Exchanging Ideas

Here's a photo I took in the main patio. You can sort of see the tables of pottery set up for the bi-annual Pottery Guild Show and Sale. It's one of the biggest events in Spanish Village, certainly in terms of the people who attend it. And many people arrive early to get the best selection of pottery. There's one potter who routinely sells all his pieces early in the day. By noontime his table is empty. His work is beautiful; you really have to be an early bird to get it.

The glassblowers across from me always set out tables of glass as well. Some people like both glass and pottery. I have the impression though that for the most part, the die-hard pottery lovers remain loyal to pottery. They don't seem interested in anything else. And certainly you can find beautiful pottery at the show and in the Potters' Guild itself all year round. They maintain a very high standard of craftsmanship and artistry.

I interacted with a number of people myself today, including a couple who remembered seeing my work when I was in a different studio several years ago. They found me by accident, because I happened to hang one of my etchings outside next to my worktable. They thought they recognized my style. I had a nice conversation with them, and I was happy to know that they remembered my work.

I also talked to a jeweler who liked my work and gave me some excellent suggestions for making improvements to pieces I have in my studio now. He liked the pieces that I've made from found objects such as roller bearings and fuses. I've made most of those pieces just for fun, not really to wear. I suppose they could be worn though, as long as a person realizes that they are made of objects that are base metal as opposed to silver or gold-filled wire like the rest of my pieces.

I had hoped to do some enameling this evening, but I'm not sure I will. The enamelist I usually meet with has his work in a show that's opening tonight, so I'm guessing he may not come back in time to work any more this evening. That's okay. I am getting up early in the morning, so I could profit from some extra sleep. But before I call it a night, I'm going to try to make a basket out of woven copper strips that I can enamel at some point.