Mad About New York City's Museum of Art and Design

I finally made it this past weekend to the Museum of Art and Design, formerly the American Craft Museum, at the Southern tip of Columbus Circle in Manhattan.

This Peter Voulkos sculpture is one of my favorites from MAD's amazing permanent collection of ceramist's specimens . It softened my heart as I stood before it. It must be said that photos cannot capture the full beauty of a piece of pottery or sculpture, and thus the palpable affect it may have on you.

And not to name names, but other pieces in MAD's permanent ceramics collection included many potters' work that I've admired on the printed page for years including Betty Woodman, Ruth Duckworth, Hans Coper, Bernard Leach, Gertrude and Otto Natzler, Lucie Rie, Toshiko Takaezu, Wayne Higby, a few I was in awe of but had never heard of including Eva Hild, Sakiyama Takayuki, Harumi Nakashima, and one, to my great surprise, whom I worked for years ago as an assistant--Teresa Chang.

The main show the museum's plugging currently features the work of an international slice of fine jewelry artisans who utilize glass in their creations to beautiful and innovative effect. I particularly liked one artist, whose name I now forget, who used recycled glass for his works. One necklace in particular stood out. It was a long, heavy necklace comprised of light green bottle necks with their bodies broken off and edges slightly smoothed, simply beaded on a thick length of sisal cord.

I was surprised to find myself so inspired by another of the museum's temporary shows called Object Factory: The Art of Industrial Ceramics, in which contemporary designers conversed or collaborated with some of the world's oldest porcelain manufacturers. My favorites were this pierced and needlepointed bowl, these exquisite re-purposed spoons, and this organic shell of a bowl.

I ended my first tour of the museum in their open studios where I watched work and spoke process with the very nice ceramic designer, Siri Betts.

I should note that if you visit you should make sure to travel their six floors by foot up the stairway with windows, as the curators house some of the museum collections there, as well as on the basement floor where there are restrooms and offices.

French Country Pottery from Provence in New York City's West Village -- Le Fanion

OK, so I haven't made it to Provence this year, but I did finally make it to the quaint, little corner store in the historic section of New York City's West Village on Bank and West 4th called Le Fanion, which means "the pennant" in English and explains their hand drawn logo of a woman in clogs and wearing a bonnet while holding a flag, but I'm not sure what it has to do with the gorgeous handmade pottery and antiques sold from the store.

I'd passed the store many times over the years, but never had my passings coincided with their limited open store hours until two weeks ago when I hit them by chance at about four-o'clock in the afternoon on a Friday. Timing is everything!

What a treat it was to finally get in and be able to explore freely. Besides the sales woman I was the only one there. I felt simultaneously like a kid in a candy store and a mega-star who's had a shop closed down so the screaming masses won't bother her.

I quickly put down my two bags at the front because I was afraid of knocking a piece to the floor and began ogling and fondling all the handmade ceramics. Yum-yum--all manner of table settings--plates, bowls, cups, platters, pitchers, tea pots, creamers--candle sticks, tiles and small sculptures. Most of the pottery is from contemporary, working ceramists, but they also have some very pricey, antique pottery. As well they offer non-pottery antiques like paintings, salt cellars, some furniture and other items.

Unfortunately, the sales woman, who was nice indeed, knew next to nothing about the pottery or who made it. She finally explained to me after I'd barraged her with several inquiries, that she was simply a friend of the store owners, a couple if I understood correctly, who are from Provence, or who travel there regularly to purchase all the beautiful goodies. They, she assured me, would have the stories for every piece.

Happening upon it by chance as I did I wasn't prepared for a purchase, but I couldn't leave empty-handed and purchased one of these small, thrown mugs in blue with a fish carved on its face.

iPhone Craft-making Simulation Application

My presence on the web brings the strangest requests to my email inbox.

A few days ago, a young man contacted me for permission to use a photo I'd taken at the pottery studio as the background for an iPhone application he's making that will give users the ability to simulate creating crafts. How strange.

This is the mock-up of the screen that users will see with clay and my background photo. I guess it's fitting that I took the photo with my iPhone.

You can see that the application will offer not only pottery-making simulations, but glass- and jewelry-making, wood-turning and MCP--Whatever that is. I probably should know, but nothing comes to mind.

Though I will make no money from the photo use, he will give credit and a link to www.rivervalleycrafts.com and as you may know, I never turn down an opportunity for free advertising!

Early Summer Pottery Studio Update

This is the first mini tabletop water fountain I've pinched.

June's come and gone without an entry and with little pottery-making happening. Next week I'll teach my last Tuesday night class until September. It wasn't easy, but I did make the decision (I think!) to take the rest of July and August off from teaching in order to focus solely on my own work, and also so we can get away from the city more easily, if we choose.

I've little to write, but will hopefully be posting quite a bit from the studio and regarding launch of my site this summer. Stay tuned!

Creative Inspiration - Elizabeth Gilbert's TED Talk

I've watched this TED talk by Elizabeth Gilbert four times and teared up at the end each time. It's so rare in our society to come across folks as present as she is. I think that's what moves me. And she's articulate ta-boot! And of course, she seems to have the genius of which she speaks visit her often.

Though I watched this first before his death, I couldn't help instantly thinking of Ms. Gilbert's insights here when I heard of Michael Jackson's passing and as I've watched reports of his troubled life. I wish he'd had someone teach him to create this boundary to protect his fragile psyche from carrying the full responsibility of his artistic genius. Perhaps he'd still be with us.