Heads Up - Circle of Eight Show, Mark Your Calendar

We are really looking forward to our upcoming ceramic show, Circle of 8!

These are eight potters from the Charlotte area that have joined together to promote their work and each others.

They each have extensive education in ceramics, many went to ECU, taught at or attended Penland, and many are currently teachers.

Occasionally one of the potters in the group is not able to participate in a show so they have guest artists, the six that are participating in our show are Greg Scott, Adrienne Dellinger, Jennifer Mecca, Ron Philbeck, Amy Sanders, and Julie Wiggins. For our show the guest artists are Dina Wilde-Ramsing and Michael Kline.

The show runs from July 6 through August 28. I'll write more about it closer to show time!

Recycled Aluminum Earrings, Rings, Pendants & Bracelets

We've just gotten in the great new pieces by Jay Schiavone. Jay is from North Carolina and we've had his work off and on through the years. When we first met him he was makeing funky bottle stoppers, suncatchers and the like, but this is the first time he's made jewelry, and we LOVE it!

His pieces are very contemporary, big, and weigh nothing. The best part might be, though, that they are made from recycled aluminum.

You can see other pieces on our website by clicking here.

Today's Pot

A few times a year I get inspired and do pots that show the landmarks of New Bern. Here is my most recent. Hand built from white earthenware.
Decorated with underglazes.

The pot measures 15 x 10 x 6".

My Sculpture

While I realize my sculpture doesn't compare to what I've been posting, it's been fun for me to do. Here is my newest that is now in the gallery.

- Jan Francoeur

Mermaid-Garden-Sculpture on the web.

Last One!

Here are photos of Glenn installing his sculpture at ECU taken by my friend Stan. I'll have to go up and check it out. It's located in front of the art school facing 5th st.

Thanks Stan!

More sculpture of Glenn Zweygardt

As I said before my favorite part of going to Alfred was going to Glenn Zweygardt's studio.

His work is very diverse using a wide range of materials. My favorite pieces were the bronzes.

My friend Stan met Glenn a couple weeks ago when he was dropping off a sculpture at ECU which he is loaning the school. I don't know where the sculpture is on campus but will find out.

Slow Blogging and why

I just realized how slow I have been on my blogging this month.

 First we were getting ready to go to NY, then we were gone, now we're trying to get caught up from being gone! In a day or two I'll  have some more photos to post from our trip.

I felt bad leaving Lou, Donna, and Donna to be responsible for the Art Walk on the 8th but as I knew they would, they did a great job!

We have some amazing pieces for this show as I've mentioned in some previous posts. But I don't think I've mentioned the work by Sequoia.

Reverence infuses everything that Sequoia Pawan Madan sends into the world. Working with thoughtfully selected "low-impact" materials including iron, glass—even tree prunings—Sequoia, as he prefers to be called, fashions furniture, lamps, candlesticks and architectural elements with graceful lines and quiet strength. As he explains it, he aims to bring a "yin-yang balance" to interiors; to bring softness, beauty, functionality and environmental health together to enhance users' lives.

After much research on the careful use of materials, he uses iron (extremely abundant and used in small quantities due to great structural strength; least toxic of all available metals), glass (also plentiful and durable), twigs and other prunings (which allow the tree to continue growing and cleaning the air) and handmade mulberry-bark paper (also harvested so that the tree remains alive).

I have the perfect spot for one of the small tables that hang on the wall.

In addition to the pieces we have in stock Sequoia makes beds, benches, lamps, chairs and more.

We do have a few piece on our website. Click here! 

Just back from Alfred University

We just got back from Alfred University, in my last post I spoke about going to an opening at Val Cushing's studio.

We also had the opportunity to visit the studio of internationally known and collected ceramicists Andrea and John Gill.

Both are professors at Alfred.

Read about Andrea

Read about John

Then we were off to visit Glenn Zweygardt, a sculptor who works in a large variety of materials, cast bronze, glass, iron, marble, stainless steel, stone and granite. I was so inspired!

"Zweygardt posseses an uncanny ability to fuse dissimilar elements and concepts, natural occuring and fabricated forms, into structures that command the attention of the observer."

"Duplication and relationship is a recurring theme found throughout Zweygardt's work. A carefully chosen stone, cast and duplicated in bronze, aluminum or steel, becomes the basis of definate architectural themes that manifest in a range of sizes.

His mastery of the building process along with his ability to create enormous works of art from materials of tremendous mass has gained him international recognition.

Kansas born, Zweygardt earned his BFA from Wichita State in 1967, MFA from the Maryland Institute of art in 1969, and is an emeritus professor at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University." My favorite pieces were the bronzes. Very contemporary. Fabulous.

Val Cushing

This is the first blog entry about our visit to Alfred University and to some of the artists that live, work and teach in the area.

Alfred's ceramic program was the first academic ceramic arts program in the US and it has stayed there with many of the top ceramicists in the country coming out of the program.

Our friends John & Lindas son Andrew Deutsch is a sound, video and graphic artist who lives in Hornell, NY and teaches Sound & Video Art in the Division of Expanded Media at Alfred University. He was gracious enough to give us a tour!

We went to an opening at Val Cushing's studio and home. He is internationally known and collectors worldwide seek his work. Examples of his work can be found in every major ceramics book that has been published in the last 35 years. Mr Cushing received his undergraduate degree from Alfred then went to graduate school there as well. He started teaching at Alfred in 1957 and retired in 1997.

Hi studio is on a 60 acre farm in Alfred which was a dairy barn converted into a studio. He says that much of the inspiration for his work comes from the farm and the view out his studio window. I can appreciate that since we've built our own new studio that has an inspiring view.

Val Cushingʼs work is included in the collections of the American Craft Museum, the Smithsonian Institution, the Brooklyn Museum of Art and the International Museum of Ceramic Art in Japan.

His honors include grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Fulbright Foundation, a Fellow of the American Craft Council and of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts. He is a full-time studio artist and continues to exhibit his work and to conduct occasional lectures and workshops.

This visit was a thrill.

More Garden

Every two months we hang a new show at Carolina Creations. We do this on the wall to the left as you walk in.

The new show for May & June is called "The Glorious Garden" and in addition to the wonderful paintings we have depicting flowers and gardens, we have some great sculpture for the garden.

The first photo shows Michael and David installing Steve Fabrico's tall garden totem. It is a FABULOUS piece!




We also have a small garden totem as well.

A few blog entries ago I talked about these great spinners with hand blown marbles. One marble is huge, about 4 1/2" across, and other about 1 1/4" across.
We have 2 fabulous cranes that stand about 5 feet tall, designed by Don Drumm and produced right here in North Carolina by Frances Vega.

From Stephen Kitras we have great huge glass balls for the garden and blown glass hummingbird feeders.

If I do say so myself it's a great show!!