Wall Pieces & The Devil Who Cried Wolf

 

I'm trying to start to limit my screen time. I feel like I'm hopelessly addicted to Instagram, and Threads. This is not good for me. I recently read that phones are "experience blockers". Since my addiction has slowly crept up on me, I can finally see this to be true. Because using a phone is the easiest activity, it becomes the default activity for me. Watching students demonstrate their addictions daily, in my classroom, has been an eye-opener. So, I took the weekend off from Instagram. I am going to use the timer setting during the week. Next weekend, I hope to take the weekend off from Instagram, and Threads. This makes me look forward to spending more time in my yard, and more time baking. Yes, I bought the ingredients to make soda bread. I also want to get back to reading novels!

Unfortunately, Threads was rife with news about the third "Assassination Attempt" and the press dinner. At what point will anyone care when the assassination becomes real? One person referred to this demonstration as the third burning of the Reichstag. How on earth can so many people be complicit in this dishonesty, and deceit? Every single person related to the three branches of our government, who is going along with these machinations, needs to be shunned. They need to be ousted from public office, and shamed. When the government is reformed, all insider trading, and dark money contributions need to be outlawed. 

In the meantime, here's hoping that the Constitution can survive the amateur theatrics of these literal bad actors.

Ancestors

During the past year, I've been looking through family histories on the "Family Search" website. I love looking through the memories section, regarding specific ancestors on my family tree. So, I bought a whole bunch of 8 x 8" panels, and started painting people that have interesting life histories. My mom's side of the family came to the United States from England and Wales. My dad's family is Swedish, and Danish. There is one stray Norwegian in the clan. This has been good painting practice, using my naive, decorative style. It would be fun to make this into a children's book.

 

Science Garden Bead Poles

 The garden across from my classroom has been renovated during the past year. Students and teachers have built and installed tables and benches. There are finished planter boxes. A weather monitor has been added, and two solar fountains. The Art 1 classes are adding some bead pole sculptures to nestle in near the plantings. We are starting to add colored glazes. It's a work in progress.

Bird Bath Prototypes

Our school garden is right across the hall from my classroom. Since it's springtime, it is full of small birds, and pollinators. We're going to learn a bit about John James Audubon, and then we'll make some bird bath prototypes. We'll fire and glaze them. Next year, we can create some larger versions of the best designs. Bird baths are tricky. The bath has to be able to be separated from the base, to prevent cracking. My prototype has a bath in the shape of a nest, and the base resembles a stump. The bath has a slab on the bottom, which fits into a notch at the top of the stump. That way, it can dry, and be fired without the stress that it being one solid piece would inevitably cause. The clay store was out of my usual school clay, so we're going to be using a low-fire clay called "Venus White".

We might also make some bell shaped wind chimes for the garden. I made some bells at my old school, during a parent meeting. It was not a great experience. So, I'd like to try again, and have it be fun. My boss came to the meeting, but then made up a lie about having to go to a "meeting" at 7 pm at night. She didn't like getting clay on her hands and nails. It was really embarrassing for me, as she left the activity, in front of all of the parents and students. Watching someone modeling disrespect was really weird, and uncomfortable. 

Many of the parents didn't glaze their pieces, so it was kind of a big waste of my money and materials. I really liked my example bells, though. The principal kept telling me that she wanted me to do the lesson again, only with members of the school staff. That never happened, mercifully.

Sometimes when I have a bad experience with something, I like to reframe it, so that the bad experience disappears, and is replaced with goodness. Turning awkwardness into positivity is the way to go, I think. It will be exciting to work on something that will benefit the garden, and make it a lovelier place to be. During the past few weeks, students and teachers have been building planter boxes, and have been planting up the area. It is starting to look wonderful...

 

I Completed an AP Inquiry. Part Three.

 

My Imaginary AP Inquiry is about aging, and the feelings that accompany many of the changes in life as we age. 

TOP LEFT: More thoughts about living alone. Can I do everything myself? Sometimes having a partner seems ideal. But, also I've been living alone so long now, that a partner might seem superfluous. The jury is still out on all of these thoughts of romance.

TOP RIGHT: My sister asked me to make a wreath for Barbara, and a wreath for Larry. She is hoping to put it on their grave. They were buried out of state, with my mom's family. This makes it difficult for me to visit the grave, and to leave flowers. So, this way, I can pay my respects from far away. I tried making these four times, until I finally got two wreaths that worked.

BOTTOM LEFT; This wreath is in cheery Spring colors. Times and seasons pass quickly, and this seasonal change is amplified by my profession. I look forward to Spring and Summer, as times to make artwork in my clay shed. Or, I can paint in my indoor studio. 

