I am at Fairview Elementary in Skokie until the beginning of April. I love to teach elementary students how to make a slab by making a meatball, patty, and then pancake, and then watching them squish the clay with the stamps. Next week they will learn about layering and wiping off glazes with a limited pallete of colors. They are always fun to see all together.

I have really enjoyed the Instagram ceramic community and how easily artists can see what other artists are doing, especially in our studios.

Right now I am throwing a bunch of porcelain to see how it moves and push its boundaries within how I currently throw. When I make bottles and cups, I start with a cylinder, with throwing marks lately, and then stretch it out from the inside. I enjoy seeing how far the porcelain will stretch before it tears.

I am obsessed with throwing marks lately because it shows the artist’s hand, mark and touch throughout the process of throwing, which is my favorite part of the process. So many things we interact with during our day are machine made and not cared for or thought about, to hold something you know someone touched while you enjoy quiet moments of sipping your coffee or tea before you go out into the world is meaning for to me as I make a piece.

I am also playing around with different bodies of work with high fire and low fire so stay tuned...

@kristinaugustceramic

Mom and Dan love Disney World, so we took spent a few days in Orlando. We had a lot of fun and yes... it was hot. 
Vacations are a great excuse to break out the DSLR! Scroll down for Lion King, safari and sunset/sunrise photographs.

The Lion King was such a great and beautiful performance! It was fun to shoot an event with such bright colors! 

There were so many beautiful sunrises and sunsets! 

Maybe one day I will be able to go on a real life safari! 

​Opening Reception & Awards:  Friday, April  21st, 2017, 7pm - 10pm
Exhibition:  April 21st – May 13th

Erosion #2. 
Low-Fire Ceramics 
​2017

My low fire experiments turned out pretty well! The process became very organic and playful, so I am very excited to continue experimenting with surface and eroding textures. 

I am taking Dave Trost's class "Livin' la Vida Low-Fire" at Lillstreet Art Center and we started using sodium silicate on slabs of clay. Needless to say I am hooked! It gives me the perfect texture to create the layers and effect I am looking for! Dave is such an innovative and inspirational teacher! He knows so much about clay and how it acts. through the entire process. I love that discovering clay is an endless journey that continues to evolve through individual and collaborative ideas! 

I have always been interested in natural textures and how they grow and erode over time. What causes the growth? What causes the erosion? How do humans affect nature? How does nature affect structures the people have made? Is our/her/his-story a constant cycle of building up and then scraping off of layers? 

This is my favorite show of the year! APPLY and join artists with and with out disabilities in the square foot show!

I am so inspired by the artists at The Arts of Life because they are so genuinely themselves and so creative! They inspire me to be myself and try new ideas that I have.. 

It has been a fun and interesting year! I look forward to everything that 2017 has too offer! Happy New Year! @kristinaugustceramics on instagram