Amanda Simmons

Merry Midwinter and the last work of 2011

2011-12-23T12:34:00.000Z

Recently finished new work and the first glass to come from my residency at North Lands Creative Glass. It's a starting point, getting bigger with free-form hand cut suspension moulds (and all the challenges of coldworking larger vessels, ones that have outgrown my diamond flat bed grinder.....I see wet belt sander envy coming soon). At least I will have chance to work with one when I get to Sunderland on the AA2A scheme....weather, bad health and living on a building site still, all got in the way of me getting there before the winter break.

The large piece above is the first Buoy Boy.... I love this shape and have many more planned, working with mainly powder construction with a coarse frit base. I am so glad I challenged my colour use in winter last year as I've got over using colours I thought I didn't like.....and now actually quite loving the bold warmer spectrum (even coming into some of my dreams of colour in the new kitchen circa 2012). Great to see the Pantone colour of 2012 is bright orange.

Below is 21 Causeymire.....again powder construction for these small vessels (21 in total to mirror the number of turbines at the Causeymire Wind Turbine site in Caithness). Whilst staying at North Lands in 2008 and this September I visited the turbines almost everyday (also the surrounding country side, the views coming back from inland towards the sea are stunning and quite addictive whatever the weather).

Printing results

2011-12-08T15:24:00.001Z

Printing course with Silvana Mclean finished last week (missed it this week as such a lovely way to spend a Wednesday morning). The wonderful snowflake cards below are by Karen Menarry who was on the course as well, although she has been printing for a while.

My first proper print, not being a great Christmas fan I wanted to make Winter Solstice cards instead, although think the image came out more flower-like. A very quick cut into fake lino and some graduated colours taken from Karen s plate. Hoping to get more done over the winter break....as well as getting the kitchen finished, essential workshop maintenance and some very well earned hibernation!

Corsock Crafts Fun

2011-12-08T15:07:00.001Z

Great day in Corsock on Sunday, so many visitors despite the snow..... Hannah McAndrew setting up above and Christine Hester Smith playing with the lemurs below. Bought a wonderful corset from Bedlam Boudoir!

Corsock Crafts this Sunday....

2011-11-28T13:47:00.001Z

This Sunday, December 4th, I'll be having my yearly Winter Sale at Corsock Crafts in Corsock Village Hall (postcode.....DG7 3DN) 11am til 4pm run by Corsock Events. Lots to see and plenty of affordable quality Crafts for seasonal gifts, including my pal Hannah McAndrew, International Potter.

Baking Belle

2011-11-22T14:41:00.001Z

'Baking Belle' Limited edition hanging decorations for Contemporary Applied Arts 'Present Collectables' exhibition on until 7 January.

Recycled Glass

2011-11-22T14:27:00.001Z

Recycled bottles - cut, engraved and sandblasted, available at Gracefield Arts Centre in Dumfries.

Playing in the light

2011-11-03T11:21:00.003Z

I attended my first welding course Monday at The Barony College near Dumfries (a 6 week intro course mainly looking at 'stick' Arc , MIG and TIG welding). I think I'm there really just to get a better idea of how it works as I don't expect to get very good going on my first welds.Also to be able to talk to a good welder in terms they understand to build fittings and fixtures for me (but do hope I can make something in 6 weeks, even if it's fixing the poor wheelbarrow that has done hundreds of trips full of rubble this last month).

Not anywhere near final designs but just starting points for my 'reflectors' (one of 3 or 4 ideas coming along nicely from the residency at North Lands).

Sample Making

2011-10-18T12:54:00.000Z

Pill Light at Vessel

2011-10-16T13:01:00.001Z

From News at Vessel Gallery:

"Amanda J Simmons – Pill Light, 2011

Amanda J Simmons carefully controlled melting of glass has produced a softly hued wall mounted lamp which casts a gentle colour palette on the walls around it. The forms seem to defy gravity whilst surfaces evoke the feeling of the rolling hills surrounding her studio in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland."

