When glazing things for firing, please remember:

• There can be no glaze at all on the bottom of your piece (wipe all remnants of glaze away)
• The glaze line should be a quarter inch from the bottom of the pot, more if there is more than one glaze on the pot
• If there is so much glaze on the pot that it is cracking a peeling off, there is too much glaze; wash it off completely and re-glaze
• If you do not adhere to the above guidelines, your work will not be fired in the glaze kiln

Pottery stickers are here. We have five designs, and they are each $4. 100% of the profits go to the Burnish Clay Studio Grant fund which is used to fund scholarships for BIPOC and LGBTQ students and workshop participants. 
You can buy these at Burnish. Just ask an employee or Heather about purchasing. Thanks so much for your support and keep your eyes open for more designs each month.

These stickers are designed and created by Burnished Clay Artist Collective, an organization which exists to raise money for the Burnish Clay Studio Grant Fund. The organization will also be holding art events such as art pop-ups, art invitationals, and collaborative shows, as well as creating educational and instructional content which will be made available to subscribers for a small monthly fee, all of which will go to support the Burnish Grant Fund.

A big thanks to all who participated in the workshop with Eva Funderburgh. By all accounts it was a great opportunity to learn new skills, work with an exceptional artist, and try new things in clay. A big thanks to Eva for the time and the expertise. Come back soon!

It is an interesting thing to teach sculpture with a medium that has a long history of use in the creation of functional ware.
From The History of Information: "Fragments of pottery 20,000 years old found in Xianrendong Cave in Jiangxi Province, southern China, in 2012 are the oldest known pottery. Archaeological studies of the cave indicate that it was inhabited by mobile foragers who hunted and gathered during the Last Glacial Maximum. The vessels, which may have been concave, were probably used for cooking food. The site in which the pottery fragments were found is one of the earliest kitchens."

Clay comes pre-loaded with tens of thousands of years of meaning, so asking yourself why you are making a sculpture with clay as opposed to plastic, or fiber, or metal, should be at least considered when you approach the material.
 
Furthermore, the difference between making a mug and making an object to look at is the "why?" that pushes the object forward and into the world. There is really no need to justify making a mug, outside of the reasonable political/social construct that some surface decoration might imply. When you sit down at a potter's wheel, you make something that a person can eat, drink, or pour from, this outcome is a reasonable expectation. 

When you sit in front of a lump of clay hoping to make art, it is a bit more intimidating because making something without an obvious function with a material that for most of its history was used to make functional ware can be challenging. There is no "mug", "bowl", or "plate" template to follow like there is in pottery, so where do you start?

Outside of any desire to express, what are you hoping for when you make an object for people to consider? Are you hoping to make people think, feel, or act? Are you hoping to help people see things in a way they have never seen before?
​
It is scary to make art, because there is a certain level of "taking up space" in the world that a mug just doesn't have to answer for. So what do you do? Will you take up that space without apology with the fuel that fills your soul and yearns to be let out into the world to inspire others to do the same? 

It is indeed an endeavor worth throwing yourself into, if only to connect with the part of yourself that you are encouraged, most of the time, to ignore. This is one of the great values in art making- it is total and complete justification for getting in touch with the feelings you are taught to suppress with food, drink, drugs, and entertainment. It is the part of yourself that can and most likely will surprise you if you tap into it.

​So go ahead and surprise yourself. 

TRIMMING YOUR POTS.
​When trimming your pots, it's really a good goal to shoot for only trimming the bottoms of your pots. A lot of beginning students feel like they want to trim the tops (lips) as well, as to make them more symmetrical and even, but the reality is that the more time you spend trimming your pot on the wheel, the more opportunity there is to mess it up. So when you trim, stay away from everything below the belly, (as the pot is upside down on the wheel head), and as you improve your throwing and trimming skills, you will find that you have less and less to trim.

There are two great workshops coming up at Burnish. If you have already signed up for the Eva Funderburgh workshop, that's great, because it sold out and will be taking place this next weekend, 9/23 and 9/24, from 1:00 to 5:00 pm. 
THERE ARE STILL SPOTS LEFT in the Surface Design with Stephen Robison workshop, which is taking place 10/21 and 10/22 from 1:00 to 5:00 pm. If you are interested in expanding your surface design vocabulary, this is the workshop for you.  The main demonstrations will focus on using bisque and 3-d printed stamps, as well as working with slips. This workshop will be useful for both handbuilding and wheel work, and participants who register before October 1st  are able to submit a line drawing that Stephen will 3D print into an embossing stamp for you. If you have gone through at least one clay class, either handbuilding, sculpture, or drawing, this is an excellent workshop to take to add some tools to your kit. 

After many weeks, we have fixed the sink and it looks like...it works. It is quite a relief, especially for me, as I am the instructor/blog writer/social media/wheel fixer/plumber-type person, on and off, for Burnish Clay Studio. 

