|
After the Northridge earthquake, and losing all my doll molds, I started playing more with free form. The wallpocket line started from a customer's request for a posey pin.
Having no idea what a posey pin was I started shaping my clay smaller, smaller and finally she was happy with the size. Well not thinking I forgot to inform her about porceilain shrinking about 25% or more. But finally we got the size right.
From the posey came my first wallpocket, which some people called an icecream cone. The song design (open) came from a customer's love for my open vase. With her suggestion, I incorporated the open design onto the wallpocket.
In showing my wallpockets at art and crafts shows, I met a porcelain artist and teacher (Susan Hertzberg). She tried for years to encourage me to come over to the china painting world. With her encouragement and direction, and the input of many other talented china painters, I'm having fun playing with new ideas.
The pockets are still changing, I'm playing with textures (wood, stone, leaves, she shells) and everything else. I show my new ideas at local shows, this being my test market before going onto the web site. If you have any ideas let me know, I love to try at playing if they work it's great. if not - well the trash collector is used to me now. My newest idea, (and this was mine or my husband's) was to take and add on ornaments to the pockets, thus bringing in dimension and I think this looks great. There is no room in my studio (garage), you can find porcelain has taken over our entire house. My kitchen in the winter is my pouring room, our bedroom is storage for stock, our living room we still watch T.V. (just barely). The only room that is still porcelain free is my husband's office but!! Let me tell you that insanity is not limited to china painters. We porcelain people are a close second, but at least we are not boring, are we? |
I'm very new in the china painting world. My love affair with porcelain started in 1980, when I took a porcelain doll class. When pouring my molds, I would save the wasted trimmings in a plastic container. This was the start of my playing with free form, making earrings, and bolo ties.