I just returned from a second residency at Pottery Workshop in Jingdezhen (JDZ), the Imperial Porcelain Capital of China. I spent a month at PWS with my husband, assistant, and collaborator Michael Zajac, and my student Grace Boyd, who is about to enter her senior year at the University of Manitoba. Grace Boyd won an Undergraduate Research Award from the U of M, whereby she had the opportunity to choose a professor to work with in a research mentorship for the summer. She chose me!
One month was an incredibly short time to accomplish all I had planned in JDZ, but a good start was made on several new projects and five crates are crossing the ocean as I write this. The crates are filled with proofs of concept, several beautiful large moulds, bags of the famous JDZ superwhite porcelain, and ten jugs of superwhite casting slip. The photos show some process shots and some of the fired results.
The summer will be intense, working between two studios and also spending time at AssentWorks, creating components for the works that will be shown in my exhibition, Arbor Vitae, opening on January 18, 2015 at the Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery. I am grateful for the assistance of the Winnipeg Arts Council for supporting my further investigations at AssentWorks, and also to the Canada Council for its assistance. I would also like to thank Michael Zajac and Grace Boyd for their participation and enthusiasm in helping me to accomplish my ambitious goals. These are my most challenging works so far!