BOTTOM RIGHT: This is a medicine cabinet that I refinished. I found it at an antique store, and painted it up to hold some giant donuts, teeth, and some large pills. Donuts are medicinal. But, now that I have diabetes, they are on the forbidden foods list. When my dad was living alone through covid, I would buy his groceries, wipe everything down, and then cook him a meal. I loved to buy him donuts, because I think that they were a guilty pleasure. 

I Completed an AP Inquiry. Part Two.

 

This is a continuation of my pretend AP Inquiry. I made 15 pieces of art, relating to the theme of aging.

TOP LEFT: This piece is a small drink set for a dear friend. I am hoping that for her birthday, we will be able to sit outside in her backyard, and share a toast of non-alcoholic cider. I have known Susie and her husband since we met while working at Macy's Department Store, back in 1988. We backpacked to Europe together, and we have traveled to and fro, having great meals, and many adventures.

TOP RIGHT: This is a ceramic wreath. I have made many of these recently. Wreaths and flowers are used to celebrate births, weddings, and deaths. All of these milestones are a part of aging.

BOTTOM LEFT: This is a photo of Alberta Blackett Jones, my grandma. I installed this in my classroom. My grandmother wanted to be a teacher. She was all packed, and ready to head off to college. Unfortunately, her mother developed breast cancer. My grandma had to unpack all her belongings, in order to stay and help to care for her mother. When my grandma talked about this happening, she would cry. You could hear the disappointment in her voice. Alberta wanted an education, but other things got in the way, and she had to make hard choices. I like to look at this wall box from across the room, when I'm teaching. I know that she is proud of me, and of the work that I do.

BOTTOM RIGHT: This is a sign on my clay shed. I think that loving what I do is important. Having a daily, or weekly art practice is a labor of love. During the past few years, I have been very intentional about what I make, and about how much work I make. This seems like a good sign for the front door of the studio. As I age, I've begun to tailor my work to what feels right for my mind and my body.

I Completed an AP Inquiry. Part One.

 

I have been working on my own personal AP Inquiry, despite the fact that I am not going to get any AP credit. My inquiry relates to aging. My feelings about getting older are complicated. I've lost my parents, and I am living by myself, getting older by the minute.

TOP LEFT: These pieces are signs for the childhood farms of my parents. My father grew up on a sheep ranch, and my mother's family dry farmed hay and alfalfa. Both families worked very hard, and spent a great deal of time improving their homes, and their land. Both farms no longer exist. My mom's family sold the land, and it was paved over to build an office complex with a parking lot. I think of all of the time that my grandparents spent, tending to gardens. They picked and bottled fruit. There is nothing left. They took the land from the Ute tribe. Our property rights are questionable. We purchase homes and property, but it's not really ours in the long run.

TOP RIGHT: This is an homage to a true love. During college, he sent me a book from Paris. The inscription was signed with much love. The book was "Les Braves Gens Ne Courent Pas Les Rues, et Autres Nouvelles". The phrase "much love" always reminds me of longing, and of long distance love. It reminds me of a marriage that I refused.

BOTTOM LEFT: Getting old means that you have to take a large assortment of medications. Also, your dental care isn't covered by insurance. I made a medicine cabinet to house ceramic pills, and lost teeth. I am now diabetic, which means I have to inject my body with insulin on a regular basis. I also take sleeping pills during the school year.

BOTTOM RIGHT: I never married. It is a cause for wonder. Would my life have been different if I would have married my college boyfriend? Undoubtedly, it would have been completely different.

Walking Pneumonia

I've been in quite a state for the last five weeks or so. I ended up in the emergency room, unable to breathe well. I have seen two different doctors, and have gotten meds from both. Apparently, my illness started as Influenza B. It has morphed into something pneumonia-ish.

This is some work that I've completed during that time. Everything has been created with Smooth Red clay, instead of my usual Red Velvet. I like that Smooth Red is a bit less prone to cracking. So, we'll see how it does in the flames.

 

Boycott Artist Block

 

Art is the work of a lifetime. It requires a unique mixture of discipline, and play. Personally, I believe that you cannot call yourself an "artist" if you aren't making art on a regular basis.

1) 

Everyone is blessed with creativity. Picasso once said, "All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up."         

2) 

Creativity is like electric current. It flows through us constantly. Maya Angelou once said, "You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have."        

3) 

Because it is like electric current, you don't want to disconnect, and break the flow of the current. Show up regularly to make something, as often as you can. Make anything. Buy a container of Play-doh. Your making can be "low stakes".  

