teabags

"I have to push the envelope constantly. Every new piece represents an opportunity for me to learn and to master something new. I want to go a step further every time." Meryl Ruth

meryl ruth's functional teapot handbag series is sweet, funny and well done. this five time niche award finalist has a charming sense of humor and style. her work is a standout because she pays meticulous attention to minute details as she manipulates the clay. she's also having fun and it shows.

toby goldsmith sent the link and a few laughs to boot. thanks again toby!

consuming conversation

"Like recurring conversations with friends over cups of tea or coffee, this works reflects the consuming conversation of our consumer society. The recycled tin containers used to construct this work are diverted from a destiny as trash, revitalizing the mundane into the extraordinary." Harriete Estel Berman

harriete estel berman crafts teacup stacks from recycled tins, adding sterling silver or brass handles and tucking a magnet inside each cup so that the stacks can be rearranged. her body of work is a powerful statement about consumer consumption's toll on our culture. one of the conversations sparked by berman's beautifully crafted recycled teapots, cups and jewelry is that creativity might very well be at risk of getting caught in the far-reaching net cast by disposable commodities. well said.

branching out

"My love of nature, trees, and quiet is perhaps most evident in my pieces incorporating branches. I start my process of creation with an inspirational walk in the woods. I gather fallen branches in just the right stage of dryness. After lugging them back to my studio, I study them for the form that they speak of." Jan Jaque

after forming the basic clay shape, new york potter jan jaque adds an element of surprise by incorporating the fallen branch that inspired the vessel. the slab and coil construction process utilized to create 'teapotnot' is slow and deliberate and includes paddling, scraping, shaping, sanding, coloring and pit-firing the clay along with sanding, carving, staining, fitting and sealing the wood. her patience for the process allows almost total control over the materials. teapotnot is appropriately named - instead of a teapot, i see the graceful curves of an other-worldly dancer practicing at the quintessential ballet bar. sweet.

license to dazzle

"Rusted license plates and wire, radiator cans and the hubcaps off a '36 Ford have, for me, the strength to evoke the smells, sounds and tastes of my own places of becoming. These are places that could spin yarns about first cars, first times and how treasures become broken. I believe that sharing with others the things that have made us who we are enlarges our understanding of what it can mean to be human." Steven Hansen

i found steven hansen's work on a site about recycled art. looks like a teapot made with recycled metal parts and old license plates, right? that's what the author of the site thought too, but the realistic battered-sign pots and vases are actually ceramic. more than just interesting to look at, he works with a coded language of symbols to "blur the boundaries between art and commerce, between craft and art." hansen wants his work to be read on mulitiple levels, beginning with the concept of a simple, well crafted object and continuing all the way through to the not-so-hidden statements about history, advertising and commerce that wrap around many of the pieces.

mixed marriage

"People talk about the element of risk in their work. I recently heard a story of a Cambodian painter who was told to paint Pol Pot with the stipulation that if the painting was no good he would be killed. That's risk. I'm more interested in wandering from idea to idea propelled by curiosity, not fear. There is a large amount of suffering in the world. If, when somebody sees my work they feel some pleasure, that is success." Bennett Bean

new jersey's bennett bean is described as a studio potter, sculptor and a fine artist with decades of experience in several media. 'mixed marriage' is just one example of his ability to paint across separate pieces, giving them the appearance of unity and continuity. although best known for his pit-fired earthenware bowls, the sophisticated, sleek series of pairs and triplets are definitely worth ogling. thanks to teapot-lover toby goldsmith for the link.

trapuncro

"I work primarily in crochet, but it's not what most people expect to see. I invented my own technique for working with this medium by crocheting on top of trapunto quilting." Irene C. Reed

teapot? handbag? teapot? handbag? ok, i get it now: irene c. reed's richly detailed forms are teapot shaped handbags. she quilts the bags and uses cotton and metallic threads in her trapunto details. for those who aren't 'in the know', trapunto is a quilting technique that produces a raised surface on the quilt. reed's innovative adaptation is simply brilliant. my name for it? trapuncro.

