We recently started having one of our members designated a Featured Artist each month in order to show a wide variety of their ceramic work in one of our display windows. Actually it's not a new thing - this used to be done here many years ago, as Nancy Meaden (a long-time CAC member) pointed out when she suggested that we start doing it again. So our first Featured Artist was Nancy, in fact - and from February 12 to March 14 2018, her beautiful pottery was showcased in the Ceramic Studio's front windows. Unfortunately however, we didn't have our act together yet about how to publicize this, so she wasn't interviewed for the Rossmoor News. (However perhaps she'd be willing to have another display dedicated to her pottery at a future date.)

Our second CAC Featured Artist was Judy Preston Hirsch. Her wonderful sculptures were on display from March 5 to April 8, 2018, and they were enjoyed by many of our members as well as the general population of Rossmoor as they paused to browse our windows. The Rossmoor News published a very nice article about Judy in their April 18 issue - see below. It was a bit later than optimal, however it's great that it happened.

From now on we will be posting about each Featured Artist in a more timely fashion (i.e., during the time that their work is on display), as well as publicizing them in the Rossmoor News. Watch this space for information about the current one - coming soon! (Scroll down below the article for more information.)

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FYI, The Ceramic Studio window displays are changed on the second Monday of the month throughout the year (except November & December). The window displays generally include 2 to 3 pieces each from various members who want to exhibit them; those pieces may be offered for sale or not, as the artist prefers. The windows also hold some of the ceramic pieces that have been donated by our members to sell to raise funds for the club - and of course the display of the work of the current Featured Artist.

NOTE: Any CAC member who wishes to be a Featured Artist in the future should contact Nancy Meaden. You may also suggest another member who you think should be a CAC Featured Artist.

On April 18 we had our third annual Empty Bowls fundraiser, with over 200 hand-crafted ceramic bowls on sale, to be filled with any of 20 kinds of delicious (& free) soup, all made by our multi-talented members. The exact total we raised for the local Food Bank is $1184 (we raised $670 in 2016 and $900 in 2017). And although it was a lot of work, it was also a lot of fun!

Below is a photo of some of us that was taken by Mike DiCarlo of the Rossmoor News just before the sale opened. It shows only a fraction of the CAC members who contributed to the sale. By the way, there was a also second table full of bowls - they didn't all fit onto just one table! And of course a third table held 20 steaming pots of soup. No one went away hungry, there was something for everyone!

It's been a busy winter & spring! We've recently had another Orientation Class and welcomed 14 new members. Several local clay artists from outside of Rossmoor have demonstrated interesting techniques at our club meetings. There have been two Beginning Wheel classes of 4 sessions each (today is the last day).

In addition, many of our members have made beautiful bowls to donate for the upcoming Empty Bowls fundraiser coming next month (April 18). Also lots of pottery and a number of beautiful and/or quirky sculptures have been created in our studio. Last but not least, some of our folks have brought their pieces to share at our monthly Show & Tell sessions. See below for just a taste of it!

The old year is gone and the new one's well begun - time flies! The gallery of photos below illustrate some of our activities from late December (2017) through early February, including a Show and Tell session, a visit to the studio by grandchildren, a demonstration (by ceramic artist Daniel Oliver), a class on painting with underglaze and a presentation about raku and sagger fire techniques.

Now we are about to welcome a new crop of members, with an Orientation Class that will be starting in two days. Never a dull moment!

We had a very busy September & October, gearing up for the Fall Bazaar that happened on November 4, 2017. It was a very good one, with lots of enthusiastic helpers working hard while having fun, and tons of wonderful ceramic pottery & sculpture to sell. And in the process we had record sales to benefit the club - a win-win! There are still a number of wonderful ceramic pieces for sale, so if you are in the area stop into our studio and check them out.

Below are some photos from the last few months (before the Bazaar). Included are: folks at our Show & Tell sessions, artwork that was sold at the Bazaar, unloading the Pit Fired pieces, and CAC artists looking at the pit fired work. Never a dull moment! (See previous entry below for more on the September Pit Fire.)

Our club welcomed 14 new members last week. The first photo below shows them listening to a presentation on glazing by Nancy & Fred. This was the last Orientation Class of 2017; the next one will be given in February & March of 2018.

This week we had our 2nd annual fall "Mini Pit Fire." The loading of the pit is also shown in this first batch of photos. By the way, the brown stuff on top of the load in the last couple of pictures just below is dried cow dung - it's one of the best things to burn in  pit fire, making the pieces color up really nicely!

It will be unloaded tomorrow (Sept 20), so watch this space for more photos, including the results of the firing.. which is the proof of the pudding, as they say!

The pit was lit on fire shortly after noon (Sept 18) - the next set of photos are of the flames after it had been going for some time, followed by covering the smoldering pit with sheets of metal. Can't wait to see what comes out of it!

The Ceramic Studio's display windows have been featuring numerous colorful small cars, vans & busses made by CAC members who took the workshop "Sculpting Cars with Creatures" earlier this summer. Inspired by two whimsical sculptures of vehicles filled with animals and people that were created by Judy Johnson several years ago, the class was taught by Judy Johnson and Anne Shulenberger, who guided the participants as they sculpted small cars and vans out of clay and then painted them with various underglazes and glazes. This process is rather long and painstaking, but those who made the little vehicles had a great time and everyone who sees them agrees that it was worth it.

This display is there only through September 10, 2017 - hurry on down to see it while you can! NOTE: The photos below were taken by Michael DiCarlo & are much appreciated.

We had a really good Show and Tell last Friday, including more of the little ceramic vehicles. Also Mike, the official Rossmoor Photographer, came by yesterday and took more photos for the August 16 edition of the Rossmoor News. Most of the little cars & vans will be displayed in our studio's windows starting Monday, August 14 - everyone should come  and check them out!

Note: The pictures below were taken by our own members (not Mike). We'll post one or more of Mike's photos in a week or two - stay tuned!

Lots going on lately, including saggar and raku firing (both regular and "naked" raku). That's Helen with her naked raku pot below - note the beautiful wooden handle, which was added after the firing.

We also had a workshop on making small vehicles with people and critters inside, which was lots of fun! It was based on a car and a van that our own Judy Jo made from clay 5+ years ago -shown below. Judy and Anne taught the class together. Some of the work in progress is shown below, as well as one page of a set of instructions. It's not a simple project, that's for sure - but people really got into it.

A display of the whimsical cars and vans created by our members will be in the CAC Studio's windows next month, starting August 14.  And watch this space for more pictures!