Mark your calendar
Drink (c)up! exhibit starts April 25
Yourist Studio Gallery welcomes spring with Drink (c)up!, an exhibit and sale of handmade ceramic cups by Yourist Studio Gallery resident artists.
Drink (c)up! Celebrating the Art and Ritual
in Our Daily Life
May 1, 5:00 to 8:00 pm  Artists' ReceptionShow runs from
Saturday, April 25-
Sunday, May 24
Come see our exhibit of splendid cups that will bring art to the rituals of your daily life.
Recipe for serenity - Find a treasured handmade cup.
- Fill with coffee, tea, warm milk, cocoa, broth . . .
- Feel its warmth.
- Drink deeply.
- Exhale.
Ahhhhh, contentment.
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Field trip: 3 Days of Clay 2015
Jennifer Allen wows the crowd
Jennifer generously demonstrated in detail how she creates her signature pieces, from altering wheel-thrown and hand-built pieces using darts, pleating, tufting, and other techniques adapted from sewing, to decorating the pieces with carving, slip trailing, engobes, and glazes. Her presentation was also filled with useful tips and advice along the way.
Of course, 3 Days of Clay included all of the other activities that make it such a satisfying event: a book and tool sales room that was bigger and better than ever this year, a tool demo room, vendor tables, a make and take session with Jennifer, the opportunity to buy the Jennifer's work, drawings for potters' supplies, a wet-work auction, and the chance to socialize and share with other potters.
The Jackson Pottery & Clay Guild's 3 Days of Clay is a major local event that makes instruction from renowned potters like Jennifer, Michael Sherrill, Sandi Pierantozzi, and Neil Patterson readily available to area clay artists and students.
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Potter's quick tip
Trimming pots without fear
Q. I need a review of good trimming practices. I want to be able to trim my pots with assurance and to refine my trimming technique. Can you recommend a trimming A-to-Z for me?
A. Successful trimming takes practice and attention to detail. Lakeside Pottery in Stamford, Connecticut, has produced a step-by-step video guide to trimming, from measuring and marking your pot for trimming to showing a cross section of a well-trimmed pot.
To accompany the video, Lakeside Pottery provides a trimming tutorial, with more pointers, on its web site.
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Brief notices
Clay community digestDates to know about
Save the dates for these upcoming events.
Sunday, April 12:
Beads, Buttons, and Pendants makes its return to the Yourist Studio Gallery class lineup from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. Enroll now. This class won't be back until the fall. Sunday, April 12:We're offering a weekend Beginning/Continuing Wheel Throwing class on Sundays from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, with instructor Shannon Nelson. Sign up here.
Sunday, April 19:
The zen of making teapots. Making the various parts of a teapot and assembling them into a harmonious whole requires some zen-like concentration and coordination. On Sunday, April 19, at 4:30 pm, Kay will demonstrate the mindful art of making teapots. This demo is free and open to the public, with no advanced signup. Just come to the studio at demo time.
Friday, May 1:
Drink (c)up! Artists' Reception. Join us from 5:00 to 8:00 pm for a celebration of cups and the art they bring to the rituals of our daily lives. This exhibit runs from Saturday, April 25, through Sunday, May 24. Sunday, May 10:
 Deadline for entering the Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center's 2015 Michigan Fine Arts Competition. Artists 18 and older living and working in Michigan and the other Great Lakes states are invited to participate. The competition awards $5,000 in cash prizes. Submit your entry here. Get details and a prospectus here.
Monday, June 15:
Nancy Bulkley solo exhibit at Gifts of Art opens. Nancy's exhibit will run through August 10 and feature snowflakes in June. Stay tuned for more details .
Resources for potters
Copyright and fair use is a frequent topic of conversation among artists, including those at the studio. If you're seeking clarification about this complicated and confusing subject, see the Share what you know
Do you know of resources or upcoming events of interest to the clay community? We invite you to pass the information along to us so we can feature it here.
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Even better than new?
Kintsugi: the art of golden joinery
The Japanese don't try to hide the damage to a broken ceramic object; they embrace it. The art of kintsugi (金継ぎ) involves repairing ceramic objects by gluing them back together with urushi lacquer mixed with powdered gold.
Like many other arts in Japan, Kintsugi is often practiced by families of artisans who have passed the skills down through generations. Broken objects that have been repaired with kintsugi are more highly prized and cherished than the original, unbroken objects, such as this cup shown in the video:
Do-it-yourself kintsugi kits are now out on the market. A word of warning, however: the lacquer used in kintsugi is made with urushiol, the same sap that puts the poison in poison ivy. Once the lacquer has dried, the repaired object is safe to handle, but it takes years for kintsugi artisans to build up an immunity to the wet lacquer. New kits have recently become available with a low allergenic urushi lacquer, although the price of the gold may still be a barrier for DIY. Here is a low-cost, urushiol-free faux kintsugi technique you can try.
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We've launched a
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Next cone 10 firing - tentative schedule
The schedule for the next cone 10 firing is  Load: Tuesday, April 21
Fire: Wednesday, April 22
Unload: Friday, April 24
These dates are tentative and could be moved up if enough work is ready for firing sooner.
Never helped out with firing the gas kiln before? To volunteer, give Kay a call at
734-662-4914.
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Tool time demo
The zen of making teapots: See Kay demonstrate the mindful art of making teapots on Sunday, April 19, at 4:30 pm at the studio. This demo is free and open to the public, with no need to sign up in advance. Just join us here in the studio at demo time.
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Upcoming classes
Enrollment for spring classes is now open on our web site.
Beginning/Cont. Wheel Throwing
Apr 12-May 17 Sundays, 1:00 to 3:00 pm. Instructor: Shannon Nelson
Apr 20-Jun 1Mondays, 7:00 to 9:00 pm. Instructor: Kevan O. Wilson Apr 23-May 28Thursdays, 12:30 to 2:30 pm. Instructor: Nancy Bulkley Apr 23-May 28Thursdays, 6:30 to 8:30 pm. Instructor: Kay Yourist Intermediate
Wheel Throwing
Apr 7-Jun 9 Tuesdays, 6:30 to 8:30 pm. Instructor: Sarah Gelsanliter
Apr 25-May 30Saturdays, 9:30 to 11:30 am. Instructor: Nancy Bulkley
Beads, Buttons, and Pendants
Apr 12-May 17
Sundays, 11:00 am to
1:00 pm. Instructor: Jeanine Center
Adv. / Interm. Indep. Study May 13-Jul 22 Wednesdays, 6:30 to 9:00 pm. Instructor: Kay Yourist
Kids' Clay Mornings Jun 15-19
Monday-Friday, 9:30 to 11:00 am. Instructor: Nancy Bulkley
Try it Once on the Wheel
Apr 11
Saturday, 1:00 to 2:30 pm. Instructor: Kay Yourist
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Our March issue
We packed the March issue with lots of useful news and information, including: Announcement of our new online gallery shop. Video: Nancy Bulkley throws with her feet. Video: John Britt advises on fixing settled glazes. Video: How to turn a pot into an animal sculpture. Bonus video: Giving pottery a crackled surface. If you missed out, catch up here. |
Yourist Studio Gallery
Inspiring classes and workshops for new and experienced students
Bright, modern, fully equipped community studio workspace
Comprehensive selection of pottery tools for sale
Gallery exhibiting the works of celebrated artists ceramic art
1133 Broadway Ann Arbor, MI 734.662.4914 |
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