Critique Club will start at 6:15 during the Fall session as there is a class until 6:15 on Tuesdays. Come, all who are interested in participating in a lively conversation around pottery, art, and sometime, good recipes, both food and glaze, for there is something to be learned in any examination of a piece of hand made ware.

There are a lot of different collaborations going on at Burnish Clay Studio right now, and I can't help but be inspired. It is wonderful to watch two, three, or four people come together in a concerted creative effort to make something that any one of them could not have come up with on their own. It is a unique, creative challenge that not many people undertake. It can completely change your direction, get you to see your work in a different light, and open you up to new creative possibilities that you had not ever considered. Ultimately, as with most creative endeavors, collaborations are a risk, because while the artist usually wrestles alone with their feelings of inadequacy, doubt, and genius, allowing another to witness any of this is a whole other level of vulnerability that can test even the strongest of wills. There is nothing that says that any artist must collaborate with another.
​
If you are interested- Here is a recent article on collaboration that might create a spark.

No matter what you make, be it bowls, cups, figures, creatures, or abstract shapes with clay, the one thing that is easy to overlook is how the piece meets or rises from the surface upon which it sits. One of my first instructors took great pains to teach me the difference between an intentional-looking piece and a piece that looks like it fell together, one pivotal element being the foot. There is no universal way to design a foot, but make no mistake, just as the knee bone is connected to the shin bone, so too is the foot connected to the belly, which relates to the shoulder, and then to the neck, and so on to the lip (of the pot).

Minding the shape relationships of the work you make is a personal design decision, and one that can only be made after the maker understands what they like and most importantly, why they respond to it. So, this is not a short commentary on how to make this choice, this is a short piece on the importance of making it at all. Creating a piece that is in itself a harmony of well-thought out decisions by the artist is more satisfying and easier to learn from than a piece without much thought behind it. A good way to get to this place is to start examining what you like and why you like it. Take notes. Take pictures. Examine the items you have collected that sit around your home. Hold your favorite mug or bowl and examine the way it sits on the table and in your hand(s). Get to know what you emotionally respond to and why, and you will be closer to knowing how to build the work you make with intention. 

Artist residencies can be potent times for artists to focus on their work and meet new colleagues in their field. Here are some good ones.
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture
Whitney Museum of Art Independent Study Program
The MacDowell Colony
National Parks Arts Foundation
The Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts

Haystack Residency

Archie Bray Residency

Penland Residency

Oxbow Residency

Visiting Artist Dwayne Sackey came to the studio this weekend to lead a soda firing, and what a great event it was. As you can see above, the kiln was loaded and fired with the help of many capable hands, and our own Will Jenkins assisted in all stages of the firing. Burnish will be bringing many more visiting artists to teach workshops over the course of the year.

This session look out for Eva Funderburgh and Stephen Robison to drop by the studio to teach some unique and magical workshops. Both artists will demonstrate some special techniques that any artist can add to their toolbox. The Funderburgh workshop is full, but there are still spaces available in the Robison surface design workshop, which will take place on October 21 and 22. Sign up while there are still spaces left!

Monday we welcome our fall session, with Hilde's hand-building class from 12:30 - 3:00 and Kacie's all-level wheel throwing class from 6:00 - 8:30 pm. Remember to steer clear of classroom space when the classes are taking place, and take note of the posted studio hours around the rooms and on the tables. I have posted a schedule of classes below as a reminder, if you happen to need one.

It takes courage to create. Anyone who has ever tried their hand at making anything knows that creating new things in a public and open space can be unnerving. This is one of the reasons the staff at Burnish do everything they can to make sure the students, members, and visitors feel welcome, safe, and free to be just who they are. This is the best place from which to take risks, to make, and to generally get freaky because there is no fear of being punished, harangued or harassed for any strange new work that might arise in this special and fertile environment.

As this new session starts, let's all remember to cheer each other on, support each other in our creative endeavors, (no matter how whacked out they might seem to be), and be conscious of all the ways we can inspire each other to be better.  

You might have noticed there are a number of collaborations going on around the studio lately, and there is a reason for this. Collaboration is a special kind of challenge. It creates an environment within which two artists can have a visual conversation with each other, and push each other to do things they might not do otherwise. If you have a chance to collaborate with someone, do it. You will grow from it, your relationship with the other artist will improve, and you will have a creation you most likely could not have done on your own. 

One of the things I have always done is make my own opportunities. I know that might sound odd, but I have little patience for waiting around to hear if someone in a far away land thought my work good enough to be included in this or that show. So, what do I do? I create my own projects. The world is my gallery, and I use it to expose everyday people to art in unsuspecting places.

Another way to create your own opportunity is pitch a show to a gallery that you curate yourself. One such opportunity is being offered by local gallery Make.Shift Art Space. Do you have experience curating? Do you feel like you could put on an interesting, beautiful, or curious show? Apply! These folks are very open to good ideas. 

​Good luck!

