"B.P Slick Crude Monster" (finished)

There are no words that I can find to describe my disgust for the human scum that are responsible for the huge ecological disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. So I made a jug about it. Accidents are forgivable but this was simply the results of greedy, mindless, careless, corrupt people cutting corners to make ever larger profits.

He comes without a stopper (just like the real monster)

He is listed on ebay and the profits from his sale will go to help wildlife rescue of the animals affected by the spill. CLICK HERE

Fishing

20 pounds of channel catfish. Caught in the lake just a 1/4 mile from home. I guess you know what's for dinner.

Notice: I'm wearing my lucky, "Holey" fishin' jeans

The more holes they get the more fish I catch.

"B.P Slick", Petroleum Monster (in progress)

"B.P. Slick" is a face jug in progress. He will be glazed with a dark amber over the black underglaze and will look like crude oil.

What if there were a dangerously  greedy, corrupt, mindless, careless monster in the bottom of the sea? What if it rose to the surface and devoured every life form for hundreds of miles in every direction?  Suppose that it ruined everything it touched, destroying birds fish mammals crustaceans and  even people and their livelihoods.
Even a fairy tale monster like that would be scary. Unfortunately this monster is REAL!!!!
It was released in the Gulf of Mexico by dangerously  greedy, corrupt, mindless, careless people in April 2010..

Birds and fish mired in crude

Birds at the mercy of a monster

Dolphins and fish

Fish

Teeth in rows like the oil drill bits.

This is what the glaze will look like.

Making this commemorative jug follows a long tradition of artists using their art to comment on  current events.

We used to make a lot of social commentary art in the 1960's and 70's. Maybe it's time to revive the practice.

Today's Harvest

I dig gardening (pun intended).

The first "New" potatoes and sugar snap peas of the season. We don't raise potatoes for storage. We harvest and eat them when they are small and tender. These are  to be simmered in cream and butter with the edible pod peas. Yummm!

Sugar Snap peas growing on the fence. They are about 6 feet tall and are burying us in peas. They will be done soon when the daytime temps get near ninety. We'll freeze a few quarts

The most anticipated (and best tasting)  tomato of the season. It will be the first to ripen in a few days and I can't wait to taste a homegrown tomato again.

Strawberry Harvest

Here's a picture of todays Strawberry harvest from the garden. Home grown berries are SOOOOO.. much tastier than the gigantic, cardboard tasting supermarket berries. More will be ripe tomorrow.  Some of the plants will supply us with a quart of berries each!

Dragon lady and Friends

I have wanted to make a dragon and a lady sharing a common eye for several months. Once I started sculpting it just seemed natural to have two dragons (after all she has two eyes). This left me with two eyes on the back so I thought an owl would fit nicely there. The ends of the dragon's noses even became screaming faces! The hardest part of the sculpture was to come up with a woman's face that had some sex appeal. Most face pot sculptors can make monsters, ugly men and old crones but we're terrified of making a pretty woman's face (Lol!). 

Thunderstorm In The Garden

A nice gentle thunderstorm on my garden today with lots of wonderful rain. Peaceful, in an odd way. My friend, Sally Cloud, described it as, "green noise". I really like that description.

Homemade Earth Box Experiment

The Earthbox is a container growing system.   Basically, there is a water reservoir in the bottom of the box that you  fill through a PVC tube. a plastic screen  holds the soil over the reservoir. Two holes in the screen allows soil to serve as wicks to bring the water up into your box as needed for the plant. There is a runoff slot just below where the plastic screen would sit inside the box. You water  through a PVC tube, just until you start to get some runoff flowing out of the holes in the side of the reservoir.  That way you'll always have water, without overwatering. (Google Earthbox)
Being cheap and somewhat skeptical I designed my own using a $3 plastic box . Fertilizer is placed on top of the potting soil and feeds all season long. Once you plant and cover the box you don't open it or add fertilizer  until the growing season ends. Just add water and stand back!  Check out Global Bucket on youtube to get an idea how they are built .

Just been planted a month!

Brandywine Heirloom tomato 5-11

Brandywine Heirloom tomato 5-11 tomatoes  growing

5-6-10

4-22-10

4-10-10

4-1-10

Scarborough Faire

This is the participants parade at Scarborough Faire in Waxahache, Texas (May 2010).
In the 80's and 90's we participated in this Renaissance Faire as artists. We also did 2 other  "Ren" fairs each year. This is the first time we have attended a Renaissance faire as patrons instead of participants. It felt strange to be there and not be in costume.

Dragon Lady In Progress

Dragon Lady jug in progress. I have been thinking about this piece for months but have been afraid to try it. Oh, it is not the intricate sculpting that put me off. but the idea that I would have to  come up with an attractive face. Pretty faces are the bane of many "face potters". Monsters, ugly men and old crones are no problem. I hope I succeeded with  her. She's pretty enough, but a little evil.

There are actually four faces on the jug. 

The opposing dragons share eyes with the lady and an owl on the back side.
Glazing should be a challenge.

When I finished the lady on front I still had two eyes on the back so I decided they would make a good owl.

The dragons wers sculpted from two thrown cone shapes.

World's Happiest Face jug...Making Cider

Making Apple cider....This must be the world's happiest jug. Just think how he must feel. Filled with organic apple juice, a bit of sugar, some ale yeast, then left to blow Co2 farts into a bottle for a couple of weeks while the alcohol content slowly increases. Thats why he's smiling!