This Weekend!!

At the old museum Bowen Hills.

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Putting out the rubbish Tokyo style.

Ready? Ok. Refer to the A2 leaflet above. Rubbish is collected Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. There are two collections Wednesday and every 2nd and 4th Friday for different types of rubbish. There are six categories including oversized waste which you have to apply for in advance and pay to have collected. The other categories are; combustibles; bottles, cans and PET bottles (which go out on the same day but in separate bins, labels and lids must be removed from the PET bottles and lids from glass bottles); plastic containers and packaging (which includes all those lids and labels you removed from the PET bottles providing they're not metal in which case they go with the last category or dirty or unable to be cleaned then they're combustibles); papers; and finally ceramic, glass or metal waste which go out every 2nd and 4th Friday of the month but does not including glass bottles and cans from food or drink which are recycled.
Got it?
If you are having trouble deciding in which category your piece of rubbish belongs please refer to page three of your A2 leaflet which has a list of 'frequently asked items' see below.




It does make you think about rubbish a whole lot more.

Location:５丁目,Nakano,Japan

Now on instagram....with everyone else.

....and loving it, username sharonmuir

Location:５丁目,Nakano,Japan

Lots of work to do yet....

But looking forward to it! Just couldn't wait to share this lovely summery 80's poster.

Hello ladies.

How would you like to be turned upside down and have your head stuffed into some clay? It's a new beauty treatment...promise.

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First firing nailed.

I decided on some decoration after all and the piece has been bisque fired.

It is a bit of a sloppy fit so I plan to fill the gap between the found object and the home I made for it with some slip and re-bisque fire it.

I could glaze it in there but glaze would create a very weak bond and it may have to travel.

That went not so well....

I patched the cracks but Bad dog did not come through his bisque firing unscathed.

He and his floral adornment sort of fell out- when I was expecting more cracks.

Usually (with my usual clay) I would expect the objects to stick in there.

The question is what to do now?

I could try to 'glue' them in there with some slip and re-bisque or remake the piece with my usual clay. At the moment I am leaning towards remaking it.

Because sometimes the option that seems like the most work will often end up being the easiest.

Damn you clay...damn you and your unpredictability.

A Plan B for Plan B or maybe Plan C.

Yeah.

The earlier 'sketch' for plan B just wasn't working.

So I changed the base.

 Now I just need to decide if I want to go with or without the foliage.
The historic reference is still Staffordshire based on the pieces below.

But you see what I've done?

 The bird now upside down becomes a vessel. 

The useless becomes functional. 

It's a found object that was itself copying an established ceramic form used again in this pastiche!

Oh stop it!

It will also make a perfectly useful bud vase.

My new favorite thing.

It's a diamond cutting wheel for my Dremel!

An improvement on my previous technique that involved a grinding wheel attachment and a hammer.

The cut lube stops the wheel burning out and getting too hot- it's quite good.

Why, why, why did I not buy this years ago.

And I'm in...

 

The Gold Coast Ceramic Art Award that is! For selected artists go here.

Hanging out in the studio.

A bit of glazing hanging up to dry.

Plan B

Bad dog has developed a few cracks during drying. 

I made him using a new clay- usually a move that most ceramic artists approach with fear and trepidation, not without reason, as you just don't know what will happen.

Therefore to have something for the vase show spares are needed! 

So above is a 'sketch' of another vase that references Staffordshire figurines. 

I think I will go back to my usual clay for this one.

Whats been happening?

I'll tell you whats been happening. 

It goes like this.

Finders Keepers, pictured above.

Back to work for three days.

To Sydney for three days.

Back to Brisbane for a party.

One day off.

Work three more days.

Then back to the studio for a clean up and to finish Bad Dog below. 

And so goes nearly two whole weeks.

Bad Dog.

I just finished stuffing his cute little head into clay today.

He might go into the Australian Ceramics Association's Vase Show.

If he comes out ok- you never know. 

I'm making others, just in case...

This Weekend!!! See you there!