Another session is over. As we say good-bye to the summer months and say hello to September, new workshops (three this fall!) and a whole lot of opportunities to continue your ceramics practice, we think to ourselves, "how did the summer go by so quickly?"  Personally, I just got used to the idea that it's 2023. 

This next week will be a quiet one in the studio as the staff gets the place in shape for our fall session. If you are taking classes in the fall, we will see you the week of September 11th. If you still have work to glaze from the summer session, you can come in and do that any day, (when the studio is available) after the fall session starts. 

We are welcoming the kids back after a very long Spring and Summer session without them. If you know of anyone with kids ages 6-11 who might want to play with clay, let them know there are spots available for both of the five week sessions this fall. If you know anyone with kids 11-16 who want to work on the potter's wheel, there are also spots available for that class as well, and, two spots available in the adult wheel classes, one on Saturday morning and one on Wednesday afternoons, from 12:30 to 3:00. 
​
Thanks to everyone for your patience with our various plumbing challenges this summer, we are hoping that the parts we need will be delivered to the studio in time to install them and get all our sinks up and running again.

Thanks again to everyone who made it out to our Critique Club in August. It turned out to be a stormy night, but the vibes inside the studio were warm and friendly, and everyone got a lot out of the art conversations we had around making sculptural and functional ceramics. Our next critique club will take place on the last Tuesday in September, the 26th at 6:00 pm, so mark your calendars. 

From the beginning of time, perhaps even before that, potlucks have been a proud tradition in pottery studios all over the planet. At Burnish Clay Studio, we stopped having them when the pandemic spread across the land, but we have decided that we have gone too long and come too far to drop the tradition completely, so we are contemplating bringing them back for the end of the fall session. It is usually set up so each class has their own. The class sits around talking about the stuff that has come out of the kiln, eating yummy food out of the pottery we have made during the quarter, and trading pieces with each other. It's quite something. It's an ongoing conversation at this point, whether or not to pick up where we left up before everything closed down, so stay tuned. We might find ourselves breaking bread at the end of the fall session.

Every week, I do a "bit" of research for this blog. I usually take a few tidbits from the IG thread, I use some of the information out of the newsletter that Heather sends out, and I discuss weekly goings-on at the studio. This week while doing my "bit", I came across this auto-populated question on the Goog, which I assume means that people are actually asking this question. Don't worry, I'm not going to waste valuable blog space or frankly, energy, with an answer. I just thought I would share this question to hopefully stimulate some thought around how we each approach our own practice. And because this picture of a laughing Icelandic Horse, (photo credit to Dan Cook) makes me giggle.

This tip is pretty straight-forward: learn from everyone. No matter where you are in your art practice, seek out opinions, tips, observations, and lessons around the kind of work you do. No matter what the content, opening yourself up to new and different ways of seeing and doing things will not only improve your practice, it will also improve your life. Be aware when your internal reaction to advice is defensive, and watch how you react to other people's work. Figure out what advice is helpful and what is not through experimenting with what you learn. There are millions of different ways to approach your clay practice, but the best way is the one you develop for yourself over time by exposing yourself to as many ideas, processes and techniques as you can.

Every week, I post several opportunities for shows, residencies, grants and other such resources for clay artists in the region and around the world. I go to a few places to get this information, so this week, I thought I would share the one place that sends me opportunities from around the globe. 

I share this information with you because it is one way I grow my creative practice: I look ahead to shows where the deadlines are two months or so in the future, find a theme I like, then create a piece to enter into that show. This practice keeps my creative juices flowing and gives me different ways to approach the work I am doing. Even if I don't get into the show I apply to, I gain so much from changing the way I normally approach my work that I find this practice invaluable. I do this once a quarter.  Just follow the link below and sign up for their newsletter, then watch the magic happen!

CaFE calls for entry

This last week has been smoky. While this alone put a damper on things, the plumbing issues also did their best to dampen our spirits, but in the end, the plumbing deities smiled kindly on Burnish and all issues cleared in time for the studio to be fully functional for the weekend! Thank you all for your patience.
Speaking of which, it is the last week of classes, (classes end on the 31st), and as such, all students must make sure their work has been placed on the greenware shelves at the very least, and moved through bisque and glaze firings ideally. While there was not as much work moving through the studio this summer, we did experience somewhat of a late-session bump in activity in the studio which created a bit of a log jam with the kilns. 
​The last bisque of the session will be loaded by Mon-Tues and will be unloaded Thurs.-Fri., so please move your work to the greenware shelf, ASAP. The staff will be cleaning out shelves and preparing for the fall session which starts September 11th. When clearing your ware boards, please do wash them off into the large buckets in the sink. As a reminder, do not pour any water down the sink, but rather, into the five gallon buckets in the sinks so that whatever is in them can filter through Burnish's handy dandy filtration system. 

