This year Keppers Pottery is fortunate to join the Earth Arts Spring Art Tour on Saturday May 5th and Sunday May 6th from 10 – 5 both days. Again this year Joyce Halvorson of Barron will be demonstrating her blacksmithing skills and offer her wares for purchase. As many of you know Ken died December 19, 2017. I will be here as well as the usual cast of characters – Big …
This year our Spring opener is Saturday May 6th and Sunday May 7th 10 – 5 both days. We have joined the Earth Arts tour again this year We have pottery for sale We will have produce for sale And Joyce Halvorson will be here demonstrating black smithing and selling her work
This time of year Ken starts to wrap up making pottery. The call of the the many tasks awaiting him outdoors sounds more and more loudly. Yes, there is planting, and there is clean up, bed prep, getting out things put away last fall, repairs if necessary. And all the apples, plums, grapes, etc need trimming and pruning! Today Big Red appears to be helping!
Ken has been making mixing bowls. He started with the smaller bowls and then made some larger ones. Making bowls, like all pottery, includes several steps from mixing and wedging the clay to throwing the pot. Then, after it has dried some to a leather hard consistency, Ken trims the bottom of the pot – in this case large mixing or bread bowls. He shapes the bowl, and trims the …
Ken is in the studio making pots. I like to sneak down with a camera and snap some photos. He centers the clay He pulls up the pot’s sides He cleans the top with a chamois He trims excess off the bottom With a wire Ken cuts the pot from the …
Ken taught the first pottery class of 2017 yesterday morning. Today he started making pottery. He said he was “warming up” by making some larger coil pots. As I headed down the stairs he was busy on a banding wheel. He had decided to smooth out some texture. Then he finished that pot. When I went down to announce supper was ready, he was making a second …
Ken’s pug mill of 40+ years needed repairs this week. A pug mill has an auger that mixes clay to a uniform consistency and a vacuum pump that sucks surplus air from the clay. The resulting clay needs minimal wedging (like kneading bread) before it can be used Ken had to take it apart He got out the manual The bearings needed to …
Ken processes clay found on our land . First he dries the clay completely and then works the clay into a slip about the consistency of cream or yogurt, then he screens it for impurities and next he has to dry the slip to clay. He has been leaving open buckets to dry, but he repurposed some screens These were sprouting racks for grain for the livestock. He has some newer, improved screens, …
Ken built himself a shelf for all his pottery tools. He has several odd pieces he uses to make textured pots, and sling like trays for creating trays like the botanical imprints. He has been using a shelving unit and counter we bought decades ago when a store closed. It worked, but this shelf will work better for Ken. And he plans to move the old unit to his wood …
Friday I took a social media marketing class. Although I can limp along on some venues, I wanted to learn the strengths of various options. I also wanted to learn how to improve what I was already doing. I enjoy posting quotes from various favorite authors. Sometimes they echo my thoughts, and often they say it better than I would. Judging by people’s reactions they also like when I post favorite quotes. I learned about …
