in high school. It took hold of part of me and I do not know why. I went on and got an art degree in collage over a 5 year process. I happened to learn from recent graduates from the golden age of Alfred graduates who got their 1st teaching jobs. They learned from the greats-like Rhodes etc. I was at the right place right time. Also one could find materials on the cheap and build kilns and obtain permits may back then. Thats all changed now.
Back in school I fired gas and electrics worked as a tech and fired kilns for work study money-built kilns-made bricks learned clay and glaze formulation
did low fire and high fire and raku and pit firing-made sculpture and made functional wares. Only in school is one exposed to it all and to get all the knowledge one needs to see it all.U-tube cannot hold a candle too this experience.
School was the beginning of my learning experience -Really just a jump off point looking back. Its the foundation of my career but the real learning was in the real world of business and the sheer number of years it takes to get good and succeed .Throwing really well takes everyone different amounts of time to master-for me it was about 7 or eight years to get handles and forms perfected and have then sell well.
I'm a big believer in formal education-our society improves with formal education.
The only downside these days is ceramic education has been slashed nation wide and there has been at least a twenty year bias towards sculpt vs functional wares in many collage programs. You can now get a degree in what I call (jar opening) where you learn very little except low fire sculpture making.Finding a good school these days is work.

Without formal education I wouldn't be where I am now in my skill level and vision with regard to Ceramics. I have completed 3 courses at Sierra College and aced all 3 leaving me with a 4.0 average. The stuff that I learned in these courses has brought me to a place where I am doing custom orders as well as being able to donate to my local PBS station KVIE/ juried Art Auction

There are many people who worry that learning common ways of doing things, or other people's ways of doing things, will keep them from discovering uncommon ways of doing things or a unique personal style. 
These are often the same people who believe that small children have better judgment and instincts than people who have been exposed to a range of other people's ideas.
I don't think there is any evidence that exposure to a range of ideas or techniques is stifling. More likely it is stimulating.
There are others who loathe formal education because they were either bored or humiliated by the particular education they received and generalize that to all formal education.
I have also encountered people who are convinced that formally educated people are less disposed to becoming life-long learners than people without formal education. I don't think there is any validity to this assumption.
The question of how much it is reasonable to go into debt or how much time it is reasonable to devote is entirely legitimate. There will also be people who have an exceptional alternative resource available to them that is uncommon, someone who is willing to devote all the time it takes to teach them privately. Most people will not have this option. 
I have taken two ceramics classes. One was an open studio sort of thing with lots of studio access but little instruction. The other involved formal instruction but no access other than during class time to practice space or equipment.
I learned much more from the second than from the first, but these experiences made me wish I had had an opportunity to take a class from a teacher over the course of a three or four month term in which I also had access to the studio to practice. At this point I am unlikely to be able to do that.
 
 
 

My gravy boat needed a redesign, because the other one was too fussy. So I made a thing. 

We need to add the bling to these jewelry pendants.

Load was in night before last, cut it back to go to bed as it was not reaching temp. . . heat color was around 1900F., Woke yesterday morning early, 4am. Thought it is too early it won't over fire as I had cut it back to 65%. Got up at 7 and checked to find all cones FLAT! Unloading today. First look says someone was looking over me. .. no crawling, no pinholing and the color is muted, but acceptable.  Should have paid more attention as I knew it was firing better after changing a bad element.
Grinding today, and glazing next load.
 
best,
Pres