If you have signed up for classes next session, you do not have to empty your cubbie. If you haven't signed up for classes, please clean your cubbie out by the end of the session, August 31st.

Critique club is this Tuesday evening, August 29th, at 6 pm. Our last club was a rousing success, and we are hoping to see more people there each time. Please bring any work about which you have questions, and your best and most supportive attitude so we can help each other improve and develop as artists.

As we all know, Dylan is the best dog in the wide world. He proves it with his wacky demeanor and his goofy smile. Not to mention his boundless energy for free snacks. Speaking of which, once Dylan gets something in his mouth, it's best to go ahead and let him have it. He loves eating paper, tissue, sometimes even plastic if it smells like food, so let's do everything we can to keep this stuff away from him. He only moves slowly when food isn't on the line, and once it is, he is like greased lightning! 

When first attempting to throw larger forms, it is best to throw a cylinder first, and save the shaping for the last few moves on your pot. Moving the clay in one direction at a time will keep the walls of the pot stronger and will allow you to focus on more even and consistent pulls. Remember, the goal is to get where you are going in little time with as few moves as possible, so have a good idea where you're going when you start to throw your pottery, and you will get there much more quickly.

2023 Foundwork Artist Prize: International Open Call
Deadline: September 26, 2023 at 5PM PT
Prize: Unrestricted $10,000 grant
The Foundwork Artist Prize is an annual juried award to recognize outstanding practice by emerging and mid-career artists working in any media. The 2023 honoree will receive an unrestricted $10,000 grant and studio visits with each of this year’s distinguished jurors. In addition, the honoree and three shortlisted artists will be invited for interviews as part of the Foundwork Dialogues program to further public engagement with their practices. 
The jury for the 2023 Foundwork Artist Prize includes esteemed curators, gallerists, and artists: Alex Gartenfeld, Artistic Director, Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), Miami; Davida Nemeroff, Founder, Night Gallery, Los Angeles; Shinique Smith, Multidisciplinary Artist, Los Angeles; Emiliano Valdés, Chief Curator, Medellín Museum of Modern Art, Medellín; and Nicola Vassell, Founder, Nicola Vassell Gallery, New York. 



Bryn Du’s Artist in Residence Program
Deadline: August 31, 2023
The focus of this residency is to enhance local awareness and engagement in the arts by introducing new and varied artists to the Granville community throughout the calendar year. The residency is open nationwide for artists of all disciplines to apply including but not limited to those in the fields of visual arts, literature, music, theater, fashion, dance, storytelling and audiovisual studies. Stipends include $2000 for an 8 week residency and $3000 for a 12 week residency. Fee: $15.



Corning Museum of Glass BIPOC Residency
Deadline: August 31, 2023
The BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) Residency allows artists to spend a month at The Corning Museum Studio exploring new directions in glassmaking or expanding on their current bodies of work while using the immense resources of the world’s leading glass museum.



Polar STEAM Open Call: Antarctic Artists & Writers Program
Deadline: August 31, 2023
This program facilitates deployments to the Antarctic for creative practitioners within the arts and humanities. Collaborations between polar researchers and artists & writers help increase the public’s understanding of and appreciation for human and scientific endeavors in Antarctica through the resulting works.



Breck Creek Artist-in-Residence Program
Deadline: September 1, 2023
Open to regional and national artists of all disciplines, Artists-in-Residence spend 2-4 months in a live/work studio in cozy downtown Breckenridge, Colorado. Artists receive a biweekly stipend of $600.



Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts Residency
Deadline: September 1, 2023
The Center awards up to seventy juried residencies per year to established and emerging visual artists, writers, composers, and interdisciplinary artists from across the country and the world. Residencies are available for 2 to 8 weeks. Each resident receives a $175 stipend per week, free housing, and a private studio. Fee: $35
Bloedel Reserve Creative Residency
Deadline: September 1, 2023
This residency provides artists in Visual Arts, Performance, Film & Composition, Poetry, Prose Fiction and Nonfiction, and Research & Design with a three-week stay in a well-appointed home on Bainbridge Island, WA, with unlimited access to the Reserve’s 140 acres of sculpted gardens, forests, meadows, and wildlife habitats.The fellowship is supported by a $2,000 stipend.



Ox-Bow Residence Evil
Deadline: September 13, 2023
Since 2019 Ox-Bow has produced Halloween events open to the public and for all ages. Artists, or “creeps-in-residence,” will participate in a residency in preparation for Ox-Bow Goes to Hell 2022, producing at least one of many creepy, beautiful, and bizarre scenes for the weekend of October 28th and 29th.



Dry Tortuga National Park Artist in Residence Program
Deadline: September 29, 2023
This one- month artist residency and $4,000 stipend is open to artists across all disciplines and takes place in a historic lighthouse keepers house on Loggerhead Key, an islet in the Florida Keys.



Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park May 2024 Artist in Residence Program
Deadline: September 30, 2023
Opening September 1, The National Parks Arts Foundation invites artists in all artistic media to join their 2024 artist-in-residency programs at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, which offers a $4,000 stipend, housing, and artist events.