The rest of the exhibition can be seen here on the Vessel website.

2nd Zurich Vessel Course

2011-10-14T10:45:00.000Z

I was travelling light this time to Zurich in August and so no camera, the lovely Marta from Creative Ceramics sent me these....thanks Marta (lovely new moulds on their website). It was in the 30's temperature wise in Zurich (after leaving Scotland probably in the mid teens) as well as 3 kilns firing most days. Another great bunch of glass-makers all having fun with a new technique and such a well run glass studio at Creative Glass.

A very well earned beer with Erna (Harry turning up on his bike) and Marta....and no missed flights!

Croft House Inspiration

2011-10-05T10:36:00.002Z

It seems like I have brought home a little of the Croft house to Corsock. Work started on our kitchen on Monday....and of course brought with it a few surprises (like a mini river running under the floor into a sink hole, tree roots growing right across the floor and every type of damp you can imagine)....at least we still have a roof.

Presentation for In Place Residency

2011-10-01T16:16:00.000Z

It's very simple and doesn't really do justice to how much I thought through ideas, sketched and took images but I took the concept to it's very basics.

Day Ten - Round up and no conclusions

2011-10-01T16:04:00.000Z

I spent my last day on residency in Dumfries & Galloway but felt like a little part of me is left in Caithness. It's going to take some time to think it all through and many samples and experiments but very excited about new ideas.

It was great to see my morning walk in a slightly different way just because I still had my camera round my neck....was a beautiful morning though.

Day Nine - Presentations

2011-09-30T11:42:00.003Z

My day to go home (a day earlier than the end of the residency) so feeling sad but looking forward to getting back home and starting to work through all the ideas that have come up in this concentrated thinking time. We all had to present our ideas in a four slide power point; initially a very difficult task to condense 10 days of thinking and inspiration into a short presentation but turned out to be a great exercise in clear communication. Getting to the point concisely and expressing where we had got to on the residency (will post tomorrow on the last day).

Tidy up and packing and the long goodbyes......

Day Eight - The end is near

2011-09-29T00:29:00.000Z

Wonderful today, the sun was out, it felt like summer and even though my last full day, I didn't feel too sad. More thinking about what I've encountered in the last week and a trip to Wick to visit the Old Pulteney distillery. We visited Patty Niemann's studio, must get myself a blown glass lobster claw one day...love her colours and the beautiful silver work. The best bit of the day was dinner at Lani & Dans, owners of Bullseye Glass and big supporters of the residency and North Lands Glass. An amazing dinner and just a great end to my time here at North Lands, relaxing in a beautiful setting surrounded by some of the best kiln formed glass art....again pure joy.

Above, hiding in the alcove, the wonderful Jo,our mum for the week and provider of the great food and entertainment throughout the residency.

This is an image of the whole group, group leaders and Lani & Dan...I did get several of them all looking at me and smiling but I took this just before and think it shows how comfortable the whole group was.

Still have the day tomorrow to put together my presentation of the residency. This is a little difficult as I don't have any conclusions, many questions still and so much more thought to what I could make from all these ideas and experience.

Day Seven - Many possibilities in half hour

2011-09-27T23:14:00.002Z

Today started in the studio trying to work out logistics and design for the 'finished' idea for the residency. Playing with models and cut out light pictures but still struggling with any colour choice and the validity of my ideas so by lunchtime an awful headache, a quick walk down to the harbour and then back out to the places I love in this area. The sea and cliffs are amazing but there is something that really draws me into the land and somewhere I just love to sit and watch the world go by. Without fail, coming out from the studio and sitting in the car with the radio on or walking about outside somehow makes room for your thoughts and puts them into perspective. I stopped worrying about final visions and made time just to be here and soak up as much light, sky, sea and land I can. It is just too beautiful to be fretting over which colour blue accurately described a stormy morning out at sea.

Five images taken over half an hour sitting next to the Causeymire wind turbines on the road to Thurso. It's not just the large white moving sculptural elements that catch my attention but just how much sky goes by in a short amount of time.

