WEDNESDAY WORD

Pillow Vases III: Lace

My Lace Bowls are some of the most popular pieces in my oeuvre. Their evolution started with a piece of lace I picked up at Michael's and used as one of the textures in my Original Sunflower series. The texture was fairly highly relieved and had a rich, tapestried quality.

I liked the results so much, it became one of the textures I selected for my Fancy Sunflower series, for which I employed some of the more highly-relieved surfaces I had used for my Original Sunflowers - important because I was going to glaze the centers and the designs needed to handle two to three glaze coats.

At about the same time, I was exploring textures with some bowl forms; many of the glazes in my palette are reactive glazes that break to different colors over deeply-relieved textures - I had noticed this characteristic on the test tiles I had made and on the glazed sunflowers I was producing. I started playing around with the idea of lace-textured bowls, buttons and wall art - a product line that has become quite successful and continues to evolve; I'm now experimenting with larger platter-type centerpieces using vintage and contemporary lace.

Once I started working on the Pillow Vase concept, it seemed obvious to use the lace texture again, as it had been so successful in other genres. The challenge here was that, rather than using the lace for the inside of the bowls, I was using it for the outside. Whereas I had easily turned out bowl after bowl using the same piece of lace - rolling out the slab, rolling in the lace, forming the lace slab into the bowl and peeling the lace away, then starting on another piece, I had to invert the process so the lace side of the slab went into the bowl first.

After much trial and error, I've developed a reliable process for these pieces, forming the slab bowl into the mold and roughly trimming, then setting to dry until the lace-covered clay releases. I peel the lace away, place the (still-plastic) clay back in the mold and, gently yet firmly, form it into the mold, especially at the lip, trim and score. I don't cut any holes until after I've removed the pieces from the mold. I select the half for which the lace design's center most closely conforms to the center of the bowl form and use that as the orientation for the finished vase's opening.

The pieces are slipped and joined; the join looks like a natural part of the design, forming a resolved part of the lace motif.

ANOTHER SUNDAY, ANOTHER HOUSE

It's Sunday again.

How come the days are so long

but the weeks fly by?

Anyway, here's another small house

and I'm in love!

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Although I do think the landscaping really adds a lot to the outside appeal.

I love that poster!

I'm ripping off the idea and making my own!

I like how the walls in the middle of the house don't touch the ceiling.

Wow. I do love all the light!

I wished they showed the bathroom area.

But, here's a blueprint - 

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The only thing that I would change is to divide the garage.

I would make a dog room area at the very end of the garage,

with a wall dividing it and a door

and have an another door going to the backyard area too,
which would be enclosed with a privacy fence.

But  this house is very cool....

although I suppose I could just someday replace my current counter-top with light butch block

and put down a light wood floor laminate
and put a bigger window in the back bedroom
and maybe a skylight in there
and in the bathroom too,
if I removed the clawfoot tub and put in a tiled shower/tub...

and well, also added a small garage

and then I'd never have to move!

Hmmmm.

Doppelgänger

Marilyn, Rosie

PORQUE TÚ LO VALES · iPAD & iPHONE WALLPAPER

¿Alguna vez te ha dado un ataque de amor propio brutal? Genial, eso es buenísimo, hazme caso ;)

Quiérete mucho y, por si se te olvida, llévalo tatuado en tu iPhone / iPad.

Puedes guardar la imagen directamente desde tu dispositivo móvil y después usarla como fondo de pantalla del mismo, o también puedes descargarla directamente desde mi dropbox sólo con hacer clic sobre ella.

Si además de quererte mucho también quieres a este blog, ya sabes: ¡¡Comparte!! 

FELIZ FIN DE SEMANA

♥

.

WEDNESDAY WORD

FOTÓGRAFOS: NADAV KANDER

Hacía muchísimo tiempo que quería abrir una sección nueva en el blog en la que hablar de fotografía clásica y contemporánea. Creo que la fotografía es un acto tan cotidiano y habitual que es necesario de vez en cuando pararse un poco a reflexionar y ser conscientes de la breve pero intensa historia que hay ya detrás de este arte. Tal vez su gran atractivo y la fascinación que ejerce sobre nosotros resida realmente en su capacidad para llegar a todo el mundo, porque hoy día prácticamente todos podemos captar fotografías e, indiscutiblemente, vivimos en una sociedad que constantemente consume imágenes.

