Fresh Work, New Showroom-- a Propos of Spring, Oui?

Will make more of these

by Kathy

While my pottery studio is still new to me, I’m now gearing up for the opening of my new pottery showroom area by sometime in April. I will be selling my work right from in back of my studio in a small but charming outdoor show area. My “K. Jeffers Pottery” sign is on the road, and pottery classes have been in full swing in the basement studio since last summer. I warmly invite any of you who are in the area to drop by to see my new work. It is at 6972 State Route 42 in Woodbourne, NY, just south of the border of Grahamsville.

I have to say it was quite a feat getting a grubby, disgusting old basement turned into a functioning studio, complete with fresh white paint on the walls, large work tables, a pretty barn red floor, and plenty of shelving for storing clay, glazes and work in progress. Well, the red floor isn’t quite as red as in the picture after nine months of use, but it’s still pretty darn clean for a pottery studio floor!

 I am excited about the new work I have been making since just after the Holidays. Some of it will be filling those showroom shelves and the rest I plan to display and sell at the various craft fairs and a museum show that we seven gallery members have signed up to participate in over the spring, summer, and fall. If you wish to know where to enjoy seeing all of our work together in one location, you can go to the Catskill Artists Gallery events page, which has just been updated for this season/year, by going to: www.catskillartistsgallery.com/Events.html.

And now, down to the basement to get some glazing done.

 

The "before" version--YUK!

The "after" version--MMMM!

Looking Ahead In 2013

By Cate

Like Robert, I have been looking ahead to the art and craft venues that Catskill Artists Gallery has for 2013. It looks like it's going to be a busy year for all of us. I have been working on my studio in Parksville, NY since the summer of 2012. It's still not finished, but I have had to forgo finishing it so I can get some glass work done. I have so many ideas stored up in my mind, in my sketch pad, on bits of paper and post-its. So, the next 4 or 5 weeks I hope to get a lot of new work done.

As you can see, I still have stuff piled up in corners from when I painted the floor, in sections, moving stuff every time I finished a section. The walls are wood we had milled from our own trees on our property. I have to say, it looks quite spectacular!
I hope to see all of you at some of our shows. Look on our events page on our web site to see where we will be.
Cate

A New Year for Art and Crafts

Catskill Artists Gallery is gearing up for a new season of art and craft fairs and gallery exhibitions in 2013.
by Robert

As a member of the gallery, I am working on new wall sculptures in metal and other materials and lots of color.  Each new art season is exciting for us as we explore fresh exhibiting venues and meet new collectors and art and craft enthusiasts. 

The seven members of CAG each bring recent explorations of their specialized medium: glass, ceramics, wood, jewelry, fiber, photography and sculpture.  It is always thrilling for us to deepen and expand our use of materials, using already finished work as a starting point for new possibilities.

A highlight of 2013 will be a major group exhibition  June 14 to June 29 at the Liberty Museum and Arts Center at 46 South Main Street in Liberty NY.

As a group of peers, we members respect, stimulate, encourage and support each others' work.  We believe that we have created an ideal community of artists.

Robert

DREAMING OF SPRING

by Nada

I'm ready for this spring view out my living room window!

It's that time of year where cabin fever and grey skies have me Googling Florida vacation sites and checking out my air miles to see how far away I can fly.  I welcomed winter's arrival, relishing its peace, the silent snow, the lack of color.  "Color is so demanding," I thought.  "It seems to require a creative response.  This quiet serene surrounding is just what I need.  It will be a time for regeneration and contemplation."  Well, it was that, however ……..

Enough winter already! Long awaited signs are appearing all around me. The red winged blackbirds are back and the groundhogs are coming out of from their burrow under our house. Daylight savings time has arrived. Color will return, the red buds, then the soft green leaves. 

Let the creative energy flow - Let the party begin again!

Nada

Two Mugs, Two Nieces

by Kathy


I got inspired to post again, after receiving this photo (top) of a wheel thrown mug I had given to one of my two nieces, Mandy, many years ago. She lives on the opposite coast from me, and as a result I have not been in very good touch with her. She is a very wild and crazy artistic type and I now find that she really likes my work, by which I feel very complimented. Thanks to social networking, I am now getting a little better in touch with her which is really nice.

It started when my other niece, Stephanie, who I am in better touch with, posted on FB a recent photo of a mug that I had given her this past Xmas. Mandy saw it, and then posted (with her inimitable sense of humor), “Where’s mine?” I have promised her a mug, too, and now I have just gotten this photo from her of this very old mug that I didn’t even remember having given to her when I was a very young potter. I am also posting the recent mug that I made for Steph to compare the two. I still seem to have an overall same shape preference or inclination that comes to me when I throw, which I find interesting. My glazing has gotten a bit more lively, though, to say the least!

Lessons to be learned by me:

1. All this social networking, as much as we over 50’s  complain about it, CAN and DOES bring people together.
2. My sense of aesthetics changed over the years, but a certain kernel of what I find pretty, what I am attracted to, has stayed the same. Kathy  www.kathyjeffersstudio.com

 

Looking Back, Looking Ahead

by Tom

I can tell when I’ve settled into the new year when I no longer have to erase the “2” and replace it with a “3.”  It used to be a problem, until I took to using a mechanical pencil.  But that’s another story.  Today’s story…some thoughts on where we’ve been and where we’re going.


You already know the bad news.  Life is something of a juggling act.  At times you must cut back or risk dropping everything. So it is with our friend Margaret Helthaler.  We will miss her cheerful participation, wise advice, and her incredibly beautiful work.


It’s been a year since we became a “Gallery without Walls.”  This new beginning, a re-invention of ourselves, has been an exciting process. We are a diverse group, all from different backgrounds, all taking different approaches to our craft and working in very different media. But during the year, as we created a website, planned and participated in events, our differences blended into the background and our group pulled together as one.  The impossible was made possible.  Technical challenges, deadlines, and the physical tasks of setting up, sitting, and taking down exhibits were made much less daunting by the caring participation of the group.


Our schedule for the coming year is still being planned.  We have applied to a number of shows and are waiting for notification of acceptance.  As we receive confirmation, look for changes on our events page!  Many thanks to our friends for your support in 2012.  We look forward to seeing you again in the coming year.

Our booth at last year's Bethel  Woods Fall Harvest Festival

Changes in the New Year...

A Message From Margaret...

The beginning of a new year is a good time for artists to refocus their direction and reaffirm their goals. For me the coming year will entail helping my son prepare to enter college in the fall, helping my daughter navigate the tumultuous early teens, settling into a new position as an Assistant Online Program Director with the Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division, as well the daily minutiae associated with my roles as a wife, mother, educator and artist. As such, I’ve had to take stock in the realities of how much one can truly accomplish on any given day and it is with regret that I have decided to leave the Catskill Artist Gallery. I will of course continue to post my Morning Meanderings and participate in select gallery shows (I have been invited to participate in the DVAA Be Mine Forever show scheduled for the end of this month), but in fairness to my associates in the CAG I cannot commit the time and effort a group like ours both warrants and deserves.

I’d like to express my gratitude to Buff, Kathy, Hank, Nada, Cate, Tom and Robert for their support and encouragement over the years. I enjoyed playing an active role in our transition from a bricks and mortar location to a gallery without walls. While I am stepping away from my official relationship with CAG, I have no intention of losing the connection I have with these fine artists. I wish them much success in the coming year.

12.13.12 Passages • © Margaret Helthaler