Links to the masterclass Blog posts from 2008 for more images of the interior of Caithness:
http://corsockglass.blogspot.com/2008/09/north-lands-creative-glass-masterclass.html
http://corsockglass.blogspot.com/2008/09/north-lands-creative-glass-masterclass_24.html
http://corsockglass.blogspot.com/2008/09/north-lands-creative-glass-masterclass_3213.html
http://corsockglass.blogspot.com/2008/09/north-lands-creative-glass-masterclass_3213.html

Last full day tomorrow and I still don't have any major plans but I have, for now, answered some questions about my work and practice and collected enough imagery and ideas to last me all winter.

Day 6 - colour pondering

2011-09-26T22:38:00.001Z

....from Nybster Broch.

I've been driving around today and lots of thinking, linking many of the themes together and now finally thinking about glass and an end product. A quick visit to Latheronwheel Harbour and some wonderful pretzels and Bavarian sweet mustard made by Patty Niemann this evening (following dinner with 3 types of potato).

Not sure why but having difficulty with colour choice; this is normally one of the first things I think about, but spent much more time on concept/story that colour had taken a back seat, hoping I can sort this tomorrow as only two full days left (leaving a day early, so Thursday is tie-together day and home!). Last night was a break through on form but disturbed nights sleep as researching parabolic reflectors (offset Gregorian models made by fifteenth century astronomers) and swallow migration til late into the morning.

Day Five - Out & About

2011-09-25T23:01:00.000Z

No work done in the studio today apart from our group session which we start with each day; a catch up session from everyone about how their ideas are coming along and some group discussion.

Off out to Sarclet beach (both above) , Nybster Broch and dinner in Wick. Half way through the residency and wondering if I will get much physical samples made; I'm not concerned as I will have enough research material to spark many ideas for the next year but just feels a bit strange when normally I'm busy making most of the time; quite a nice physical break from coldworking.

Day Four - work in progress

2011-09-24T21:09:00.000Z

Last nights dancing was a hit....much laughter over some of the events of the evening and our general lack of coordination (mostly our group looking slightly bemused about the next dance).

Such a wonderful day, almost summer,so I got back out into the land and the Causeymire wind farm and then returned to the croft house which we visited as a group on the first day. It was good to go back in the sun and reminded me of holidays as a kid on a cliff top in Norfolk.

Now feel some connection back to the building, linking my ideas from story telling about the buoys and the silver light which spreads across the water blindingly.

Today I did put a bit of glass in the kiln and attempted a vessel form from just one sheet of glass which I will try projecting my movies of the sea and light once I've done a little coldworking (but not as a finished piece, sampling to keep taking the ideas forward).

Dunbeath Rocks! - Day Three

2011-09-23T22:35:00.002Z

Getting into the groove now.....above the studio space here at North Lands.

Dunbeath Broch....Iron age fort.

Chasing the silver light on the horizon...

Just back from a fantastic night of Scottish dancing in Dunbeath....more tomorrow!

Day Two Round Up

2011-09-22T22:44:00.001Z

Our first day was quite intense, taking in a lot of information about our starting points with the three architectural sites around Lybster....many hundreds of images later and a day of getting some of the forming ideas down on paper. As you can see I was quite taken with the buoys in the harbour. Last time at North Lands the lobster pots were about but I don't remember as many of the brightly coloured globes. Normally my thoughts go straight to glass and the design process (thinking about the 3D object first and then working backwards to the starting point in the kiln) but as there is no urgency to produce finished work I have felt today I could really play with some ideas and link them together into a story.

I needed to drive further inland this afternoon as we were having a beautiful day and had spent most of it at my desk. From my first visit here in 2008 I knew it was a landscape that I connected with; huge skies, fast moving, a non-depressing bleakness.....mostly because a lot less trees than Dumfries and Galloway and vistas that stretch right across your view. All connected by the sea and the extra light the openness of the land and high cliffs bring; pure joy.

