[Clayart] ready made

[Dragonbelly Ceramics]

There is great pleasure and satisfaction in the making of things.  My
favorite hat is one I knitted from yarn I made on a drop spindle. And I
also buy yarn spun commercially to knit and crochet.

I don't own my own sheep (though a friend does and I have helped her clean
and process fleeces), so I'm not intimately involved in every part of the
process, yet I maintain the sweaters, socks, and hats I design and make
from purchased yarn are also hand made.

One can take this handmade or not debate to absurd lengths. Where I draw my
personal line is in the importance of knowing and appreciating the process
of how a thing is made.

Best,
LJ

On Mon, Oct 28, 2024, 9:05 AM mel jacobson via Clayart <
clayart at lists.clayartforum.com> wrote:

> I woke this day thinking of making a model airplane from balsa wood sticks
> and tissue paper. Glued together as it was pinned to an old bread board
> with waxed paper base. It took weeks to get it done. Then paint it with
> "dope". The propellor was powered by a rubber band. It was almost like
> reverence when it first flew through the air. Imagine, being 11 years old
> and building a P-40 or a two wing Spad.
>
> Now, all things are ready made. Instant toys. One learns never to waste
> time "making from scratch". Now the 11 year old boy can watch porno for
> hours on his own phone. Sad.
>
> Yes, I am a purist. And I love being a purist. Of course, I make my own
> recipe and pug mill my clay. I make all the glazes and sift them carefully.
> I built all the kilns I fire. My favorite is a breakaway from the Nils Lou
> flat top. A mini version.
>
> I totally built the house I live in. Even cut down the oak trees and
> hauled them to the sawmill. A friend with a backhoe came over and we
> installed a huge drain field for the sewer system I built.
>
> I can go on, but to be a purist and love the work, love the time it takes
> to build it yourself fills the time slots of  your day. It is filling your
> life with projects that come from you, then the repair and care. It is
> wonderful.
>
> I thought about a potter that buys a kit to make a Japanese Tea Ceramony
> bowl. It cannot be done. The reverence of the making and years it takes to
> understand nuance is real.
>
> A neighbor lady brought me 15 perfect chocolate chip cookies yesterday. I
> ground some coffee beans and we had coffee, cream and cookies. It brings
> tears to my eyes.
> mel
> I read of a man snowed in his cabin in Montana and spent a month making a
> Violin from scrap wood, a jar of wood glue and a pint of varnish. He had a
> picture of a violin from National Geographic. A professional violinist
> played it and said it was totally fine. I love that story.
>
>
> website: www.melpots.com
> WWW.clayartarchives.com
>
>
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