Grants with rolling deadlines-
Pollock Krasner – Rotating, No deadline – Information here.
Awesome foundation – No deadline – Information here.
One Grant Library for Research Online- Foundation Center.
Foundation for Contemporary Arts Emergency Grants – Information here
CES Artslink U.S. and International Grant Opportunities – Information here

Believe it or not, there are still some spots available in the fall class schedule! If you wanted to sign up for classes and didn't get a chance, there were some last minute cancellations. You can go to the sign up page HERE.

The sink is unclogged. I know. Sexy. We are still waiting on a faucet delivery for our third sink, but when we do get it in, we will be full-on three sink action again, so, in order to preserve peace and order in the galaxy, please remember to pour your buckets of clay water into the buckets in the sink, and put your clay chunks into the larger buckets next to the sink. It will help everyone out. 

As you might be able to tell from these pictures, the bisque shelf is BRIMMING with work, and the glaze fire shelf is looking a bit...anemic. You know what to do- get into the studio and glaze, glaze, glaze. If not now, when, and if not here, where? I myself glazed all the work I had on the bisque shelves this morning. Of course, I only had two things to glaze...but...

Fall Session starts September 11th, so if you are in summer session, but not doing fall session, remember to clean out your cubbie of all its various bits of ceramical wonder, in addition to your sticker. That will help the studio staff get the place in shape in the very little bit of time they have. 

The Critique Club is on the 29th! 6:00 pm! It was amazing last month, with many people asking for more monthly clubs. We are sticking to one, but keeping space open for more in the future with a possible zoom critique schedule. We are also toying with a professional practices workshop. It's all happening.  Most likely, anyway, so make sure you are signed up for the Burnish Newsletter. That's where you will find out first.

If you have spent any time at all in Burnish Clay Studio, you know that the staff is committed to making the space as welcoming and inclusive as possible. We know that any type of space is a better one when everyone there feels comfortable enough to be themselves, and feels seen and appreciated for who they are. We also know that in a creative space, it is especially important for everyone to feel safe to express.

At the beginning of first week classes, the instructors ask everyone to put their names and their pronouns on their name tags, and when speaking to people, we do our best to not assume pronouns.
We are all learning, (I myself have had quite a learning curve), and know that it is everyone's responsibility to ensure that everyone in the studio is treated respectfully, which includes respecting their pronouns. To that end, as someone who has myself struggled from time to time with the use of pronouns, I thought it might be timely to review Burnish's standards for pronoun use. 

• It is our goal not to assume pronouns. When we don't know, we ask.
• We speak out for each other. When we hear people use the wrong pronouns, we speak up and correct the mistake in a kind and direct way.

We use non-gendered addresses:

• ​Folks
• Friends
• Everyone
• You All
• Y'all

We apologize when we mess up:

• "Oops, I'm sorry."
• Oh shoot, I'm still wrapping my head around all this but I'm going to get better. Please correct me if I mess up again."

We practice asking about people's pronouns:

• "Hi. I'm Sara and I use she/her pronouns, what about you?
• "What pronouns do you all use?"
• "Let's all go around and say our names and pronouns."

We understand that it will take some time for some people to catch on, and during that time, we will continue to remind them to improve.

As we strive to make Burnish Clay Studio and events as inclusive and welcoming as possible, we will expect our community to come along with us.
Here are some resources that might be helpful:
www.everoneisgay.com
www.them.us
www.autostraddle.com
www.minus18.org.au
www.scarleteen.com

And you can check out A Quick & Easy Guide to They/Them Pronouns by Archie Bongiovanni & Tristan Jimerson in the Burnish Library section on top of the library bookshelf.

Our weekly tip is for throwing. Though it is not standard practice, there are times when a person wants to trim the lip of their pot. I know. It's weird, but it does happen. The best way to do this is not with a trimming tool, but with a wooden rib or stick. This is assuming your piece is not bone dry. If it's bone dry, please don't. Just...don't. When trimming your lip, it is wise to use a wooden tool because the wooden tool will more delicately take off the clay you need to abandon, as well as compress the clay that is left on the pot, creating a situation where the trimmed pot is less likely to crack or fall apart after it has been trimmed.

One of the best ways to appear professional as an artist is to use complete words and sentences in all of your documentation. It might seem obvious, but if you are hoping to get into a show, a gallery, or a gift shop, reaching out with an email that is spell-checked, accurate, and well researched will up your chances of having a conversation with the decision maker at the organization you are hoping to get into. 
If you want to make this less grueling, have a template ready for your artist statement, bio, CV or resume, and your goals as an artist. That way, when you are ready to send out your information, it is less painful and easier to do. Update these things at least once a year, or every time your work changes, and you will be on the road to international fame, fortune, and stardom!!! 