Below two images from our site visit at St Mary's Church in Lybster...Karlyn Sutherland (with the black hat) the residency's site co-ordinator, originally from Lybster (currently finishing her Ph.D. in architecture and sense of place) also makes glass...images here. Also the work of our residency leaders Steve Klein and Richard Parrish

More about the residency and different views of the croft house here at the Bullseye Blog http://www.bullseyeglass.com/weblog/2011/09/20/waiting-in-place/#more-3605

Buoys, buoys, buoys

2011-09-22T14:08:00.000Z

Buoys in Lybster Harbour.....day two of North Lands residency

North Lands Residency Day One

2011-09-21T22:05:00.001Z

Fantastic first day here up in Lybster on residency at North Lands Creative Glass. Many of us here from around the world all passionate about glass and Caithness.
We started out looking at three architectural sites around Lybster (the residency being called In Place - kiln formed glass in architecture) but quite a loose theme which we can use as a beginning but really just a concentrated time to think and be inspired by what and who's around us. These images are from an old croft house right on the sea cliff....too late now to really think straight and so many images to process but will try and post each day.My first thoughts though are of sadness and dereliction and questions about how beautiful, functional buildings start to crumble and are left for nature to take over.

Living with Glass Exhibition at Vessel

2011-09-16T16:38:00.000Z

Opening on 6 October at Vessel Gallery in conjunction with the Contemporary Glass Society - Living with Glass - presents a unique collection of limited edition art works from emerging and established glass artists.

I am working with owner at Vessel, Angel Monzon and his team of lighting experts to develop my vessels into contemporary lighting. A huge learning curve but really looking forward to the outcome. Will post images as soon as we're done.

Dubh - Dialogues in Black

2011-09-16T16:09:00.001Z

Looks a wonderful exhibition....on in New York from early October but seems a perfect excuse to make my first trip to Dublin in Feb 2012 when it opens at the Oliver Sears Gallery.

More about this interesting group of artists here at their website http://www.studiopractice.ie/index.html

Big Burns Supper in Dumfries

2011-09-13T12:28:00.000Z

BIG BURNS SUPPER - 27th / 28th January 2012

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

Big Burns Supper is Dumfries's newest multi-disciplinaryfestival of contemporary

performing arts, providing an annual platform for the mostinnovative music,

theatre, visual arts, dance, live arts and anything else youwant to do.

We celebrate new and emerging artists and fresh approaches toperformance in all

disciplines, nurturing artistic ambition and excellence. It is an opportunity to innovate,

to cross disciplines and boundaries, and find new ways andplaces to create work.

We are especially interested in communities creating their own'modern' Burns Suppers.

We invite artists,communities and companies to submit ideas, forfurther information

or to submit an idea, please visit;

http://www.bigburnssupper.com/artists.html

Dumfries - Vibrant. Creative Southern Capital

Dumfries is set to play host to the worlds biggest Burnscelebration

through a new national festival aimed at attractinginternational and

domestic visitors to the town in January 2012.

Festival organisers of the Big Burns Supper presented theirvision to the

public at The Robert Burns Film Centre on Tuesday which issupported from

the likes of First Minister, Alex Salmond, and political leaders

throughout Scotland.

Throughout the weekend of the 27th - 28th January 2012, thefestival team

hope to throw the biggest party the town has ever seen bypresenting a

variety of performances for the entire community including awide variety

of venues, pubs, cafes and public spaces, and they are lookingto the

people of Dumfries to stand up and show the rest of Scotlandwhat we can

do.

T. 0800 689 9405

E. info@bigburnssupper.com

Big Burns Supper Dumfries - What will you do?

27th - 28th January 2012.

http://www.bigburnssupper.com

So behind in blogging

2011-09-08T15:12:00.000Z

As the title says....so much to say, so little time. Been at the computer most of the day putting together my talk on Connectivity (in relation to craft businesses) for the Craftscotland Roadshow in Dumfries tomorrow.

Details from Craftscotland:

Meet the new craftscotland.org

craftscotland is going on the road during September to introduce makers across Scotland to their new website.