La semana pasada pudimos por fin visitar la exposición de Nadav Kander en la Casa García de Viedma en Armilla, Granada. Esta es una exposición doble cedida por el CAF que podrás visitar en esta ubicación hasta el próximo 4 de mayo.
Visitar esta pequeña muestra me ha servido de detonante total. Había tantos fotógrafos y fotógrafas que barajaba a la hora de iniciar este apartado, que no terminaba de tomar una decisión y estaba ahí, con todo preparado, los motores encendidos, pero sin dar ni un sólo paso. Así que por que sí, por casualidad o causalidad, llamémoslo como queramos, Nadav Kander es el fotógrafo elegido para iniciar esta fase de TBCP que espero se prolongue en el tiempo y se consolide hasta ser una sección fija en el blog.

¿Y QUIÉN ES NADAV KANDER?

Vamos a hacer un pequeño repaso a su bio para ubicarnos.

Nace en Tel-Aviv (Israel) en diciembre de 1961. Teniendo tres años de edad su familia se traslada a Johannesburgo (Sudafrica) donde residirá el resto de su infancia y parte de su juventud. Al igual que muchos otros fotógrafos, su interés por la fotografía surge dentro de la propia familia experimentando con una Iconoflex que su padre trajo de Nueva YorK en uno de sus viajes de trabajo (era piloto comercial). A los trece años comienza a capturar sus propias fotografías con una cámara Pentax que compró tras su barmitzvah. Muy pronto comprendió que el ojo del fotógrafo solo necesita ver un fragmento de la realidad porque el resto lo construye la mente; la suya, la tuya, la mía.

Nadav Kander

A los catorce años viaja a Europa por primera vez y queda fascinado con la cultura, la arquitectura, la comida. Absolutamente todo le resultaba dispar a lo que hasta entonces había conocido en Johannesburgo. Se recuerda a sí mismo observando toda esa realidad desde las sombras y cree que en la actualidad todavía queda mucho de eso en su mirada, en su forma de captar fotografías y ver el mundo a su alrededor. Supo que, tarde o temprano, tendría que volver.

Nunca le gusto estudiar. Reconoce que es una lástima pero que también es la pura verdad y cruza los dedos para que a sus tres hijos no les ocurra lo mismo. Tuvo una vida de adolescente desocupado hasta que a los diecisiete se estrelló con su moto y se replanteó muchas cosas. Entre ellas la fotografía a la que a partir de entonces le daría prioridad en su vida.
Comenzó trabajando para las fuerzas aéreas sudafricanas revelando material fotográfico. En esa época conoce a su actual pareja Nicole. Entre 1985 y 1986 se suceden viajes a Estados Unidos, Sudafrica y Europa. Finalmente se establece definitivamente en el Reino Unido donde reside actualmente.



Su obra es muy variopinta y toca muy diversos temas. El retrato, el desnudo, el paisaje o los no lugares forman parte de su fantástico portfolio personal, pero también ha trabajado muchísimo en fotografía de publicidad siendo reclutado por marcas como Adidas, Hyundai, Levis, Mercedes Benz o Nike.

Del lado artístico, gran parte de su trabajo forma parte de la colección pública de la National Portrait Gallery y del Victoria and Albert Museum de Londres. También ha participado en numerosas exposiciones colectivas e individuales y ha recibido prestigiosos premios como el premio de la Royal Photographic Society’s en (2002), el International Photographer of The Year (2009) o el Silver Photographer of The Year (2008) entre otros.

Puedes consultar y ampliar información directamente desde su web personal: Nadav Kander WEB

También puedes seguir mi tablero de Pinterest NADAV KANDER y estar al día de todos sus trabajos y proyectos fotográficos.

Y ahora sí, te dejo ya con un vídeo muy parecido a los MUST de nuestra Escuela de Fotografía Encandilarte, con los que pretendemos divulgar y acercar a todos nuestros alumnos la obra de los grandes maestros de la fotografía.

Si te ha gustado esta entrada y crees que este es un apartado interesante para el Blog, puedes dejar un comentario o compartirlo en tus redes sociales. ¡Gracias! :)

NEW THOUGHT

A while back I said that I'm not moving

and I'm not.

I've stopped looking at houses for sale.

Now I have a NEW thought.

I have always planned on paying off my home ASAP

I have a huge loan that will be paid off in 3 years

AND the van has only 20 more months left, so I hope to start paying it down then...
(although, knowing me I will want another vehicle by then.)