Just kidding, most likely not. But being an artist will be a bit less painful if you have all of your professional information locked and loaded. 

Hello and welcome to the Burnish Studio Blog. It is the end of week six in the studio, so that means there is a big push to start glazing all the work you have been making this summer. There are only about ten days between sessions this time, so please get your work finished and out by the end of the first week of September so that we will be ready to roll when the fall session starts.

Thank you for your patience with the clogged sink. We will be fixing it as soon as possible so that it is working well again. When it does get working, remember to never put your clay in the sink, only in the buckets, so we can avoid this type of problem in the future.

If you are looking to improve at throwing, there is nothing like practice. It doesn't matter how long you have been working with clay, or who you have studied with or learned from, practice is the one thing that will always up your throwing game. One of the most efficient ways to practice is to practice with purpose. This means that when you sit down at the wheel, you have a solid idea of what you are hoping to make there. Similarly, sitting behind the wheel of a car, hoping to go somewhere but not really knowing where you are going or the route you will take to get there will not garner very good results. Usually. 
It is much the same with throwing. If you sit down at the potter's wheel, and you are just wanting to "see what happens", not only will improvement be a challenge, it will also be difficult to measure any improvement that does end up happening.
Practice with structure. If you are hoping to make something you have never made before, sit down at the wheel with at least five balls of clay so that you can approach the project in different ways. When you notice yourself improving, acknowledge it and do not belittle any improvement you make. Finally, try not to compare yourself negatively with other potters. We are all on our own throwing journeys. Spending energy comparing yourself to people who are sitting next to you distracts from actually improving. 
And remember- have fun. Clay is awesome. You could spend your whole life working with it and still have tons of clay avenues left un-ventured.

When it comes to glazing, there are a couple things you can do to ensure that the glaze goes on your pot well. One is to either dunk the bisqued piece in water or run water over it. When you allow your bisque ware to soak up water before you glaze it, the pot will take the glazes on in a more even and balanced way. Remember to let your bisque ware dry before glazing, though. 
Another thing is to glaze the insides of your pots first. This way, when you glaze the outside, you wont have to worry about any of the inside glaze dripping on your carefully dipped outer glazes.

Bonus: As always, experiment glazing on lesser pots before you get to the ones you really care about. Knowing how you want to glaze your prized pieces before you start glazing will save you time, energy, and stress. Glazing should not be stressful, but fun. Make sure you give yourself every opportunity to be successful with it.

Crysalis Emerging Artists Institute offers a three-tiered residency program. Up to 16 artists will be invited to participate in the 2023 hybrid residency program. This is a well-supported opportunity that offers both virtual and in-person components. For more information and to apply, visit the website. Deadline for applications is August 25.
Artists are invited to apply for residency at 500 Capp Street. This five-month program in San Francisco, CA runs from fall 2023 to spring 2024. The focus of the program this year is to create work illuminating experimentation around the boundaries of genre, medium and material. To learn more, visit the website. Application deadline is August 30.
The Bryn Du Artist in Residence program is accepting applications for its next cycle. This 8-12 week program is intended to offer an inspirational setting for artists while introducing them to the Granville, Ohio, community. Each opportunity comes with a stipend. To learn more and to apply, visit the website. Deadline is August 31.

Welcome, once again to the Burnish Studio blog, where we will let you know about what has happened, is happening, and what is coming up around the bend.

This last week we unloaded a gorgeous cone 10 soda firing. We also launched the registration for the fall session, so if you are planning on signing up, do so by Tuesday, August 8th, at noon. 
ALSO: the next Critique Club is August 29th.

Additionally, we have some pretty great workshops coming up, including a BIPOC cone 10 soda firing with visiting artist, Dwayne Sackey! 

Burnish Clay Studio is excited to offer what we hope will be the 1st of many Annual Soda Firing for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) participants. This Cone 10 firing will be led by Will Jenkins Abraham, and featuring Dwayne Sackey as the Visiting Artist from Portland OR.
Sackey earned his BFA from Oregon College of Art and Craft in 2019. Merit-based scholarships supported him: the Gregori Jakovina & Larry McDonald Scholarship, the Ellice T. Johnston Scholarship, and the OCAC Community College Scholarship. In 2019 Sackey showed at the Multnomah County Justice Center & in 2021 he showed at the governor’s mansion. Sackey was a recipient of the 2021 studio potter grant for apprenticeship alongside his mentor Chris Baskin. Sackey published 3 articles in pottery making illustrated, one in 2021 & two in 2023. Sackey taught a workshop at clay by the bay in 2022 and demonstrated at NCECA in 2022.
@dwaynespots

Check out the details on the Burnish Website. Pass this along to anyone who you think might be interested. Share to your networks.

