January 19th, 2012

Happy New Year!  Just about everything is new for me right now.  I’ve been working in the studio to get ready for CraftBoston, which is at the end of March.  I am going with a lot more ‘big’ work than I’ve ever tried.  Remember the Watershed Residency coming up in June?  Well, it’s titled “Woman, Spouse, Mother; One woman doing it all” and it’s about….well, it’s different for all of us, but for me it’s about balance.  It’s about juggling EVERYTHING and being good at it.  I’ve made the decision to cut back on teaching for a little while and cut back on ‘production’ pottery.  I simply don’t have the hours in the day.  I am focusing on the things that matter the most. My kids and making pots, ok my dog and my honey fit in there too, but you know what I mean.  So The plan is to really take my time and make some super fantastic hand made pots.  To give them all my love and attention.  I want to make them count.  So here’s what I’ve been working on.

Large Tree Wall Platter 18"x18"

Wheel Thrown Vase 12" Made with Maine Clay. Unfired

Dec. 18th, 2011

Gathering clay for creating

My new Year’s resolution will be to post more about what is going on.  It’s almost Christmas and this fall has been a blur.  It’s all been very good.  I was accepted into the Maine Crafts Guild at the November show at the Maine State Museum.  I also reconnected with some of the folks at MOFGA (the Maine Organic Farmers and Growers Association) about doing some more products for their country store.  If you don’t know Mofga check them out at www.mofga.org  They are one of my favorite organizations.   I also had the pleasure of creating special mugs for the Natural Resource Council of Maine for their annual Polar Dip and Dash.  Save the environment and jump into icy water after a big run on December 31st, 2011.  It’s a great cause and one very close to my heart. Check them out at www.nrcm.org    Iseem to specialize in the organic, environmental movement….hmmmm.  I like that.

Since I haven’t written in a while this feels like a good excersise to recap all the good things that have happened.  I had a great clay dig outing with some amazing folks.  Thanks so much to Deb and Connor Fahy, Claudia and Noel, Rusty, and Debbie Caldwell.  It was a beautiful day along the Androscoggin River and we gathered a 1000 lbs of glacial marine clay. That helps me get through the winter until clay digging season comes around again.  It was nice to share my sacred clay space with such positive people.  I am very grateful for all of their help.

Other good things… Liz Profetty and I BOTH got into the CraftBoston Spring show!  Wow!  We are excited to show off our stuff to a new crowd.  We took the train down to the Holiday Craft Boston show last weekend to scope it out and I am pleased that my booth will work nicely and look really good.  Can’t wait to create some new work to debut!

I also applied to be a presenter at the PechaKucha at the Waterville Opera House in January and I was accepted.  They liked what I do and now I get 6 minutes of fame. 20 slides 20 seconds per slide.  Thus gives me a chance to perfect my elevator speech and present to a few hundred people.  I think I will skip the acapella version of my performance this time.  Maybe.   

I have a great opportunity to take a business workshop with Jim Lyons from Action Coaching in Falmouth.  It’s a chance to set-up an action schedule for 90 days for the business.  I am going to need some help organizing because I have alot going on.  I didn’t mention the dvd…. I am working on a dvd for digging clay and making simple forms for beginners.  It should be out this spring.  OK, I think that’s it…..  Yeah, I know, it’s a busy time, but it’s fun and I can’t imagine doing anything else. 

 

 

 

October 12, 2011

It seemed like a good time to check in. My issue today is why does it seem like I am not getting anywhere?? I know that’s not entirely true, it’s just that this is a very slow process. So where is it that I want to be? Why am I unsatisfied with where I am now? Let’s recap for a second….. I want to be working in clay full time….hmmm, I already do that… I want to show my work in good galleries….ok, I have some of those and I am working on adding more. In fact, I am meeting with Liz tonight to go over some good galleries that could potentially carry our work AND we’ll be drinking a beer while we work. That’s all good. I want to do some performance work in addition to the clay work- OK, you are working on the Day of the Dead Show to be performed at the end of this month! I want to do more clay workshops with hospice. I am currently enrolled in hospice facilitator training….. It’s all happening so what’s my problem? I have zero patience and I am trying to do too much. I think that’s it. I am living my dream, the money kind of trickles in, but it’s flowing in not out-that’s good. I am fully fed and my home is secure. There is an underlying frustration and stress that I’d like to get at. There just doesn’t seem to be enough time in the day to do all I want to do or make the money I’d like to make. I know this mindset is troubling. I will be doing a residency at Watershed next spring and the topic is One Woman, Mother, Spouse, doing it all. This topic is rich. The idea of how a woman juggles a creative career, children, and relationships is fascinating. My kids are 10 and 13. There’s alot of running around and I have joint custody with my ex. It’s still alot of work! I might have to make a list of my priorities and cut some things out, but what can I cut out? Friends? That seems crazy, but that seems to be what is happening lately. I just can’t be as social as I once was….or…I need to combine social and “networking”. At any rate, there needs to be some organization to help me manage all these aspects. Maybe I need to look at how much I take on at a time. I know that the stress is not good for any of us. Yoga has been very good for me, but even now I feel like I don’t have time for yoga and that seems counter-productive to the way I’d like to live. We are heading into holiday season and I am a little nervous about my mental health. I think the other missing piece is that I’ve been so busy promoting my work and delivering pots etc. that I don’t have my hands in the clay. The clay is really what heals me and keeps me grounded. How does one person do it all? Male or female? Is there some magic schedule that I don’t know about? I’m doing a show with the Maine Crafts Guild in November a week after my performance, AND having and Open Studio 2 weeks after that. Maybe that’s too much in addition my beautiful kids, a terrific relationship, hospice training, and the steady march of the holiday season….. Did I mention I teach classes? Hmmm. I’ve gotta think about this. Any ideas? Helpful hints?