The new craftscotland.org

Whether you are a craft maker, place, fan or newcomer, you will be able to use our new site to interact, share and connect with craftscotland website visitors from around the world.

Join our online community to receive your own customisable profile page, which gives you a platform to promote your craft business.

Personalise your craftscotland homepage and subscribe to our newsletters to keep up to date with news, events and opportunities that are relevant to you.

Submit what’s on listings and news, comment on articles, and leave reviews.

Use our forums to chat with other members of our growing craft community, share information, and ask questions.

Thousands of people visit the craftscotland website every month to find out more about craft. They love to explore and read about craft, find out what’s on in their area and commission or buy work from makers. Most importantly, they want to find out more about you and what you do.

The Roadshows

Throughout September craftscotland is delivering a series of Roadshows with organisations across Scotland. At the Roadshows you’ll be introduced to the website by a member of the craftscotland team. In addition each venue will host a complementary event including Pecha Kucha style presentations, exhibition openings and networking opportunities. For further details please see below.

We’d love to see you at an event and introduce you to the craftscotland online community.

To book a place please contact Rebecca on rebecca@craftscotland.org or 0131 466 3873 unless otherwise stated.

9^th Sept: Gracefield Art Centre, Dumfries

Gracefield Arts Centre in Dumfries is an art gallery which houses a collection of over 400 Scottish paintings and holds a changing programme of contemporary exhibitions featuring regional, national and international artists and craftmakers.

6.00pm: Refreshments and welcome from craftscotland and venue hosts.

6.30pm: Pecha Kucha style presentation from Amanda Simmons speaking about the benefits of connectivity and her international exploration.

6.40pm: Delegates are invited to try out the new craftscotland website including: registering online, exploring the new site, managing your profile, adding events etc.

7.30pm: Event ends

The shop and gallery will both be open throughout the event.....a chance to see Hannah McAndrew and Phil McMenemy's exhibition Still Movement.

To book onto this event please contact Lesley Rogers, Creative Arts Business Development Officer, Dumfries and Galloway Council, lesley.rogers@dumgal.gov.uk, 01387 262084.

Contemporary Applied Arts at Circus

2011-09-05T16:38:00.000Z

7 Days:In the garden of forking paths (my seven piece vessel set) is featured alongside Contemporary Applied Arts members Tanya Gomez and Sara Moorhouse (both ceramicists) at Circus - from their website:

"Our gallery on Marylebone High Street hosts a dynamic programme of exhibitions, talks and private views.

Our current cultural partner is Contemporary Applied Arts – a charitable guild representing the very best makers in the UK. Through this collaboration, we bring friends and clients together – to admire, to enjoy and, most importantly, to be inspired by the creativity of the very best of the UK's applied art."

Raptors - Do not adjust your screen

2011-09-02T16:55:00.000Z

This post includes an awful amount of yellow, orange and brown....really not sure what has happened but beginning to enjoy this end of the spectrum. These images are a mix of small and medium bowls with cameo engraving through 2-3 layers of glass powder.

Starting on ideas for a commission piece (more about this near the end of the month) and a follow on in the line of work looking at the birds. Just learning the colours at the moment and what works as I engrave through the layers; the medium pieces are much thinner than my current work as I'm trying to achieve balance without grinding a bottom. The next batch will get even thinner as want these pieces to feel really light like picking up a bird. Also playing a lot with different forms from the taller thinner vessels.

Medium bowls are available at the Tolbooth in Kirkcudbright and the smaller pieces have gone up to West Kilbride (will write about that in a seperate post as exciting things are happening in Craft Town Scotland!).

Tolbooth Evening

2011-08-30T09:38:00.000Z

Gloss:Glass:Galloway

Open now at the Tolbooth Arts Centre in Kirkcudbright

Phil McMenemy - Fine Art Photographer

Amanda Simmons - Kilnformed Glass

On til 11 September

(Also showing Michael Ashmore, landscapes in Oils)

Phil and I will be there this evening 6-8pm for those wanting to have a look and join us in a glass of wine. Take a stroll through the Galloway year in images and glass inspired by the local wildlife and landscape.

