Kathryn Finnerty Demo

Kathryn Finnerty gave a great demo to the MN NICE group this past Monday, showing her process from construction to surface. She talked about a new series of vessels based on landscapes that she has been working on while here as the winter McKnight Resident Artist. Lots of good practical tips and thoughtful discussion about creating pots with content.

Studio Update from Adam Gruetzmacher

I spent the late summer and early fall getting caught up on studio work and continuing to work on setting up the basement studio. Updates include two tables, another set of shelving, and finally moving my wheel (and all the other things that I have managed to accumulate over the years) into the space. As of November 29th, I officially moved out of my previously occupied studio and began working in my fully-functioning (albeit disorganized) home studio full-time.  My time was also occupied with some glaze research. I did a series of tests on seven clear glazes and six bisque slips. The clay body that I landed on is a 50/50 mix of Red Art earthenware and coarse fireclay, with a little ball clay and grog to round it out.

Two views in the studio showing the completed shelving, two work tables, and my wheel. The rest of the space is occupied by the kiln and a large area used for storing totes of finished work, shipping materials, and tools.

My results from the first round of glaze tests.  I had a lot of successful tiles come out of this firing, but I've narrowed the field to a couple of glazes and a slip for further testing with oxides. The bottom of a large vase is shown to display the red stoneware that I am using.