I've been obsessing over this

source

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but because it might not be reliable, 

maybe a sedan would be something I should think about 

like this

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or THIS!

source

yeah...WHATEVER.

Back to my new thought -

What if I paid off the house and THEN found some property and built a NEW home?!

Anne are you out there reading this?

I've pinned some of your small house ideas!

Anyway, seriously...I think it could be done.

I would not want anything extravagant...the object is still - NO DEBT.

So, here's an example of ONE idea.

source

They built this for $25000.

YES! TWENTY FIVE THOUSAND!

Let the (obsession) research begin!

Here's the inside-

Kitchen down on the end, fireplace in the middle, bed in the wall of shelves -

Bathroom? must be on the opposite end -

I like that the shower can just spray down everything!

The walls, the sink, dirty dogs...everything down the drain!

Outside again-

I imagine the wood painted white 

a stone patio surrounding the house...

Night time

I like the security lights.

OK, I'm gonna need a security fence too.

To keep my dogs in

and scary people out.

So what are YOUR thoughts on this?

Is there something that I'm not thinking of?

Have I missed some major stumbling block?
I'll probably change my mind again.
Just my thought for TODAY.

Pillow Vases II: Rosette

One of the reasons I wanted to investigate the "Pillow Vase" concept was because I was interested in a mostly-closed form that could be very stable and hold a fair amount of water, minimizing the necessity for refilling the reservoir. I also thought it might be worthwhile to develop a form having a low profile, making it more functional as a dinner table centerpiece - something that wouldn't necessarily interfere with guests' eye contact with one another. I also liked the idea that, in the case of the vases with a single large opening, a pin frog could be used as desired but wouldn't be necessary; once could cut the stems short and fit them tightly into the opening. I also felt that the pieces should be able to stand alone - without flowers - as objects of beauty in and of themselves.

Once the vase sections have dried enough to release from the molds, they're ready for assembly. In the case of the Tiny vases with the multiple openings (much like an old-fashioned pansy vase), I use a Kemper 1/4" Hole Cutter to create an array of 17 holes in the top of the vase, as seen in the piece at the far left of the photo to the left, before assembly. The array is cut entirely freehand but I'm usually able to eyeball it fairly well. I often use a large loop tool to clean up the inside of the top after cutting the openings.

I slip all the pre-scored cut edges of the sections and join tops to bottoms, sandwiching them together. I use a combination of a fairly soft rubber kidney and a metal kidney to marry the pieces to one another. I use an elephant ear sponge to clean the join and work out any inconsistencies.

When I made my Lace, Embossed Leaf or Striped Bowls, I noticed that they would often warp. This is not a problem with these pieces as the two sections hold one another in tension - I have never had one warp (yet!) By using fairly consistent slab thicknesses and joining them firmly together, they seem to stay true to form.

If the pieces are going to be plain, I set them to dry. If I'll be decorating them, I may set them aside to dry some more if they're too plastic such that they may deform in the application process. It's a fine line between being firm enough to not distort and being too dry to take the decoration successfully.

The Rosette pieces are decorated with rosettes cut using Kemper Klay Kutters 5/8 inch "Basic Shapes" set. I either slip the vase's entire top surface or score and slip each individual rosette as I apply it. I apply two to three graduated circles around the center opening (three on all but the Tiny vase with the pansy vase opening). I then set the pieces to dry.

Cats and Plants

I brought all my plants in that I could last Fall.
The house looks like a greenhouse

and I like that.

I put the smaller ones up HIGH, away from the cats so they wouldn't get munched on.

This morning I looked up and there was Ghost. I think he's wishing for Spring too.

He's up on the china hutch that I'm going to paint black...or white...or black.

Or maybe white.

kinda hating VALENTINE'S DAY

Sorry.

I know I should be sharing Pink and Happy.

or maybe some cool Valentine ideas.

But kinda hate this Holiday.

Every other day I'm pretty content

unless I see something like this

but I immediately remind myself I would have been more like this-

or this

still this day brings out the romantic melancholy in the most cynical.

and it sucks.

Pillow Vases I: Scrolls

One of the first things I did after my divorce was to go and purchase the tableware I had been looking at for years - a set of Colorstone stoneware dishes from Sasaki in a matte black finish. All of the pieces in this range are based on sections of variously-sized spheres - smaller spheres for the bowls, larger ones for the plates and platters. My idea was to have these very simple, elegant dishes for place settings and collect, over time, hand-made serving pieces; I thought the sophisticated spareness of the place settings would be a complement to a varied selection of handmade serving pieces, making for an interesting table for any occasion.