Autumn Already

2011-08-29T17:37:00.000Z

Commissioned panel from Spring Fling 2011....wanted Autumnal colours but I don't think they meant for me to take the colours from outside, as our dwindling Summer seems to have made it through to Autumn. Hoping for a late blast of sun in September..........

Blue View (pre-COLLECT Part Two)

2011-08-16T12:55:00.000Z

Trying to keep up with all the work happening at the moment and off to Zurich on Thursday teaching my second Vessel course at Creative Glass (a round-up of the first course here) , so no COLLECT Part Two yet....(on the day the Crafts Council announce COLLECT 2012!).

I took some images of a duo pair that showed at COLLECT this year.....the pair was a first attempt at my working with light work (see here for original post).....many layers of translucent glass and opaline.

Lovely Platform Gallery

2011-08-11T11:19:00.000Z

The lovely Platform Gallery have used a small Labyrinth of Love vessel (and some medium vessels inside) on the front of their recent gallery leaflet.....only found my copies after consolidating almost a room full of packaging; good things do happen if you do the chores you've put off for years!!

Will be re-stocking them for their Christmas exhibition this year (just though I'd mention the C word in August!).

Teaching at Warm Glass

2011-08-05T11:27:00.000Z

Today is the launch of Warm Glass courses in 2012. I'll be teaching a masterclass in January (thought that might be a good idea instead of hibernating in Scotland). Looking at their website, it seems there are only 3 places left.

23 - 27 January 2012
5 days creating small and medium 'drop-out' kilnformed glass vessels in Bristol...more details here.

Craft Arts International

2011-08-02T11:39:00.000Z

Just started subscribing to Craft Arts International from Australia, I read through a lot of issues whilst out in America and loved it's clean format with many images and plenty of glass! The latest issue features a great write up for Trove, the Scottish Glass Societys exhibition in partnership with Perth Museum and Art Gallery.

Updated Work on Seek & Adore

2011-07-20T13:12:00.000Z

Finally some new stock on my online store at Seek & Adore. Above is a medium white and pink vessel with an unusual shiny surface finish (for me anyway). More details here.

Medium Under the Corsock Sky (bowl shape)

A very subtle medium vessel in opaque white and opaline glass, more images here.

Medium pink, lavender and white vessel.

Sea Birds

2011-07-18T09:34:00.000Z

Goldfinches

2011-07-18T09:33:00.000Z

Collect 2011 Part One

2011-07-14T17:46:00.000Z

Two months late I know but I seem to forget every year that this is a busy time and galleries need re-stocking more than I plan for.......

I just finished my glass review of Collect 2011 for the Contemporary Glass Society and whilst the experience is fresh in my mind again I'll write about my experience as an exhibitor and as a visitor.

Collect hadn't been on my radar as much as Origin (Chelsea Craft fair) had in the slow beginnings of working with glass. I had met makers at Chelsea and loved the idea of being an exhibitor, managing to produce a cohesive body of work and show high quality, innovative work at a internationally recognised show. I managed to not freak out too much for my first time at Origin (although I think my great helper for the week may disagree) and really enjoyed the show; good feedback and great sales. Getting selected for Collect by CraftScotland was a bit of a shock and I did question at first if I could produce what I proposed. I was using techniques I hadn't even tried and was relying on the fact I knew the smaller range of work techniques very well and had many conversations with my 'kiln gods' Bing & Bong (see funny white creatures in previous workshop images).

I didn't get the kiln up and running til early January which gave me three months to get to know the larger kiln and coldworking challenges of the larger vessels. Throw into the mix a research trip to the States (something I thought was really bad timing actually had a positive outcome) and teaching my vessel technique for the first time in Zurich and I soon realised there wasn't going to be much room for error. Carefully planned firing schedules, taking into consideration that the timings had more than doubled for making the thicker cast slabs needed for the taller drops, and longer heating/annealing/cooling times for the drops (top temperature and length of time pretty similar to the medium sized pieces).