Sept. 30th-After the fair! (the first one)

Malley Mug made with maine clay $40-

The booth

I can’t believe how time flies. I wish that I had been writing everyday because it would be so interesting to go back and relive this whole experience. I will try to write more often. I think the last time I wrote I had just gotten into the fair (The Common Ground Country Fair), which in my book is the fair of all fairs. Well the last few months, yeah months…. has been wondering HOW the heck was I going to pull this off. I had to mix all of my clay, make all the work, build a booth, move my studio, and run a whole summer program for kids, make all the MOFGA mugs, AND spend some quality time with my kids as well. All I can say is that I have some incredible friends. Everyone pitched in and somehow it all miraculously came together. Big thanks to Brian Alexander of Red Oak Construction for building that booth, Donna Colucci for showing me how to organize my calendar, Wendy Martins for help in the studio, my apprentices, Jrai Mendall, Isabella Pignattello (sp?), and Monica Gilbert, Not to forget August Hagen for all of his vibrant energy and healthy young back! Ok I sound like i won a grammy, but seriously…Mom- you rock! Wayne Ladner you are my best cheerleader and head engineer. My kids even pitched in and priced, wrapped pots, and Hazel ran my checkout station like a pro, she’s 10 years old. Thank you!!!! The best part of the weekend was all the great feedback I got from people who don’t even know me. That felt sooooo good to have people smile and enjoy my work. I am feeling very wealthy from all the love. I was also able to apply for the Maine Crafts Guild and secure a spot in their November 5-6 show at the Maine State Museum. That feels good to be approved of by such a talented group of artisans. So, all in all the fair was a huge success. I now have the booth built so it should theoretically be easier next time. I was painting and hanging lights right up to the wire this year. Phew! I need some new pics up here don’t I? OK, let’s see if I can remember how to do this….. Thanks again!
OK, pics are in. Liz Proffetty, my clay buddy and support, also had a great weekend. We’ve both applied for bigger and better shows- Craft Boston and the Smithsonian Craft Show. So we’ll see where this goes, but for now we are still potters (I thought seriously about applying for a job at Lowe’s there for a minute) and loving all the hardwork and most of all the positive feedback. We thrive on that stuff!

She gets into the Common Ground Fair

There it was sitting on my counter in a pile of recycling. I didn’t see it when I took it out of the mailbox on thursday? friday? I just threw it all in a pile and went on my way. Last night when I was making dinner I looked through that pile and was shocked to find the letter from MOFGA (Maine organic farmers and Growers Asssociation). I immediately ripped it open, not even stopping to think about it and read “We are happy to offer you a space at this year’s Fair”. OK, so if you read my post from yesterday you would know that I was grappling with potential rejection. Liz had gotten her letter of acceptance and I hadn’t heard anything and was trying to come to terms with what to do next. I guess that’s something we all have to deal with when we put our work out there. It makes us ask some hard questions of ourselves, like am I doing the right thing, in the right way….I guess it comes down to trusting our own instincts and doing it for the love of doing it. I wasted alot of energy not trusting and I can laugh about it now, but seriously what if I hadn’t gotten in? How would that have affected me? Why does it change how we value ourselves? Outside validation is a messy animal. I was prepared to march on and continue working in this method that I love, but I did stop and question it. The one thing that this whole situation has made clear to me is that I am working very differently than I ever have and that I can work this way in many venues. I think I’ve been limiting myself with a “functional” ceramic outlook when it comes to fairs, but really, as Liz said “You show up at the CG Fair with your work, no matter what that work is. Be an artist”. That’s true for any fair, show, exhibition, and life. Well, thanks Liz for such good advice and for laughing at me (with me) while we walk this road. We’ve got to get into our studios because that fair will be here before we know it! Sept 23,24,25th in Unity, Maine.

February 27th, 2011

Sigh, Liz called me yesterday to tell me that she got into the Common Ground Fair and I am truly very excited for her. She’s a fantastic potter and deserves a place there. I checked my mail box and I didn’t receive an acceptance letter. I am trying not to have a complete meltdown, ok, so I did have some tough moments yesterday, but what I realize is that perhaps my work really doesn’t belong in the fair circuit. I know, I dig my own clay and that is so Common Ground-ish, but really I think I am leaning towards finer craft. Which is NOT to say that the CG Fair isn’t fine. I think my work is heading in a different direction, a much slower paced, controlled, movement. I look at the work of Deb Le Air and really it is sooooo beautiful www.debleair.com and I am inspired. I see her work in really nice galleries and I know how much work it is to create something like that. It takes hours and hours. The thing is that I am really enjoying working in that way, but I have this nagging voice that says “you’ll never sell any of this” , but look she IS selling her work and it is not cheap. I think in a way not getting into this fair gives me more space to work in this vein. I may always have my doubts, but when I see others succeed then it gives me hope. Maine is not exactly a place that specializes in this type of art/craft but I am not going to let that stop me. I am trying to let go of the notion that I need to make a million pots to survive. Who knows, I may get that acceptance letter on Monday and then I’ll need to decide which direction to go. Hmmm. I think I already know. Thanks deb Le Air for helping me through this.

Feb 15, 2011

mugs and tumbler

med bowl

lg bowl

I’ve had about one week in my studio since I graduated. It has been very exciting for me to get back in there to play/work. I’ve been adjusting my Maine clay body and tweaking my terra sig recipes. I’m still finding that they don’t buff up as easily as I hoped. I will continue to play with this. Today I applied the terra sig to leatherhard work and that worked nicely. There appears to be some magic as to how long to let it dry, but that’s fairly normal and I will continue to experiement. Not sure what I would do if one day it all just worked perfectly. I spent most of my day carving and I have to say I really enjoy that. I didn’t have any preconceived notions of what I would carve they just “appeared” and I am happy with the results of that approach. Tomorrow I will apply more of the terra sig and stain and throw some more pots. This way of working is very slow. I am enjoying the slowness for a change. For some reason I have been rushing, rushing, rushing to make tons of pots for most of life. But now I seem to be heading in the opposite direction and making everything harder and more challenging. This way of working is completely pleasurable and I must say my mood has greatly improved. I never fancied myself a production potter and well…now I am proving it. Let’s hope there’s room in the world for slow pots. Here’s what I worked on today.

goofy yet treacherous fish

February 14, 2011

Good morning and Happy Valentine’s Day. I wanted to give you a quick update with what is going on in the studio. You know that I am a busy Mom so I have to squeeze my work in between running the kids around and cooking dinner. I’ve been trying out some new designs using the terra sigilatta and carving technique (sgrafitto) in a slightly different way. I promised some photos so let’s see how this upload goes. I mentioned that I’m a bit rusty. You’ll notice that I am staring to explore some ancient designs. I do love the ancient ones and now that I’ve explored many cultures, it seemed fitting to go on to my own family roots. I have much to research so I will let you know what I am reading. I always have an interest in the esoteric and of course, death in terms of social, religious, and spiritual symbolism continues to fascinate me. You will see more of this in my work to come as i’ve only begun to scratch the surface (ha!) literally.

small tray 8 x 10 maine clay fired to 04

February 12th, 2011

Well, Hello Blog! I’ve missed you. So much has happened since I last wrote…ummmm….a YEAR ago! First and foremost I just graduated with my Masters in Fine Art/Interdisciplinary Art from Goddard College in Plainfield, VT. I also moved my teaching studio and had a new studio built on my property. It’s been a busy time. I’ve continued to test new terra sig’s with varying degrees of success and have really started to refine the clay body. my ultimate goal is to use as few other materials in the clay. As of right now I am just adding grog and a small amount of bentonite. The results are good….so far.
You might be wondering what a degree in Interdisciplinary Art is. This degree really encourages us to value the creative input we receive from other seemingly different ways of thinking/processing/knowing. My advisor described it as “What happens when the Scientists and the Artists are hanging out smoking in the ally between the two buildings”. It’s the liminal space between disciplines.
I probably don’t need to tell you how much work it is to get a Master’s degree. My last semester has been spent writing my portfolio and compiling all of the information/lessons/etc. that I’ve been working on..(and for me…also having a new studio built, raising kids, and working) I will post some of my pics very soon. Now that I have all this free time (ha!) I promise to spend more time communicating. Now that I am all MFA I also need to work on promoting myself and finding avenues of income. I will be working on building a new website just for my work, blogging more often, and creating TONS of work. I realize it all starts with spending time in the studio, but it goes no where unless I bust my butt to promote it. Yeah, we artists don’t take to this part naturally, but it’s all part of the work. I am fortunate to have a “success buddy”. In fact, just the very fact that she has subscribed to my RSS feed has already got me moving. We are working together to help each other succeed. Her name is Liz Proffetty and she’s a good friend, a potter, a Mom, like me. Let’s see if we can have a little contest and motivating competition about websites, blogs etc. I just secured malleyweber.com you can’t go there yet, but pretty soon you will see how I pull this all together. I have success on my mind and a loose plan. It’s always worked for me before. Ok, I can’t wait to share more of my experiences with you, but for now I have GOT to get in the studio. I need some work for photos for the Common Ground Fair committee and also for the website. Liz and I are going to NCECA in March and we are going to look GOOD! NCECA National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts. The Conference is in Tampa, FL this year and Liz and I are going to find new galleries and hear some of the big people speak. Most importantly, we will be hobnobbing with potters from all over and literally geeking out on clay for 5 days! This is basically an exciting deadline for both of us to get ourselves together, meaning having our “marketing” skills sharp. Ok, so I promise some pictures later.

May 19th, 2010

This is part of my packet letter to my advisor for school. Some of you may be wondering how we communicate. This just encapsulates so much of what is going with me these days and I have not really done any blogging. I may add more of my packet work as I go on, but this is my last packet for the semester and I am in my fourth semester. I will graduate in Jan 2011. Next semester I write my thesis…or portfolio, as we say at Goddard. This is just my cover letter, where we do a little catch up. The article I am referring to is called The Careless Society: Community and it’s Counterfeits by John McKnight. The story I refer to is John Deere and the Berievement Counselor. Since I am going through the hospice training I really had to ask myself some hard questions about my “helpfulness”. I will post my in-depth response to this article later. Again, this is just the beginning of a cover letter. There’s always a re-write etc.

Dear Peter,
This has been one powerful packet time. The article you sent rocked me and I spent so much time figuring out what that meant to me and how to locate myself. I also reconnected with my father’s family after 33 years. I haven’t met them yet, but emailing and exchanging photos etc. with my cousin, whom I barely remember. She sent a home video that included my mother and father and watching him laughing and enjoying life was/is such good medicine for me. I’ve been having some amazingly good cries. A family friend died suddenly, although not unexpectedly, yesterday. My views on death are shifting. Hospice continues to be a tremendously powerful education for me. There is a lot going on. The building where I have my teaching studio just sold and has me seriously considering adding onto my house and moving my entire operation home….by October. Through all of this, I feel like I’m managing well. My students, friends, my kids, and my Mom have all been very supportive. I am not trying to control any of this, so that makes it easier to flow with the ups and downs. Also, since I’m self-employed I can give myself a break here and there when I need it. I built a chicken coop with a friend of mine. It’s not exactly pretty, but it kept my mind and body occupied. There’s been some hard work on my property, digging a new garden, moving dirt, un-building and rebuilding the foundation of my salt kiln. Leveling, adding layers of new bricks, and stacking, hauling, and transporting bricks, cinderblocks, and baby chicks. I was about to say that I haven’t gotten much reading done, but I forget that my Hospice manual is as thick as a bible and I am engaged in a second major of sorts, astrology, that I have yet to intertwine. Oh yeah, then there’s the music….hmmm. I really need to tell myself that I AM working hard everyday. I still drag around a “slacker” mentality. It’s not until I write it all down that I can see how much I do. I’m getting better. I think when I am not required to do packets that I will shift into a monthly “check in” with myself, where I write, reflect, and document. It is such a beautiful experience. The blog…yes, the overlooked blog. That’s a great avenue and it seems like someone out there is listening. This could easily be a 50 page packet, but I will edit extraneous meanderings and give you the “meat” of my last few weeks.

All of the things I mention in the above letter will be flushed out and I will add the creative work I have been engaged in, with photos. The articles, books, websites, documentaries, artists, and museum visits etc. are documented through a bibliography. I will engage in some theoretical discussion and comparisons/contrasts of historical and contemporary artists. Sometimes those artists are painters, poets, writers, musicians or ceramic sculptors. The nice thing about Goddard is the full-breadth of artistic influence. The other beautiful thing about the Goddard way is advisors ability to guide, but not overtake or dominate the education we are seeking. It is for those students who are passionate about their learning and responsible with their time. Ok, I’ve got to finish this packet. It takes me about 3 or 4 days to pull it together. This one is due on Monday the 24th.