Meet Sara Young! Burnish’s own social media/blog master/instructor of children and adults alike. She sculpts, she pots, she writes, and in her spare time, she finds new and interesting ways to stick it to the man. She was educated on the mean streets of the village of Oak Park, and from there, found her way to Portland, where she earned three educational degrees, garnered many accolades for subverting the dominant paradigm, and slowly but surely found her way to Bellingham. She is an old soul in a middle aged woman’s body with an appetite for destruction and a deep need for community and harmony. She keeps her feet on the ground while she reaches for the stars. She is prone to hyperbole in her own humble way. She loves dogs and Dylan Mc Drooleyface in particular. She is ecstatic to be a part of the Burnish community of all-stars, where she teaches kids pottery and hand building, and adult wheel and sculpture class. If you want to get the full scope of Sara’s work go to spikeofalltrades.com

Clay is all about timing, so it is important to know when to do what so that the piece you are working on can withstand the pushing, carving, and shaping it is having to endure. 

• When poking holes in your flower/garden pots, wait until the pot is just about leather dry. this will give you the ability to get a clean cut without smashing the clay wall.
• When attempting Scraffito, paint the slip/underglaze on when the pot is at least leather hard, (leather hard for slip, harder for underglaze), so that the boogers that result will be dry and easily be brushed away. Wait until the slip on pot also dries to leather hard.
• After you have attached handles, leave your mug/teapot/pitcher covered under plastic overnight to dry in order for the handle and the mug to even out in terms of dryness. This will eliminate much of the propensity of the handle to crack off of the mug.
• When carving through your clay, just around leather hard is best, and if it is a tall piece, it is best to work from the top to the bottom.
• When spouting a pitcher, it is best to wait for the clay to set up a bit after throwing before pushing/pulling out the pour spout. The clay is usually a bit too unstable right after the pot is thrown to endure the spout treatment.

I know what you're thinking- how in the world can it already be week four!?!?!? I know the feeling, yet, here we are, half way through the summer session, the shelves are full, the kilns are pumping, and tomorrow, we are loading our cone 10 soda kiln! Yes, it is ALL happening, so with that in mind, here are some things you might want to consider while going about your work in the studio. First, weeks seven and eight are for finishing work only, and not starting new work. B, there is only a one week break between sessions, so, if you are planning on signing up for a fall class, you can keep your cubbie and unfinished work in there, though I'm guessing that if you're reading this for updates, you are most likely not a person who will need to do that. Three, the sign up for Fall session is RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER, so pay attention to ye ol' inbox and IG account for announcements for students/members to sign up before the general public. Classes fill up super, duper, diabolically FAST, so...don't get caught snoozing on this. There is going to be some really cool stuff this fall. Don't miss it.

Critique club is not just about the critique. I mean, it is, but it's really more about learning how to look at art from an unemotional place and figuring out what works, what doesn't, and how it could be stronger as a piece of art. Even if you don't have a piece to bring, you can learn an extraordinary amount about making things well. Listening to people talk about their processes and having dialogues around goals, strategies and problem solving is an invaluable and unique way to learn about the creative and not-so-creative approach to making things with clay. So just come. It's awesome. Also...Dylan often brings home baked goods to these things, and I have to tell you, he is not only good at making pots and hiding in bisqued vases. He is also very good at yummy treats. See you Tuesday night at Burnish at 6 pm!!  There is nothing like this in Bellingham, and it is a small slice of the value you get by being a part of the Burnish community. Take advantage.

If you have been around the studio for any time at all, you know Hilde Schaaf, clay artist, instructor, and living legend. Hilde started in clay at a very young age in Germany. She grew up in an area of Germany where there is a long-standing pottery tradition, in a family of potters. It is easy to see her ease and expert touch in her work and in the way she assists her many students.

Hilde also makes her own bamboo brushes, which led to an exploration of mark making and brush strokes on her work. She has worked with some of the greats, was a studio potter for roughly 30 years, and now, she is at Burnish Clay Studio. Hilde helps. She feeds people, supports friends and colleagues constantly, and is incredibly generous with all her amazing clay knowledge. If you get a chance to take a class with her, count yourself lucky. She is truly a gem of a human and a spectacular maker.

This tip comes straight out of a throwing class this week and it's about trimming. Trimming seems like it is mostly dependent on the tool you use, but the real secret to trimming is that you have to let the wheel do the work. When your clay is leather hard, and your wheel is moving slowly, this is when most people push down on the tool, dig in to the clay, and make mistakes. The best way to trim is to speed the wheel up and allow the tool to skim the surface of the clay without too much pressure, thusly allowing the clay ribbons to come off the pot evenly while minimizing the occurrence of chattering. 

If the attempt of trimming does result in chattering, simply take a small trimming tool, find a corner and trim off an unpredictable and different thin pattern around the pot to throw off the rhythm of the chatter. Once you have that thin and non-rhythmic pattern carved into the pot, you can use your large tool and the wheel's speed to trim off all the chattering and the uneven pattern you created to obscure it.

