you get a strange feeling when you're about to leave a place.

like you'll not only miss the people you love

but you'll miss the person you are 

now

at this time

and this place

because you'll never be this way

ever again.

-azar nafisi

love of beauty 

is taste

the creation of beauty

is art.

-ralph waldo emerson

"baby,"

i said,

"i'm a genius

but nobody knows it

but me."

-charles bukowski

new etsy shop!!!!

i finally opened my own etsy shop!!!

it has only just opened

so i only have one item listed

but it's pretty exciting.

i will be adding more items

this summer

which will include jewelry

among other things.

i have been making my own knitting needles

out of poplar and pine.

they are size 50

so they are super jumbo

for knitting with super bulky yarn

or roving.

jumbo size 50 wood knitting needles

i knitted the cowl below

in bagsmith bigstitch mini-bumps

(yarn and needles also available at home ec workshop in iowa city)

70% alpaca, 15% wool and 15% nylon. 

its super fun and fast,

so fast i almost want to take it apart to knit it again!

thanks for looking!

she was beautiful,

but she was beautiful

in the way 

a forest fire was beautiful,

something to be admired

from a distance,

not up close.

-good omens

always bring the bigger gun 

and the better suit.

-michael caine 

(douglas hayward 1)

i can’t explain what i mean. 

and even if i could, 

i’m not sure i’d feel like it.

-j.d. salinger

sheep

english sheep

avebury, england

tree skirt finally completed...

it only took....

...what...

...three years...

(link to burdastyle and pattern)

love to sew

happiness

happiness does not come from wealth, 

but from setting limits to one’s desires, 

and living within those limits 

with satisfaction.

-dalai lama

clayspace coop

clayspace coop in asheville, nc

eric knoche's studio

 

 

matt jacob's studio

you will be alone with the gods, and the nights will flame with fire

if you’re going to try, go all the way. otherwise, don’t even start. this could mean losing girlfriends, wives, relatives and maybe even your mind. it could mean not eating for three or four days. it could mean freezing on a park bench. it could mean jail. it could mean derision. it could mean mockery—isolation. isolation is the gift. all the others are a test of your endurance, of how much you really want to do it. and, you’ll do it, despite rejection and the worst odds. and it will be better than anything else you can imagine. if you’re going to try, go all the way. there is no other feeling like that. you will be alone with the gods, and the nights will flame with fire. you will ride life straight to perfect laughter. it’s the only good fight there is.                    

 -charles bukowski 

what is david byrne up to these days...

he has squished the earth beneath the high line

an elevated park on a former rail line in chelsea

in new york city

read the article on artinfo

i always like his bike racks

and how controversial they became

he also has some fake iphone apps

on exhibit at the pace gallery

called social media

with miranda july 

among others

they're pretty entertaining

i would link it here 

but i cant get the page to load

so why send you there

just to remember...

his playing the building installation

in sweden, new york and london

jewelry making and the influence of the choo...

kiff slemmons studio

satomi kawai

both studied at the university of iowa

with professor chunghi choo

wise words jack

be in love with your life

every detail of it

-jack kerouac

design for a living world at the chicago field museum

on our way to chicago

before we headed to the airport for our flight to england

we stopped at the chicago field museum

to see the exhibit

design for a living world

different artists and designers

exhibited pieces composed of natural

and renewable resources

that were mostly local to the artist

the entire exhibit was great

but the real reason we went

was because 

christien mienderstma's

giant cable knit wool rug

was there!

 (see previous post here)

each section is made from the organic wool of one individual sheep

that lives at lava lake ranch in idaho

christein is from the netherlands

but she travels to the farm in idaho to meet with the famers

and the sheep

i was so psyched about seeing this in person

it is truly inspiring

i was so excited that i forgot to take pictures of anything else

she also had a display of different papers made from the fibers

of native plants that grow in the chicago area

it was also beautiful

as were the pieces from the other artists

who also deserve mention

but apparently not pictures...

inspiration

i have noticed a change in my pottery

already

something happened

i am not sure what

but today

these forms were emerging

as i would center the clay

i would decide what type of vessel

it would become

i now am learning

the basic skills

start with a cylinder

and allow it to change

i see pottery everyday

but not the way i saw it in this

this is clary

she is so friendly

an example of her beautiful work

there are so few images available online

she says she is not connected

in a way that artists

today have to be

to make a living

yet she still manages to do it

when i last went to her studio

in ely, ia

she mentioned that students

today wouldn't want a

teacher like her

i beg to differ

pottery is a slow art form

you cant rush it

clary is a calming energy

she describes pottery

with a unique beauty

it's no wonder she creates

such beautiful pieces

a pbs documentary

clary illian: a year in the life

i havent even seen the whole thing yet

and i cant wait

literally on the edge of my seat

right now

who inspires me...

tonight i sat and watched videos

of warren mackenzie

throwing on a wheel

i tend to question

every decisions

i've ever made

my mind is always running

when i am throwing

on the wheel

i am challenged to let go

of my thoughts

and to just let the clay

move between my fingers

i am choosing to live in a way

that doesn't come easily

for me

because it's a direction

in which

i've always wanted

to go

to share with you a piece

of what i strive to do,

here is a video of

warren mackenzie

master potter

and someone who

inspires me