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"4 Vessels for 4 Seasons" is coming up soon at the Bascom!

 June 16th through June 22nd I will be teaching a workshop at the Bascom Art Center in Highlands, NC called "4 Vessels for 4 Seasons".  A close friend and fellow artist, Corbin Tucker, will be working with me and sharing her extensive knowledge and experience with making specialized containers for special plant materials, including moss gardens.

We are planning to start our first day with a trip to the Stone Lantern in Highlands where the owner Ralph DeVille will show us around the shop and talk informally about the various Ikebana arrangements.  We will also have a chance to look at his collection of Ikebana containers and ask questions about the various designs and how they are used for a variety of approaches to the art of Ikebana.  I am looking forward to purchasing a special pair of Ikebana scissors, along with a few other items specifically for use in the art of Ikebana.   

Then we will head for the local Botanical Gardens for a tour and discussion about the amazing variety of plant materials that are indigenous to the area.  This should help us to be mindful of what we pick and how we pick plant materials for our own informal, Ikebana inspired arrangements.

For those of you who follow Pinterest, I have a special board devoted to Ikebana arrangements, instructions on how to create certain types of Ikebana arrangements, along with a wonderful and inspiring variety of types of ceramic vessels that I think would work well with the ideas inherent in the art of Ikebana and flower arranging in general.  I hope that looking through these will give you some ideas ahead of time about the kinds of vessels you might like to make .  Pinterest.com is the link where you can join and see my Ikebana Board.You might even do a few simple sketches ahead of time so Corbin and I will be better able to help you choose a clay technique that will best work for the form you wish to achieve. 

For the first project we plan to extrude a clay tube for each participant.  We will do this Sunday and let them set up for the first class on Monday. We will show you a variety of ways to create a more vertical container to start with or you may want to start in an entirely different way. Corbin and I will be loaded with examples and ideas but we are there to assist you in the direction you would like to take.  We are both excited to be involved in a project that brings our love of clay together with our love of gardening and our natural environment.

I plan to use my blog to post information that you might find useful as you are preparing for the workshop so consider subscribing.  You can do this on the left under Alice's blog.

See you soon!

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Why I love trees...

I love the strong gestural line of their trunk.   I love the branches for the varying lines they create, I love the negative space between the branches that creates those wonderful shapes of space in between.   I love the myriad of textures and colors.  I love the way they dance in the wind and create those swishing sounds.  I love the spectacular seasonal changes, the seeds and flowers and leaves,  I love the way the brand new bud of the spring leaf is always just behind the old leaf when it separates from the tree.   I love the way the leaves fall to the earth, decay and create nutrients for the new leaves in the spring, and on and on and on....

Crepe Myrtle trees greet me each day when I arrive at school.

Like an old friend this crepe myrtle greets me each time I come home...

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A spring happening partially observed....

One of the joys and fascinations of this spring has been the discovery that a tiny house wren had chosen my bedraggled, still bound with shiny gold paper, Christmas poinsettia plant in our greenhouse to build it's tiny softly woven nest in. 

We didn't actually discover the nest until we noticed a tiny wren darting in and out of the greenhouse while we were having our morning coffee out on the deck.  Much to our surprise, this process had been going on for some time because by the time we discovered the nest, there were 4 tiny eggs inside!

The mother and father, we finally saw two of them, were actually quite tolerant of our close presence just outsid her softly feathered little condo in our greenhouse.  That includes our 2 joyfully leaping standard poodles, Jaz and Rosie.  We watched for days on end and were about to think the eggs would never hatch when Roger discovered 3 little open beaks when he peered in like some giant but respectful intruder.

This morning observation over steaming cups of coffee continued for what has seemed forever. Naturally we were hoping to have a sighting of the little fledglings actually fledging. But this morning it was too quiet, no parents darting in and out with their vocal signals that the coast was clear.  So Roger went in to see if anyone was home.  The tiny nest was empty and silent!  We had the terrible feeling of disappointment that we had missed an important moment in time. The quiet and the peace of the moment seemed a poignant reminder of how fleeting, how fragile and how fascinating life is...

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First Ever Arts & Crafts Festival at CCES - A great success!!!!!!!!!