4) 

Play! Explore new ideas with your work. Don't produce the same thing over and over. Let one project lead you towards the next.        

5) 

Constantly view the work of other creatives: books, films, photography, music, sculpture, painting, baking, design, etc.  Find and follow people who inspire you.

6) 

Perfectionism kills. You will make garbage quite often. Or, you'll have repeated failures. Failure spurs innovation and excellence. You're like an inventor, so you have to keep trying. Eventually, the successes will start to outnumber the failures.      

7) 

When you feel discouraged, it's time to "parallel play". As a ceramic artist, I often switch media if I'm feeling blocked. I make a basket. Or, I make a painting. Or, I do a quick abstract watercolor. Or, I'll slow stitch with embroidery floss. Sometimes, I'll make something small out of clay, with none of the investment that a large sculpture brings.    

8) 

Keep an art schedule. I try to get in the clay shed at least three times a week, more often during the summer. Being in the flow state of creating gives you a hit of dopamine. Often, the project you create, won't be as important as the feeling that making it gives to you. If you stop creating, you will cease to feel the wonder, and the dopamine. And, the more you stay out of the studio, the harder it will be to get back in there.

9) 

Keep going. No matter your circumstance. Pierre Auguste Renoir had terrible arthritis as he aged. He would wrap his hands to be able to hold his brush. Henri Matisse painted on paper, and cut it out to make some of his most marvelous work, because he was unable to stand at an easel. Frida Kahlo actually constructed a painting station attached to her bed.

Don't Give up the Ship

 

The leaders of our country were meant to govern, not to rule. In fact, the Declaration of Independence was written in order to explain to England that we did not want to be ruled. The purpose of a government, and of elected officials is to serve constituents. That being said, we are currently being ruled by men who have obtaining wealth as their ultimate goal.

Numerous executive orders have been signed. The purpose of this is to circumvent Congress. I seem to remember Mr. Squelatti teaching us in high school civics class, that each branch of the government has a specific role. The Executive Branch enforces the laws, it doesn't create legislation. If this were true, the Chief Executive would take on the role of "dictator". Currently, we have had two weeks of the president dictating to Congress what the laws will be. Congress is also in charge of finance, not the president. Government employees are being culled at an alarming rate. These are often skilled experts. We have recently seen the first group of people die as a result of Project 2025. If the current predictions about Bird Flu prove to be true, we are all in terrible danger.

Many of this president's edicts are contrary to the actual Constitution. It appears that the voters have handed this man sole custody of our country. He is a convicted felon, who committed treason, and he's a rapist. He is also a pathological liar, known for being subject to Russia's corrupt leader, according to "The Mueller Report", and according to Timothy Snyder in "The Road to Unfreedom". For heaven's sake, he was impeached how many times?!

So, I guess that our country looked at this man, and decided that it would be a good idea to give him another chance to end our democracy. 

One of the most sickening aspects of this president, and his billionaire cabinet, is their blatant racism and misogyny. To be honest, electing and putting a small group of wealthy white men in charge of a country full of women, immigrants, and people of color, seems downright risky. They should worry. Personally, I vow to support my students, friends, and neighbors. Our country cannot move back in time to "The Gilded Age". It is very telling that our leaders want to hark back to this specific period in history. Most citizens suffered greatly, and a small number of the ridiculously wealthy flourished. America is not going back. We cannot. Our country is full of hardworking people, and we will not support this movement.  

RESIST.

No Blocks. No Sales.

I ran into some fellow ceramic artists at the clay store a few days ago. I was buying some glaze for a high school project, and I was fretting about my preferred clay being out of stock. Then, I flipped the script, and told myself how grateful I was, that I had bought six bags at Thanksgiving. Anyway, these artists seemed surprised to see me, because they thought that I had given up working with clay. They both do lovely work, and have visited me during Open Studios. But, they do Open Studios, too. So, we don't connect in real life. 

I haven't given up on ceramics. What I have given up on is worrying about my work. I really needed the money that Open Studios provided for me each year. It was an enormous amount of time and effort. To be honest, it was also super stressful for me, as an oversensitive introvert. So, with the money that my parents left to me, I decided that I could afford to just hop on out of it. I also gave up any thoughts of returning to Etsy. Talk about time, and effort!

My sister talked me into taking a step back. She is a creative genius, and rarely shows or sells her work. And, she seems happy enough. So, for the past two years, I've just been making my own private ceramic sculptures. Nothing functional. Just fun for me. 