​Bellingham National Juried Art Exhibition and Awards
Acts of Healing and Repair

The Whatcom Museum is seeking submissions by artists of all backgrounds who respond to the theme of healing in their work for this year’s Bellingham National Exhibition titled Acts of Healing and Repair.
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This fourth biennial Juried Art Exhibition and Awards will take place at the Whatcom Museum’s Lightcatcher building, and will open to the public Sunday, November 12. The guest juror of this year’s “Bellingham National” is Grace Kook-Anderson, the Arlene and Harold Schnitzer Curator of Northwest Art at the Portland Art Museum.
Artists may submit up to three artworks for consideration for this exhibition. Application fee of $35 is a one-time fee.
Important dates to note:
August 11: Deadline for Entries. Apply online.
September 25: Juror’s selection for the Bellingham National 2023 will be announced via email and the CaFÉ website
October 23 – 28: Artwork received at Whatcom Museum via shipment or personal delivery
November 11: Exhibition preview reception
November 12: Exhibition open to the public
February 25, 2024: Exhibition closes and artwork is returned

In an ongoing effort to familiarize folks with Burnish Clay Studio and all the wonderful things that happen here, we are including a segment once every few weeks where we will introduce one of the staff at Burnish. This week, it's the one and only...Finley Rick! I asked Finley to jot down some details for an IG post and they gave me this:
“I started ceramics back in high school. I needed an art credit and figured I should give ceramics a shot. I'm so glad I did. I fell in love with messing with mud and I never looked back - I’ve been creating pottery for 8 years and teaching off and on for 4 years. I started working at Burnish in 2021 as a studio technician and instructor, and I can honestly say it has been more than I ever could have asked for. I can't tell if I have more fun doing tech or teaching! One of the many reasons why I love working and creating at Burnish is the opportunity to be a part of such an uplifting, inspiring, and accepting community. I’d had challenges finding a safe space as a non-binary person in the art community until I met the folks at Burnish. Lately I have been experimenting more with soda firing and contrasting the simple lines and refined shapes of my pots with the unpredictability of soda!”

July's critique club was pushed to August 1st so more people could participate. Please do come, bring any work you would like discussed, (we are incredibly encouraging and wonderfully helpful), and bring snacks or drinks if you are so moved. The club starts at 6ish and all levels are welcome and encouraged to attend.

The next Cone 10 community soda firing lead by Zoe Petersen will be loaded Mon 7/31.

• All pots must be delivered and glazed by Sun 7/30
• Pots that will be bisqued at Burnish must be delivered & DRY by Tues 7/25
• Kiln will be loaded Mon 7/31, Fired Tues 8/1, unloaded (most likely) Fri 8/4.  

The next Cone 6 community soda firing lead by Ann Marie Cooper will be loaded Mon 8/21.

• All pots must be delivered and glazed by Sun 8/20
• Pots that will be bisqued at Burnish must be delivered & DRY by Tues 8/15
• Kiln will be loaded Mon 8/21, Fired Tues 8/22, unloaded (most likely) Fri 8/25.

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If you have been making with clay for any amount of time, you most likely have ceramic artists you have followed, studied, or like me, completely lost your mind over. One of my earliest influences was Beatrice Wood. She was part of the Dada movement and became a ceramicist quite late in life, after having taken a ceramics class in order to replace a lusterware teapot she had broken. Like so many of us, after she got her hands in clay, she was hooked. If you are interested, read her autobiography, I Shock Myself.

Another of my early influences was Betty Woodman. Mostly due to her surface design and her tendency to deconstruct traditional ceramic vessels. 

I am still always searching for influences, in all genres of art, but my love for clay always brings me back to ceramic artists, their work, their stories, and their philosophical approaches to clay. 

This is specific to commission work, and it is my experience that at one time or another, we all get commissioned to do some type of piece for friends, family, and sometimes, strangers. Here are some guidelines I cling to for dear life when creating commission work:

1. If you need one fully realized piece, make three to move through mistakes, bad ideas and horrible accidents.
2. Charge two or three times retail for commissions. That way, if they still want to pay you for it, it's worth your time, and if they decide against it due to cost, you have just saved yourself a lot of angst and heart ache.
3. Do not let the client determine the design. They are asking you because they like your work, so make sure it is your work.
4. Always have a contract which requires a non-refundable deposit. Half down is standard.
5. Think good and hard when friends ask you for a commission. Sometimes these people are hoping for a discount because you are a friend or family member, when in actuality, they should want to pay you more. In this case, or any case where someone is trying to talk you down on price, it is best to walk away. A person who wants something special made for them who doesn't want to pay what it is worth is most likely not someone who will appreciate the work when they get it. It's the biggest red flag of all and one that should always be heeded. 

Residencies
The right residency can more than an opportunity to enrich your personal practice. Some residencies have the power to launch your career as an artist. Here are a few:
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture
Whitney Museum of Art Independent Study Program
The MacDowell Colony
National Parks Arts Foundation
The Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts