The Kindred in Blue & White Show

The show is up!
Thank you to everyone who was able to make it to the opening night- it was so lovely to meet you all. The work all looked so beautiful together at Bookhou! The best part was unpacking everything and both Krystal and I being so excited about each others' work.  I couldn't have been more pleased with how it all came together.  Since the show is all about a shared kindred spirit, we displayed it just this way- with a bit of Krystal's work, and then a bit of my work- side by side in small groupings.  It all looked so pretty together- I'm really glad we were able to take the opportunity to create this show.

These photos were taken by Arounna at Bookhou.  Arounna and John have such a fabulous shop and home- their work is so stunning too.  I managed to bring home some pieces I had been admiring for quite some time, although it was hard to choose.  They are really such a talented pair.  And of course, their children are absolutely beautiful!

There was a bit of talk about some 'Kindred' work being available online, but we will be sure to post this if it is going to happen.  There are a few more photos on my blog if you are interested!

We're quickly approaching June 7th! Just wanted to post a quick preview of some of the pots that recently came out of the kiln. Working in a blue & white palette has been such a good change of pace for me. Sometimes creative restrictions can actually bring about refreshing changes. I'm loving this return to a more "traditional" colour scheme, yet have tried to approach it with a more modern & graphic sensibility and the response has been very positive! Another change is that I've been firing in my new studio, in a kiln that is more low-tech than I'm used to, but found that the firings have been very good.

Thank you to all of you who have already rsvp'd on our Facebook event page. We'd love to see you there. If you know of anyone who'd like to see the work, please pass along the details!

Okay, can't wait to see you all at the show & welcome Heather to our fair city!

-Krystal

happy making mode

Part of my preparation for kindred included moving to a new studio. I'd advise against doing this before a show if at all possible, however I had no choice. And I found myself a great new home. Ceramics always seems to involve problem solving at every pass, doesn't it? I bisqued all my pots prior to the move and packed them in bubble to transport them just a few blocks down the street to the new space, which I love. There's lots of natural light and we're in a building that is full of other creative types & my new studio mates are fantastic. My shelves are filling up with pots ready for glazing. I know Heather is about to shift into glaze mode, too -- I can't wait to see our work together in June!

Officially Invited

a little bit of process

Hello! It's Krystal here. When Heather & I began planning kindred around a blue & white theme, I immediately began sketching out my ideas. I always seem to approach making in this way. First with pen & paper, then translating my line drawings into their clay forms. As the forms take shape, my thoughts shift  to pattern and surface design, figuring out how each pattern will correspond to the form. This is my favourite part of the design process. As most of my pottery is decorated with floral/plant based motifs, I couldn't help but think of the classic 'blue willow' china pattern each time I sketched a leaf or vine in blue. It's such a ubiquitous pattern. Yet adapting my vines & flowers to a blue and white colour scheme has been a refreshing change. I've been experimenting with more lines & geometric patterning as well (photos of those pieces to come!)

As Heather mentioned in her last post, choosing a favourite blue isn't necessarily as easy as you'd think. And once you have it, now try creating that perfect blue as a glaze. I've been searching for a variety of pleasing blues: teal, a juicy pure cobalt, a deep blue/black or blue/grey. In a glossy semi-transparent base glaze. One mixture I really love is a combination of cobalt & chrome. And another, a combo of cobalt carb & nickel made a speckled grey/blue with a tinge of green to it. The testing process has been exciting!

Hello and welcome!

As this first blog post gets started we are pretty much 1 month away from the 'kindred' show at bookhou.  It is a show that has been just over a 1 year in the making, although the real work towards it, along with the actual pieces that will be exhibited are being made now.  This blog will be a place to document this process- the work leading up to the show, the inspiration behind the show, and some sneak peeks of the actual work that will be exhibited.

Krystal and I (Heather here) have both have had a really busy spring, but always in the back of our minds was our show and how we were going to link our work together in a cohesive way.  Both of us had been thinking about blue and white on our own, separately for a while, when it became a little more obvious that it could be a larger theme for our show.  An exhibit is often a good excuse to make new work, develop new ideas and processes along the way.  Some of the work we hope to exhibit will be similar to our usual work, others will be a departure from the usual.  We are almost ready to launch our promo and press for the show, which is really exciting.  Here is a glimpse of inspiration with some familiar work (my striped bottle vases) with some exciting new blue glazes on the way.