My work for Trove at Perth Museum were the very first large scale pieces (after a clear test piece) in the new kiln; all came through the slump firings OK (my first firing was very cautious) and the coldworking was a little more physical, having to use my body to help steady the long drops. Also the first pieces that size to have engraving over the whole surface, which of course took me much longer than anticipated.

Once I've mulled over an idea in my mind for a few months I tend to make the actual work quite quickly, much of the time I'm working with similar colour combinations so don't make a huge amount of samples. However, a winter of playing with strange colours gave me the impetus to keep going and make many samples for the few ideas I had for Collect. I made a wide range of samples, some with engraved marks and re-fired and sandblasted half of each tile. These become the working studies I play with whilst working on the colour ideas.

The physical nature of the work is thought on at the same time, how am I going to build the work and what drop form do I want. Often thinking in 3D and making sure the right colours are lurking under the surface for engraving.

Next: Part Two

QR Codes

2011-07-13T12:09:00.000Z

Can anyone tell me if they work????

Workshop Images

2011-07-07T12:02:00.000Z

Teaching in Corsock

2011-07-03T12:36:00.000Z

I am running a few courses from my studio in Corsock this summer and have a some places left on the 2 day vessel course 4/5th August. Also some places still available on the one day fusing courses, beginners or advanced...please email me for more details (amanda.simmons@btinternet.com).

Kiln formed glass vessels 2 day course £225Some glass knowledge would be helpful for this course but ambitious beginners are welcome. This is a highly specialised course, not taught anywhere else in the UK (until I run a course in Rochester at Creative Glass in October) that will focus on making small vessels in a kiln.

We will cover: glass fusing, creating a blank to slump the next day to make the vessels, a sample tile made by me to watch the slumping process in the kiln (to coldwork on the second day) a sample vessel made by me to practice the coldworking techniques (cutting, grinding and mark making) and 2 of your vessels slumped on the second day finished by me and delivered (making vessels is a two day process plus another day for coldworking). A total of 4 vessels will be made and a selection of sample tiles to take home.

I know it doesn't....

2011-07-02T18:05:00.000Z

...make you a better photographer but a new camera certainly makes you take more pictures! Nice to be back in camera land again and I realised I really missed it as a creative tool.

Office Still Life

Pink Rose

Snowy & Ball

Three Teasles

7 days shortlisted

2011-06-30T15:51:00.000Z

Yay!….shortlisted for Honda: Handmade in Britain competition….see here for more details http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.212953355408371.47612.148414358528938

image: Colin Tennant Photography

June is flying by

2011-06-20T09:42:00.000Z

Busy week coming....presenting at 'Designing for the Market' a Cultural Enterprise Office run course here in Dumfries & Galloway commissioned by CABN & the South of Scotland Creative Clusters Project.

From CEO website about the day:

A relaxed and informal one-day workshop specifically developed for designers and makers of textiles, accessories, jewellery, interiors, ceramics and leatherwork. It will include:

Presentations on market, retail, colour, design and fashion trends
An introduction to trend resources and ongoing business support
Practical exercises to analyse the influences and inspirations relevant to your business
An opportunity to ask questions and meet your peers

The event will be delivered by Fiona Pilgrim, Professional Development Manager and Fiona Chautard, Specialist Fashion and Textiles Adviser and independent trends and retail consultant. They will be joined by a local designer who will share their experience of the influence of trends on their business development.

What You'll Get Out of It

Fresh inspiration
An understanding of the relevance of current market trends to your work and customers
An understanding of where your products stand in a wider market context
Encouragement to update and innovate your product range for relevant changing market trends
Ideas on how to extend the value of existing designs and maximize potential sales
Insight into how to develop coherence across your range and strengthen your brand signature

Then fly off the next day to Linz in Austria for my second kilnformed glass vessel course with Creative Glass.

