Ceramic bonanza - bank holiday weekend

Hello everyone. We had a nice bank holiday weekend. I was busy making ceramics for the MA show coming up, and Mike looked after our animal family and the house. MA show private view is from 6 to 8 pm on the 6th September at Sidney Cooper gallery on the High street, Canterbury. If you are around, do pop in, and say hi to me!  I am the only Japanese there, and I usually look cheerful. Mike says that I always get up from the right side of the bed!

Last Friday, the studio was so hot that I couldn't concentrate, so I brought clay back home, and finished masks in the garden. Mike was playing with his new toy after work. This mask is called 'Syria'.

'Syria'

'Wasted talent', 'Syria' and 'Gandhara' 

I have done numerous firing recently. I fire two kilns at the same time; bisque and glaze.

The severed body in front of a new head behind

Glaze firing with several glaze tests

On Sunday, between making ceramic sculptures, we took dogs to the campus for a walk. It was a nice break.

Are we there yet?
We haven't started yet, Pearl!

Faster, faster!

Who's that? 

Look at her shiny eyes and white teeth! Topaz is back! 

I feel younger!

Bank holiday Monday, I spent about six hours to try to create a mix media sculpture, and failed. Ugh. Never mind, There is such a day. Mike took me out for a lunch. Beer was for me. Water was for him!

I had the last steak for a while. I will be off beef until badger cull stops. 

Mike bought John Rocha shirt on sale + Blue cross! We also got this. It was an alcoholic type. That's exactly I had needed after wasting my day!

Whisky is the best. : )

  

My new dog wall mask and Oare marsh

Hello everyone. We had a hot afternoon here in Canterbury. Late afternoon, I popped into the studio to collect fired works.  I had two kilns on, and both went well. There were three glossy chameleons, three wall masks as well as other things. I have listed one of them this evening. It is a dog mask. You would imagine I made a whippet. Not so, this time.

My new dog wall mask

 
The brown glaze has delicious colour! It is my new glaze. I love him! I don't know exactly which breed he is, but I feel he has a bit of terrier. He is on my Etsy shop now.  

Side view

I have also listed two more works. If you haven't checked my shop recently, have a look at my new works!

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Mike, who is in the middle of 10-day-leave, went to Oare Marsh, near Faversham, this afternoon. It is one of our favourite places for bird-watching. I would have gone with him if I hadn't been this busy with my work.

As he got his new camera, he took lots of beautiful photos of Oare. Oare is the stopping place for migrating birds. Birds land here to feed after arriving from the Continent, and before heading to the Continent. So we can see lots of different birds.

Very shallow water between Oare and Isle of Sheppy. 

Always wind-swept. Little egret.

Mike was happy to see several Avocets. I like them. They are elegant slim birds with turned bills. I have seen their chicks in a wildlife park. When they are very young, they have straight bills.

Avocets

Lots of waders

Surrounding Oare is an agricultural area. They were making hay. I call them Baumkuchen. Do you know this delicious German cake? I used to have them when I was in Japan. There are definitely similarity between the cake and the hay!

A mast of a boat in Farversham creek is behind the field

I would go there to see migration in early autumn. It is a lovely view of swallows and swifts feeding over the water. But today, I have to satisfied with the beautiful photos Mike has taken.