After I purchased the pieces, I started using them - directly and indirectly - in my pottery as molds. I used the salad plate to create my sushi plates and created molds from the coupe soup bowl to form my poppies and other pieces. I eventually invested in additional pieces (not always in the black) simply to use as molds in the studio, rather than constantly raiding my kitchen cupboards. I started using them to make Lace Bowls, then Embossed Leaf Bowls; I used molds I made from them for my Applied Leaf Bowls.

It was when I was making some Embossed Leaf Bowls that I started thinking about using these same forms for making Pillow Vases - mostly closed, pillow-like forms for flower arranging. I thought I could take two molded sections and marry them.

The great thing about this approach is that, while slab bowls can sometimes warp - the technique is generally less consistent than wheel-throwing, by putting two of them together, they hold one another in stasis, making for a piece that maintains a uniform shape.

To start the process, I roll out a slab of clay about 1/4" thick. I cut a circle appropriate to the size of the piece I'm doing and slump it into the mold. Using a damp sponge, I force the clay into the mold as consistently as possible. I also use a very smooth river stone for this step. Once the piece is consistently molded, I use sharp cutting tool to trim it down to the edge of the mold. (The Colorstone as a flat lip which makes this step really easy.) If I'm making a single large opening (which would allow the vase to take a pin frog) or a single small opening (suitable for an ikebana-type arrangement), I'll cut that out using either a cookie cutter or a 1/2" round Kemper Klay Kutter (only for one of the two sections, for the top). I also score the cut edge in anticipation of assembly. I set the pieces to dry - out in the sun in the summer; under the heat vent during winter - until they will release from the molds (which are not porous). In my next post, I'll describe assembling the basic vase.

For the Scrolled decoration, I use a Kemper Klay Gun with one of the round dies. I extrude a length of clay and fabricate three loose arabesques (the clay scrolled at either end with a straight section in the center - the length of these determined by the size of the vase I'm making - Large, Medium, Small or Tiny) and - using shorter lengths of clay - six tight arabesques. (When I first started working with these design elements, my application was much more varied, both in number of elements and relative placement; I found, in doing production, coming up with a consistently satisfying arrangement I can repeat with minimal variation was essential to my sanity.) I flip these over, score and slip them and then apply them to the vase so the three longer pieces almost meet one another over the vases surface and pairs of the smaller ones "bracket" each resulting intersection. I gently firm the to the vase's surface and allow then to dry.

Can't see the Forest for the Trees

You know how you hear a saying

repeat it, use it, but never really think it completely through

or maybe that's just me.

I mean yeah.

You can't see the forest for the trees.

I got it.

Being so deep into it

that you just can't see it

unless you step back and look.

I've been laying around on the sofa the last few days,

doing half sit-ups as I cough myself crazy.

I don't usually just lay around but I'm trying to force myself to rest.

Munching on toast and sipping tea

and thinking.

I forced myself to get on the computer and just see what's going on.

I left a few rambling comments

on a couple of blogs in a cold medicine-induced state.

Jeez.

Anyway, as I lay on the sofa, I watch Ruby wobble across the floor

and then stop and bark and kinda do a dog-jump at one of the cats.

She studies herself and then walks over to a dog bed.

She gets in, turns round and lays down with her tongue hanging out

as it does almost all the time now 

and she and I exchange looks.

She seems to be doing good today.

A bit sassy.

That's a good sign, I guess, although I'm not to let her stress herself too much.

But last Tuesday night she wasn't stressed at all.

Just standing by the water bowl 

and suddenly she staggered and fell over.

I picked her up and held her, slowly cleaning her face as I talked to her

and her eyes slowly came back into focus and she was back.

I set her down and she walked off like nothing had happened.

Then the next morning, I noticed that her front feet were kinda curled
and she was standing on her "ankles".

But then, after a bit, she was again walking normally.

I think about what the different vets and technicians have told me.

Lots of information and details.

I think about statements that have been made to me 

and me with more questions and they with more answers.

It's like standing in a forest and all the questions and answers are the trees crowded around me

and if I step back

the real answer is like seeing the forest from a distance.

I'm finally thinking with clarity.

She's got a heart condition.

She's on medication for it.

They will only work for so long and then they won't.

and that's that.
I realize now that I've just kept asking questions
Because I've been hoping for a different answer.