Now Available at Jenny Jib, December 12th, 2016

Here are pics of new work that was dropped off at Jenny Jib in Lunenburg this past Friday.  The shop is now open every day until Christmas and has tonnes of great stuff to peruse for anyone in need of a relaxing shopping excursion to this scenic town.

There were some new experiments in this firing including a couple of large relief carved plates.  These come wired with picture hanging wire in order to hang on the wall when not in use.   

Relief carved Humpback whale plate

Relief carved Bald Eagle Plate

The relief is a bit higher in this sleeping fox 'plate' which is also wired to hang on the wall

Here is a photo of the above plate with two new fox bowls.

Next up seagulls!  A bowl and a mug - these are the first functional seagull pieces I've tried, and they were quite fun to do.

Puffin bowl - also a new product from this firing along with the next bowl...

Bald Eagle bowl

 A flounder plate, wired to hang on the wall.

Next are new, handsculpted, one sided flat ornaments.  With the exception of the lobster which ended up getting glazed, these are sanded bare clay on the back and so can be personalized with a marker or even used as gift tags.

Whale, orca, dolphin, fish, puffin, lobster and sharks

Foxes, sleeping foxes, sheep, sleeping cat, rabbit, elephant

Duck

Polar bear

Elephant figurine with larger elephant sculpture

More new figurines...

Border collie tending a small flock of sheep

Larger sheep sculpture

"Skulk" of foxes, including new sleeping fox figurine and new hedgehog figurines

Blue jay, turkey and crow

Puffins and whale

Now Available at Jenny Jib, November 5th 2015

Here are pics of work from this latest firing that I dropped off at Jenny Jib in Lunenburg yesterday.

First up is the American Thanksgiving Turkey.   

This is the most ambitious clay piece I've ever made, it took quite awhile to do and I'm surprised it didn't crack!  Like all my functional pieces it is cone 6 stoneware and foodsafe - though I wouldn't chance putting this particular piece in a dishwasher or microwave.

The back comes off such that it can be used as two serving vessels and/or maybe a good hiding place for something precious:  

Here is its backside:

 

Next up some Whaleware - completely inspired by Lunenburg and Jenny's shop.  Four new mugs:

A bowl with 2 relief carved humpack whales and two peace signs, really happy with how this turned out:

And a sperm whale plate that is wired to hang on the wall when not in use.   

 


Here's a big moose bowl:

And a few figurines.  First a seagull and two walruses:

Next is a shepherd dog:

A sheep for the dog to herd:

And a skulk of foxes scheming to heist the sheep from the shepherd dog:

A Polar bear, who could probably eat all the other figurines, and a baby bear:

I also dropped off a few other figurines that were at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia shop, which is temporarily shut while Pavia opens a new cafe (yum!) where the shop was, and the shop moves across the hall.

Hunting season buddies: a buffalo, bighorn sheep and white tailed deer stag

Earthenware birds!  A puffin, kingfisher and mallard  

And a few more figurines, 2 sheep a bear and a squirrel.

  
Along with these pieces I dropped off 33 new ornaments from this latest firing.  Out of respect and gratitude for all veterans I'll wait until later to post ornament pics - Jenny Jib honours Remembrance Day and doesn't start decorating for the holidays until later in the month.  

Works In Progress: Whaleware, A Skulk, and Relief Carved Bowls

I'm still working away getting things carved up for the next firing and thought I'd post some pics.  

I've really been enjoying myself! And waxing nostalgic that this fall will be 10 years since I started selling art, back in Regina.

I'm pleased to report that lately I've started feeling as excited about making art as I did back in 2005.  Hooray! It is so nice to feel this way again but now with lots more experience..

First up, some sitting fox figurines.   Apparently a group of foxes is called a 'skulk'.

Next, 3 Relief Carved Bowls.  These are new, and inspired by the happy outcome of the 2 relief carved vases in my last firing.  These are each a good size for serving or snacking.

The first is a fox chasing 2 rabbits, with some birch trees:

The second is a fox chasing a pheasant, with some cattails:

The third has 2 humpback whales and 2 peace signs, and is definitely for Jenny Jib in Lunenburg.

On the topic of Whaleware, there is also a sperm whale plate, that will be able to hang on the wall.  It's 11.5" long now but will shrink in the firing process.

And four more whale mugs.  I have a new blue stoneware glaze I'm excited to try with these!

This next firing will also have a big turkey and ornaments from this last post, as well as some other animal bowls and figurines that I won't photograph until they're done.  

For potters, or anyone, who gets tendonitis  - I can't believe I haven't had tendonitis flare back up from all this carving! I credit this powdered magnesium citrate supplement I started taking this year, Natural Calm which I picked up at the Healthy Bug in Halifax.  Apparently due in part to depletion of minerals in our soil from intensive agriculture, and our poor diets, magnesium deficiency is a widespread issue that can cause all sorts of symptoms, tendonitis being one of them.  Google 'magnesium deficiency' to learn more.  Eating more anti-inflammatory and/or alkaline food, along with doing yoga is probably helping too!