Photo © 2009 Beth E Peterson

I cut myself while using this razor-sharp pottery knife to open the bottoms of some thrown components to a sculptural piece. I knew something was wrong when I saw red in the white clay body! The good news? I was prepared with adhesive bandages and antiseptic ointment right there.

It was a good reminder though....Pottery demands we be conscious of safety practices and first aid, especially when using sharp knives.

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I have loved the graceful pottery dancers that the ancient Chinese potters created for a long time. The ones I love the most are so fluid, you can nearly see them move and hear the music playing. (They were made by pulling the clay to create arms and draperies, just as we pull handles now.)

Imagine how interested I was, then, to read that a Han Dynasty dancer was expected to bring $6,000 - $8,000 USD at auction on November 1st. I don't know how much it actually sold for, but I have to admit... I don't think this dancer is nearly in the class that many of the more fluid dancers are in.

Sculpturally speaking, the dancer at auction is static. The negative space is uninteresting, as well. If you were to create a dancer, what would you do differently?

You bet! I just discovered Miniatures Guide Lesley Shepherd's article, Make a Portable Photography Table! What a great way to get those pottery shots with ease!

Photographing pottery can be a real headache, especially when it comes to the glare that is all too easy to get with many glossy glazes. Having heard from several people that they wanted to know more about how to get good shots of their pots, I have written up an article on just that very thing!

How to Photograph Pottery will help guide you through the process: deciding what your purpose is, the equipment, how to light your pottery, and how to set up the shoot.

I take photos of my own pottery for personal reference, to share online with friends at the Pottery Forum, for stores, and for articles. Do you take photos of your pots, too? What do you use them for?

What could be more cool than doing archeological pot-hunting? Doing underwater archeological pot-finding!

The site is Pavlopetri, a submerged city off the southern Laconia coast of Greece. At first, it was thought that the underwater ruins dated to about 2,000 years ago. Now, however, Neolithic pottery which has been discovered at the site has shoved that back... Archeologists now believe the city was established and thriving at least 5,000 years ago.

Dr Nic Flemming of the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (UK) said, "What we've got here is something which is two or even three thousand years older than most of the submerged cities which have been studied, and it is uniquely complete." Intrigued? Check out the full story!

Photo © 2009 Beth E Peterson

Sometimes we get too caught up in if a piece is thrown or hand built. Let's face it; clay allows us to break and seriously bend nearly as many classifications as we humans can come up with. This goblet is one such example. It has a thrown base and a pinch pot cup!

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In looking at a couple of photos and paragraph about potters in the Pattani province of Thailand, it struck me. Clay is a universal connection.

Think about this for a moment. Oh, the words will change, but those of us who work with clay will always have a connection with everyone else who works with clay. This is true of potters working in distant lands as well as potters who worked in the distant past.

Pottery, of course, can also add new and exciting layers to your up-close and personal connections as well. For example, Amy and Ron Holland, who began potting together several years ago.

Get connected with other potters!

Every once in a while, don't forget to do a thorough cleaning of your kiln. For top loaders, a shop vac can be just the thing to get all the odd bits and pieces that can collect at the bottom. For front loaders, a dust broom (or even a full sized broom, depending on the kiln) can be fine to get any and all small debris cleaned out.

While you clean, don't forget to do maintenance checks on your kiln, too. Doors, lids, venting systems, flues, ceilings, walls, floors, elements, burners, and fireboxes all need to be checked regularly for wear and tear.

Repair or replace any and all cracks, chips, and sagging elements. Kiln cement is a good solution for smaller cracks, but larger problems may require the replacement of firebricks. (Make sure to replace soft firebricks with soft firebricks! There are also hard firebricks, which are used on the outside layers of fuel-fired kilns.)

Happy Firing!

Photo © 2009 Beth E Peterson

I very rarely do "cute", but these three pots just seemed to happen as I was thinking about Halloween. Jackie O'Lantern is a candy dish, while Belfry and Wizkit are both pierced to be candle jars.

Do you do pots for special days and occasions? Please, tell me about it in a comment!

Photo © 2009 Beth E Peterson

These three bowls** are destined to be filled with good soup and sold in my area's Empty Bowl event. Do you have an Empty Bowl, Supper Bowl, or similar event in your community to benefit those in need?

** The left bowl is thrown and trimmed on the wheel, the center bowl is slab-built with a coiled rim, and the right hand bowl is coil-built.