The sad part is the pile up of work. But, then, I usually just find some way to give it away. I might have a sale sometime when it becomes completely unmanageable. Or, maybe I'll just post some work, and if people want it, fine. But, the best part of not selling work, is exactly what Mr. Rick Rubin is describing here: 

Video About Art as a Diary

It's pure expression. I'm not making plates, unless I feel like making plates. And, when stuff goes wrong in the kiln, or with glazing, I don't throw a fit, or feel stressed. I learn from my mistakes, but I don't internalize any blame. I was making a bust with a head the other day, and the kiln shed was damp, and the clay was wet. I mistakenly loosely covered the piece with plastic. The head split into two pieces. So, I recycled the back of the head, and kept the front. I just tore it up, and then set it out to dry. It is drying way too fast, which is making it kind of pull apart from itself. And, this is the best part about not selling your work: it is what it is. I like the blown up head. It's sort of like a mask. I like what the shed has done to it.

Being more loose about worrying, and not caring what people think or want, frees me up to experiment.

 

We Own Nothing, Really.

 

It has been horrifying, watching the firestorms in Los Angeles. I don't even know how to process the destruction. A few months ago, I was scrolling through photos of flood damage to many ceramic studios in North Carolina, after Hurricane Helene. One artist lost his entire town to a nearby river. In both instances, it was amazing to watch people rally together, to provide aid and support.

I live in a place that is prone to earthquakes, tsunamis, and wildfires. Our planet is slowly demonstrating who is boss, after years of mistreatment.

I started thinking about why I live here, and what is important. I started to think about my ancestors, and about why they came to America. On my mom's side, one ancestor worked in a cotton mill in England, with everyone in her family. All of the children worked at the same mill. Their goal was to save enough money to pay for their ship fares. On my dad's side, life was even more dire. One ancestor worked as an indentured servant, sending all of her earnings, except for enough to buy a pair of wooden shoes, to her widowed mother. Her sister also worked as an indentured servant in the fields, and was accidentally killed when a farm worker was waving his scythe around to tease her, and cut an artery in her leg. All of the field workers watched her bleed out and die, as there was no help near.

All of these ancestors came here for one thing: some land, and a home. Where they lived, this was not an option for peasants, and factory workers. All of the land was owned by the gentry. So, they saved up, and came here. I was thinking about the farms of both sets of my grandparents. Both families owned land. My dad's family raised sheep and turkeys. My mom's family grew hay, and alfalfa for livestock. They also had some cows, sheep, and a pig. Being able to own land, and to have a way of supporting themselves from the land was so important to them. Everyone worked so hard to keep their farms "going". They took great care. 

Neither farm still exists. My mom's parents passed away, and their home and farmland were literally paved over to make a parking lot. My dad's parents passed away, and they sold their house. But, it doesn't belong to their family. When my parents passed away recently, we sold their house.

So, I decided to memorialize the transiency of land "ownership" by making some farm wall plaques for both sides of my family. 

I was lucky enough to be able to purchase a home on a plot of land. I have worked really hard to fix up my house. In fact, I was obsessed with it during the first few years of being a homeowner. But, as we've learned from history, and from global warming, none of this really belongs to anyone. Originally, all of the land was owned by the First Peoples. My grandpa always had a metate and a mano on his porch, which he had found while plowing his fields. I know that my land was owned by the Calendaruc Tribe, which lived near the Amah Mutsun. I am positive that someone once lived on my little plot, because it is located high above the flood plain, and the sloughs which flow out to the ocean. No matter how hard we work the land, or how much time we spend on it, it's not ours. And, we will be gone, and then someone else will take over.

So, my farm signs are a reminder of what once was, and of the transitory nature of ownership.

Tidy Up.

I collect a lot of antiques. Always have. And, continually making paintings and ceramic sculptures creates quite a pile up around the old homestead. So, I have been trying to throw out some of the clutter. I filled one and a half garbage cans with junk. And, I neatened up, and organized my work areas, so that I can paint and glaze with more room. Brushes are all together, and so are my glazes. I had to drag a six foot tall ceramic sculpture out to the patio. It had been located in the study for about 15 years, so it was time for it to move on. There is still more work to do, but my house is starting to look a tiny bit more organized.

  

 

Art Splosian

 

Why do we make art? We make art because it fills our soul. Art is a challenge. We make art, but not everything we make is excellent. However, the odds of something excellent turning up, are increased by continuous making. We need to get in that 10,000 hours. One of my students in AP Drawing said that art can't be rushed, it can only happen when we feel inspired. I countered that notion with the famous Pablo Picasso quote, "Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working." I love the experimentation that churns out during vacations...