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offcntrIt's been forever since I've done any sculpture. Combination of things, I guess: the pottery business has been too successful, taking up a lot of my time. In the "off season"--between Christmas and Market opening the beginning of April--I've had other commitments: rebuilding a kiln last year, commissions the year before, and so on. I no longer have a gallery to show sculpture in, and my biggest patron passed away a couple of years ago. And I just didn't have any good ideas tucked away.
Burn-out, by any other name?
This last year has been a little more manageable. Yes, I overbooked on pottery shows, took a bunch of commissions. But on the other hand, I retired from my weekly radio gig, gave myself some time to read, sketch, listen to podcasts, only listen to music for fun, not to evaluate for airtime. I started feeling creative again, as opposed to merely productive. And since I got my office work done earlier than expected, after we got back from Wisconsin, I thought I might eke out a little time for a little sculpture. Just a small one…
Sometime last summer, my friend Marjorie told me a story. It was from when she was 6-3/4 years old, on a family trip through Canada. Her parents, herself and her older brother, coming back from Expo '67 in Montreal, stopped at the Granby Zoo in Quebec. The keeper was taking baby elephants to the barn for a bath, and little Marjorie got to ride one of them. Older brother, used to getting to do all the fun stuff while his sister watched enviously, was upset to learn he was too big to ride the elephant.
I remember thinking, That'd be a fun thing to sculpt. So here I am, with a blurry photo from Marjorie, a tablet full of reference photos, a preliminary sketch and a bunch of clay slabs rolled out. Let's see what happens.
Burn-out, by any other name?
This last year has been a little more manageable. Yes, I overbooked on pottery shows, took a bunch of commissions. But on the other hand, I retired from my weekly radio gig, gave myself some time to read, sketch, listen to podcasts, only listen to music for fun, not to evaluate for airtime. I started feeling creative again, as opposed to merely productive. And since I got my office work done earlier than expected, after we got back from Wisconsin, I thought I might eke out a little time for a little sculpture. Just a small one…
Sometime last summer, my friend Marjorie told me a story. It was from when she was 6-3/4 years old, on a family trip through Canada. Her parents, herself and her older brother, coming back from Expo '67 in Montreal, stopped at the Granby Zoo in Quebec. The keeper was taking baby elephants to the barn for a bath, and little Marjorie got to ride one of them. Older brother, used to getting to do all the fun stuff while his sister watched enviously, was upset to learn he was too big to ride the elephant.
I remember thinking, That'd be a fun thing to sculpt. So here I am, with a blurry photo from Marjorie, a tablet full of reference photos, a preliminary sketch and a bunch of clay slabs rolled out. Let's see what happens.
