Pottery – Page 5 – kenSwinson.com

Posted on July 27, 2022September 27, 2022 by ken — Leave a comment

25 July 2022-kiln opening

Today the kiln decided to be really nice to me, and didn’t make rubble out of any of the porcelain plates and bowls that I spent so much time to decorate. (none of the plates seemed to warp either. Lots of bears inspired by my summer at Arrowmont. Also a NEW COLOR!!! I little darker than I expected, but I can adjust it to be more of a bluegrass blue!

small bear plate
small goat plate
oval chicken plate
small bunny plate
oval bears doing laundry plate
oval fox plate
oval bears with bees and flowers plate
oval bears doing laundry plate
oval bears with flowers plate
oval cardinal plate
bluegrass flower bowl
bees and blooms cups
bear and bees cup
bear and blooms cup
bear with blooms cup
cat in blooms cup
bird on branch cup
jumping sheep cup

If you are familiar with me, you know I ONLY sell my pots in person. No online sales, no shipping. If you would like to have one of these (and support my work) come see me this friday (29 July) at the Pendleton Art Center Cincinnati from 5-9pm. I’m at studio 400.

Hope to see you soon!

Posted on July 13, 2022September 26, 2022 by ken — Leave a comment

pottery intensive week

So far, i’m having a wonderful pottery intensive week. I’ve been able to stay in the ZONE for 3+ days, and hope to keep that momentmum going. My craftsmanship has really leveled up after the last two workshops at Arrowmont. These cups are JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBURG!!! I have beautifully decorated plates and bowls on the drying rack too.

And you will never guess what im going to start next week…but you KNOW it will involve pottery! I’m so excited and grateful!

Posted on July 8, 2022 by ken — 1 Comment

8 July 2022 Kiln Opening

Earlier today, I opened the kiln and welcomed some new porcelain pots to the world!

They are all food/microwave safe, and made to be used.

Swipe/use arrows below to see all the pots in a slideshow

Goat plate
blue bird bowl double carved
spice jar 3
spice jar 2
spice jar 1
cardinal bowl
pig bowl
green leaf bowl
green bird bowl
horse bowl
black bunny cup
bear with tree cup
bears with heart cup
Bear In Blooms Cup 1
bear In Blooms Cup 2
horse cup
bunny with heart cup 2
bunny with heart cup 1
goat cup – sold
bird cup

Unfortunately, I ONLY sell pottery in person. You can come see me every Final Friday at the Pendleton Art Center in Cincinnati. OR by appointment at my home or studio in Old Washington, KY.

PRICES FOR YOUR REFERENCE
cups and simple bowls: $45
Spice Jars: $60
Bowl Carved inside/out and Goat plate: $100

Posted on June 30, 2022September 26, 2022 by ken — Leave a comment

I could have a worse problem

I told myself that once I got back from Arrowmont, i’d take a break from pottery and do more painting.

“hows that going?”

This isn’t everything–just one corner of my studio. There are more pottery works in progress. I think i have a pot problem, lol!

Posted on June 20, 2022September 25, 2022 by ken — Leave a comment

Print on Clay with Tom + Dave – Arrowmont Workshop

I’m super grateful to be back at Arrowmont School of Arts and Craftsl for a printmaking (on clay) workshop with Thomas Lucas and David Todd Trost .

look who was on the campus to greet us!!!! He/she/they will be the inspiration for my print on clay project!

At the Arrowmont School of arts and Crafts in Tennessee-learning to make screens in the darkroom, then screen printing with ceramic glazes with master printer Thomas Lucas at a mind blowing print on clay workshop at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts . this is just one of many techniques we are learning.

This workshop is a double feature, with TWO instructors. In addition to learning from a master printer, we also have David Todd Trost. Not only is he like a walking talking encyclopedia in all things clay (and professional wrestling), but he’s also an amazing teacher-he explains and demonstrates what he knows in a way that’s just as entertaining as it is educational. I learned so much, and am super grateful to have had this opportunity to learn from them.

my table towards the end of the workshop

my super talented and nice class at Arrowmont

i’m back in the studio, testing on porcelain with some of the prints we made at master printer Thomas Lucas workshop…I’ve read all the books on printing on clay, and he has some refinements (that work better) to those techniques–and some new techniques I never even thought were possible. In all things ceramic testing is critical. one change in material (porcelain) can make a difference between success and failure.

Fortunately, in class, we had the opportunity to troubleshoot, and tom helped me understand what each component of the inks are doing, so I can refine and adjust to make sure I get the best results possible with my particular clay/glaze/temperature combination. Thanks to Tom and Dave everyone at Arrowmont and those who made this experience possible. I feel renewed and am filled with inspiration. stay tuned!