sea of change

pat kazi's fish-o-war teapot

pat kazi is inspired by fairy tales. fairy tales and mythology. fairy tales, mythology and history. her porcelain teapots and mixed media sculptures are fantastical. some intriguing, others provocative, and all perfectly captivating storytellers.

there will be no fairy tale ending to the war we are fighting today. it has changed our history and created it's own mythology, but now that the elections are behind us, we can at least hope that there will be a sea of change ahead.

fabricated

"My grandmother had a dress shop in New Orleans. My favorite place was the attic of the store, where the alterations were done. To a young child, the sewing machines, scraps and threads of all colors, hooks, eyes and all types of scissors were mysterious, rich and tempting. After my grandmother died most of the sewing accessories were mine. In addition to the visual inspiration they provide, I use some of these tools when constructing my porcelain sculptures and incorporate some of the threads, fabrics and buttons in the finished work." Laura Peery

her grandmother's passion for dressmaking offered laura peery more than just sewing lessons. the countless hours she spent in her grandmother's shop helped peery form a lifelong fascination with fabric. today she fabricates whimsical teapots and shoes by cutting porcelain clay from patterns, pressing fabric into the clay to capture delicate texture, draping the clay and adding seam lines - resulting in teapots that look like they have been carefully sewn together. the finishing touch? colorful polymer clay flowers that dot the surface of these joyful pots.

inanimate objects

"Making baskets isn't something I "want" to do, it is something I "have" to do. The elemental nature of baskets, thinking about what can be placed in the basket, what gives life to the inanimate object of the basket, informs my work. the basket is the container of things needed to maintain my life. memories, mementos of my own life process, are kept in the baskets that I make." Marilyn Moore

noted for her color blending technique, basket artist marilyn moore weaves multiple strands of fine wires and threads, adding one new strand at a time. her technique is labor intensive, requiring a great deal of patience and mental energy. the practice is reminiscent of a meditation exercise. the result? iridescent baskets that seem to capture the light from within.

twofer

“I really like the permanence of what I do. That something I do today draws you in and keeps you there a long, long time. I like things that float…I can’t help it! Hinges, doors waiting to be opened, things that make little shaking noises. After all, where’s the fun if you can’t play with your jewelry?” Chihiro Makio

chihiro makio’s ‘tea for two’ is a playful, surprising piece of holloware and a 2006 saul bell award winner (second place, holloware). In 2003 makio also won second place and with work like this, i have no doubt that she’ll be back in the winner's circle in years to come.

thanks to judy dunn for bringing this gem to my attention. dunn is also an award winning artist. if her polymer clay vessels were miniature, they would fit right in with makio’s tea party: pear and apple shaped boxes replete with colorful embellishments and dunn's original drawings. (see below) they are, um, well…delicious.

walking tall

"The sculptures are, for me, a way of celebrating life and the secret wonders of burls and roots in the South of France." Alain Mailland

alain mailland is a woodturner who specializes in hollowing, sculpting fragile pieces of burls and colorful roots from his beloved french countryside. at one time a carpenter, mason and roofer, several years ago he turned his attention to art and now teaches and exhibits worldwide. indeed, his work is otherworldly. in a good way.

teapot treasures

"Having grown my own gourds from seeds and preparing them after harvest, they represent to me the development of a living thing into a work of art through the application of special processes and materials. They are, in short, a union of art and nature." Bill Colligen

you might not be able to pour tea from this richly colored teapot, but i can easily imagine it as a place to stash secret treasures and life-lists. bill colligen's gourd vessels and teapot designs boast intricate engraving, verdigris patinas, inlays of gem stones and gold leaf. this arizona artist is serious about gourds. me? i'm serious about life-lists. i make one every few years, tuck it away somewhere safe and then happen upon them months or years later. nice gentle way to check in with myself and see if my life is on course with my desires. try it.