Shared table with my 7/8 Advanced Art Elective with parents, colleagues and visitors.  

Congratulations go to Jennifer Halley!!!!!!!!!!

Although I can't include faces and names, you can see my students were all smiles, having a great time, and were rightfully proud of their work and display.  

Lucky me to get to work with such special, highly motivated and exceptionally creative young people! Let me add that this was also a lesson in pricing, organizing, display and marketing.  They all receive superior marks!  These special students will go on to be a bright spot in the future for all of us to admire and enjoy!  I am proud of all of you 7/8 Art Elective students!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Spring Debut for some new pinched Meditation Bowls

Pinched Pair of Meditation Bowls, white earthenware with terra sigillata, oxides and glaze line, largest 4" x 5" x 5.5"

For more details, check my site, in the left border, available inventory (Meditation Bowls) 

Meditation Bowl Pair posing on a rock in my garden...

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Michael Richardson returns to CCES

Michael Richardson came to visit us at CCES for a second time!  Once again he came to share his gifts, knowledge and exquisite puppets but this time it was with all 3 divisions of our school. At the Middle School level he met with my 5th grade students and introduced then to the origins of puppetry with a focus on Indonesian puppets and the unique way they are performed by a single person.  We also talked about movement and about how the skeleton helps us move in a particular way.

Students were then asked to use parts of 3 real animals to create an imaginary animal, draw it in pencil first and then trace it on tracing paper with all moving parts separated off to the side.  This was transferred to heavy watercolor paper, outlined with black Sharpie, cut out, hole punched and reassembled as a moving creature.  The last step was using very watery effects with water color so as not to cover up the detail of the Sharpie.

You will see that the results are stunning as well as delightful!  Seeing the resulting project should help you understand why I love teaching this age student and why I adore working with visiting artists Michael Richardson.  The whole experience was creativity at its most stimulating. Visit facebook to see how amazing he is as an artist, performer, teacher and person.

.https://www.facebook.com/pages/Red-String-Wayang-Theatre/128992150471954?sk=info

one of Michael's puppets made the traditional way in Indonesia with water buffalo belly skin

bones from all 3 division science departments to help the cause

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Celebrating after the talk at the Mint Museum of Art yesterday

Erika, me and Jen

Elizabeth and me

Life is a Spiral -http://www.mintmuseum.org/happenings/396/artist-s-talk-alice-ballard

The topic for my talk, Life is a Spiral, was supported by a warm and wonderful group of family members, old friends and new friends, all spiraling back to the Mint Museum to help me tell my story and remind us all how extraordinary life is!  This morning, Cheryl Palmer, Curator of Education at the Mint and close friend for some 35 years emailed and commented on how amazing it was to look out into an audience filled with so many unexpected family, old and new friends!  She said about the experience, "I hope it felt like a giant hug".  What a lovely way to put it!  It was like we were all embraced by the spiral of the experience and the feeling was mighty special.

I need to extend a huge thank you to my son Ryan Munn who was instrumental in helping with technology I needed to put the talk together and then did all the fine tuning at the end to make sure the images were at their best.  Having Ryan, Jen and Erica in the front row of the audience rooting me on was great.  Having Ryan share the podium with me at the end to talk about how the "Bud" and "Bulb" came to be part of the Mint's permanent collection was the absolute perfect way to create another type of closure for both of us as we invited everyone to visit these two pieces in "The Allure of Flowers" exhibition currently at the Mint.

Support for the Power Point aspect of the talk was also made possible by Karen Polstra at CCES, where I teach Middle School art 2 days a week. Many other folks who are friends and colleagues were also a support because they were aware of the emotional content of this talk and stood behind me like cheerleaders.  Lucky me to have all that support!

At brunch before the talk, I was telling everyone about all the help and moral support I had received in order to put my first Power Point presentation together. I said I couldn't help but think about the saying that "it takes a village to raise a child."  In fact, it felt like I had entire village of family and friends cheering me on and making my talk possible!

Thank you everyone from the bottom of my heart.  Alice

SEE UPCOMING EVENTS ON MY SQUARESPACE SITE FOR MORE DETAILS AND FUTURE SHOWS AND WORKSHOPS  

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