Posted on June 3, 2022September 24, 2022 by ken — Leave a comment

Surface design with Adero Willard – Arrowmont Workshop

A lot of you know I’m a self taught potter-never had formal instruction. Thanks to a good friend/patron, I’m taking a pottery workshop by Adero Willard at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Tennessee…my first pottery class!!!

Already, the workshop has been a transformative experience for me -and the way I think about ceramic surface design. It’s been intense, working in the studio from morning until we are kicked out of at midnight.

I have to process the firehose of information she is sharing with us before I share any pictures of the pots we are making, but look who came to join us for lunch today!!!

I’ve never seen a bear in the ‘wild’ before. It was a magical experience! This place is an artist dream come true!

I decided the bears were my muse, and I used it as a model for some of my pots during Adero Willard ‘s workshop. These are early pots from the workshop:

An early pot from the workshop:

At this point in the workshop, i was learning about layers, wax resist and slip trails using Amaco Brent underglazes. I was really curious about firing the underglaze and redware pottery at that temperature (cone 2)…it comes out very lovely!

More pots from the workshop:

The main lesson (of MANY) that I took from the workshop was to be curious (what if?) and to experiment (try it!) while in the studio. While remembering to keep records and notes, so that we could duplicate the successful combinations, and avoid the not so nice ones.

If you are familiar with my work, you know this kind of mark making is WAY out of my comfort zone. It wasn’t easy to loosen up and just work with pattern and colors, but it sure was FUN, once I got into it! Don’t worry, i’ll still make cute little bears,goats and bunnys, but there’s a good chance there may be some new pattern and colors in future work.

a big thank you to everyone who made this wonderful experience possible!

Posted on April 19, 2022April 19, 2022 by ken — Leave a comment

18 April 2022 – Kiln Opening

Some new porcelain pottery from my most recent kiln opening.

Green Leaf Spice Jar
Cardinal Spice Jar
Horse Bowl
Fox Bowl
Tiger Cup
Black Cats Cup
Horse Cup With Thistle
Horse Cup With Flowers
Green Leaf Cup
Green Dove Cup 2
Green Dove Cup 1
Green Tulip Cup
Green Thistle Cup
Green Leaf Cup 2
green Flowers Cup
Green Flowers And Bees Cup
Bird In Blooms Cup
Tulips Saucer
Thistle Saucer
Bee And Leaf Saucer
Bee And Flower Saucer
Red Leaf Cream Pitcher

Come to one of my upcoming events to see them in person, or click/swipe the photos above for a better look at all the pots from the firing. Sorry, I don’t sell pots online-in person only.

Posted on March 28, 2022 by ken — Leave a comment

March 2022 Kiln Opening

Some new porcelain pottery from my most recent kiln opening.

Come to one of my upcoming events to see them in person, or click/swipe the photos below for a better look at all the pots from the firing.

Posted on February 6, 2022May 14, 2022 by ken — Leave a comment

Kiln Firing 6 February 2022

I just opened the kiln–i had some wonderful goodies, like these little cream pitchers. I don’t know why they got me so excited, but they sure are cute!

Another exciting thing is that I’ve ben experimenting with greens, and have some new results.

Here’s a gallery that shows EVERYTHING that was in today’s firing.
Click the arrows or swipe to see all the different pieces from the firing

cardinal jar 2 – NFS
Fox Jar – NFS
cardinal Jar 1 – NFS
fox cup 1 – sold
cardinal cup
fox cup 2
Fox Cup 3 – Sold
Horse Cup
flower cup
dog cup
bird cup
cow cup
Squirrel Side Plate
Goat Side Plate
Leaf Creamer
Heart With Leaf Creamer
flower creamer
berry creamer 4
berry creamer
berry creamer 3
berry creamer 2
Heart Fruit Creamer 2
HeartFruitCreamer
Heart Blooms Creamer
Vines Small Plate
Vertical Vines Small Plate
lime Green Flower Plate
Green Flowers Side Plate

if you are looking for a unique Valentine’s Day gift, one of these pots might be the perfect thing for you!

I don’t ship or sell online. Pottery should be seen (and picked up) in person before you can truly know if it’s ‘the one’ for you. You can see them in person this Wednesday (February 9th) from noon- 6pm at my studio (studio 400) at the Pendleton Art Center in downtown Cincinnati. Contact me me for more information–or you can visit this facebook link to RSVP:

https://www.facebook.com/events/4834612979908955

All pots are porcelain, lead free, food safe, and can be used in the microwave

Prices for your reference:

Cream Pitchers$25
Cups and Side plates $40
Spice Jars are no longer available