The Prairie Rose Art Association met at Bowman Regional Public Library this afternoon to take down the “Art from the Heart” show. Thanks to everyone who contributed to the success of this exhibit.

Prairie Rose Art Association

Angie Moser and Sarah Snavely presented a clay workshop at the Bowman Library recently, with funds from the Prairie Rose Art Association. It was well attended and thoroughly enjoyed by the participants. We made an assortment of plates, tiles, vases and other objects, let them dry, then Sarah fired them in her kiln. I made several tiles and a platter with cottonwood leaves pressed onto them.

Adding Color and Pattern to the Fired Clay

The next step involved adding elements that would give the fired clay some extra color and pattern. Some of the items used were leaves, sawdust, pickle juice, copper wire, blueberries, and spray paint. Everything was wrapped tightly in newspaper and tied with twine, then smoke fired in barrels at the studio of Sarah Snavely.

My Platter with Sawdust, Copper, and Blueberries

Sarah Snavely’s Studio

I went over to Sarah’s studio this past weekend to see the results of the smoke firing. It’s hard to know just what to expect, and it was exciting to see all the different colors and designs that were created. A few pieces were cracked, but that is not unusual with this technique.

Sarah, Winchester, and the Smoke Barrels

We began to look over the pieces that had been fired in the first barrel. They had interesting swirls in black, grey, brown, white, and rosy pink. While we were viewing them, I noticed a wonderful sculpture of a greyhound in Sarah’s studio. She gave me tour of the place, showing me her latest tiles and other clay projects. Much to our surprise, her three greyhounds, which are the inspiration for her work, came bounding in, and the sculpture I had so admired got knocked to the floor, and crashed into bits and pieces! I must say she took it extremely well, and I was impressed with her calm restraint. It’s probably not how I would have reacted, that’s for sure!

Sarah with Sage and the Broken Sculpture

Inside the Smoke Fire Barrel

Inspecting the Newly Fired Ware

My Cottonwood Leaf Tiles

Detail of my Cottonwood Leaf Platter

This was a very fun and interesting experience, and I look forward to trying similar things again. I have a lot to learn about working with clay, but it is a nice change from all the drawing and photography.  We may try a terra cotta clay, as well as the raku firing method in the future. I will glue the two tiles that cracked, and put a coat of wax on everything. Not bad for the first time out! Thanks, Sarah and Angie, for all you provided!