Artist of the day: Andrew Widdis

Today’s little bit of lovely eye candy is from Andrew Widdis who if you’re on twitter and you need someone good to follow make sure you find him. Andrew’s always got the best links to beautiful work (and some good tunes for the studio too!)Here’s Andrew’s thoughts on this lovely elegant vase:

“This vase has an iron oxide slip on it’s rim. As it melts, the weight of the oxide is dragged down by gravity (Newton was right) hence the effect. I live less than 2km. from an Iron bark forest. The colours on this rim are similar to the colours found in this forest and the Australian bush, of which I never cease to be inspired by.”

Also make sure to follow Andrew’s blog for more about his work, his thoughts, you know the usual good blog stuff.

Artist of the day: Julie Moon

I’ve long been a fan of Julie Moon’s work so I’m excited to share it with you today.
I love the how she mixes contemporary design, graffiti and ink art aesthetics with ceramics making her visual style very unique.

Julie’s currently a grad student am I’m looking forward to seeing how her work evolves during that intensely focused time. Here’s a peek at some of her new work in progress. You’ll have to go and have a look at her website to see the finished results and the rest of her fantastic portfolio.

Artist of the day: Teresa Gagne


Today’s artist is another Sask resident. I’ve got a lovely leaf plate of Teresa’s that my little guy loves (and hopefully won’t break anytime soon!) Teresa’s a member of Saskatoon’s potters guild so if you’re in the province you can catch her at their twice yearly sales or at other provincial markets and shops. Make sure to check out more of her gorgeous work on her blog.

Artist of the day: Smiling Cow Studio, Adrienne Gradauer and Zack Quin

Today’s artists are brought to you from good old Saskatchewan! Zack and Adrienne (together known as Smiling Cow Studio) have set up studio in Maple Creek and though our province is small I have yet to meet them in person, just online, but someday…someday…hopefully soon!
The above tumblers are Zack’s and below is a tea set by Adrienne.
In their words: “We make tableware and other functional pots from porcelain and stoneware. Adrienne focuses on traditional forms, and Zach focuses on contemporary forms. The clay we use comes from the Cypress Hills, which is about a two hour drive from the town of Maple Creek. Some of this we process ourselves, and the rest is processed by Plainsman Clay in Medicine Hat.”

I think there is a really interesting dynamic between their styles, they work really well together but are nicely unique to each maker. Check out their blog and website for more info, oh and don’t forget their shop too!

Artist of the day: Andrew Walford

I received no text to share with you from today’s artist of the day, so i’ve borrowed the following from his website:
“Andrew Walford lives in Kwazulu Natal with his wife Leanda and four children in the rolling peace of the Shongweni hills, halfway between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. Indigenous bush surrounds his mountain studio and working alongside Gumede, his Zulu handyman, Andrew draws much inspiration for his decoration from the many trees and birds there. Andrew Walford is one of the few potters who digs his own stoneware clay and meticulously prepares it to his own high standard. Working in the Japanese tradition with thick chun glazes sifted by hand from wood ash, colours of rich resonant tenmokus, fatty whites and shades of celadon, he then decorates the pots with specially imported Japanese brushes. The kiln which he designed and built himself is fired about eight times a year with paraffin oil to a temperature of 1380 degrees Celsius. It takes 18 hours to fire and 3 days to cool.” I’m not sure which I’m more jealous of – Andrew’s beautiful spirited brushwork or the exquisite landscape that is the backdrop to his life. Thanks for sharing!