Just noticed the UK course dates are now advertised...Rochester 21/23 October see here for more details.

Glass Network Magazine

2011-06-09T17:13:00.000Z

My surprise on receiving my copy of Glass Network this month....magazine from the Contemporary Glass Society. I was expecting an article I had written on my research trip to the states to be in the issue but was very happy to see a huge image of my latest work on the cover (image by Colin Tennant)

Thank you CGS!

A Day Out

2011-06-08T16:31:00.000Z

.....still haven't had time to write up USA visit or COLLECT but will soon!

In the meantime Hannah McAndrew and I had a day trip to Ruthin Craft Centre in North Wales. Mainly to see the last few days of Slip...

(Hannah McAndrews Humbug mugs by Shannon Tofts)
" Slip....Looks at the diverse styles of makers whose
work falls under the banner of ‘slipware’. This technique is deep rooted within ancient methods of ceramic decoration for example Thomas Toft in the 17th century. Through their skilled use of clays and slips these 21st century artists present a thought-provoking and innovative collection of decorative ceramics.

From traditional approaches to the most modern interpretations, Slip… promises to inform and excite. " From the Ruthin website.

It's a wonderful exhibition and introduced to me some new potters working in this medium, great to visit with someone who can answer all my questions too. I treated myself to a new Doug Fitch mug (to replace for now my lovely Andy Priestman mug I broke on the morning of an interview I had last week....didn't think I was nervous but obviously my body was...more about that bit of good news soon!). We agreed on our favourite piece of the exhibition, a very large dish/plate by Dylan Bowen (it was sold already which probably saved both our bank balances).

We had a very tasty lunch in the restaurant (where people were queuing to come in!) and I delivered some new pieces for the shop. Always good to see where the work is going and what other makers they stock. An excellent range of top contemporary craft makers in the shop displayed really well. Shame we only had the day to spend away from our practices as I would have loved to visit my sister-in-law across the border in Shropshire....soon Alix!
Thought I was having a quiet Summer this year but seem to have a very long list of to-do's!....some great new galleries coming up and an exciting exhibition in London later this year which I really have to get on.....

Post Spring Fling '11

2011-06-02T13:25:00.000Z

All over for another year.....This was my best ever, so thank you to the 550 odd visitors that came to see me in Corsock, not being part of a cluster or studio group and in the middle of nowhere (well, the middle of D&G but far out from any of the big towns) I am always amazed at the level of visitors that come out to play over the Spring Fling weekend. Great sales and a massive clear out so I'm ready to start working again. A new gallery in Oxford to supply and work for Contemporary Applied Arts in London to begin.

This was my studio set-up this year before the crowds and there wasn't much left by the time of closing on the Monday. A big thank you also to my sister-in-law Susie who came up from London to help out this year...a great new gallery assistant!

Spring Fling 2011

2011-05-23T08:05:00.001Z

Amid the doom & gloom of Dumfries & Galloway this morning I am getting ready for Spring Fling Open Studios 2011. Back from my year off and full to the seams with glass for sale. I'll have brand new large scale work on show, an installation of pieces to sale in aid of the British Legion and many older vessels & bowls if you are looking for a bargain!

You can download a wonderful brochure from the Spring Fling website, full of details from 85 open studios here & you can follow Spring Fling on Twitter here

Trove Exhibition

2011-05-23T07:56:00.000Z

On a mad trip of over 300 miles running around the Scottish countryside picking up work I finally managed to get to Trove - the annual Scottish Glass Society exhibition at Perth Museum & Art Gallery.

Thouroughly enjoyed it, so many different styles of glass displayed next to the original museum piece that inspired the glass work. I really loved my little stone beaker.

The Museum put a written piece next to the beaker which I didn't have at the time of inspiration. With the help of language-gifted husband we translated the inscription on the beaker as stone for the the dead...equally could have been a stone for Peter, recently deceased or for the beaker itself as perhaps it was used to administer poison. It was thought to grace the table of a nobleman or well-to-do merchant at the end of the middle ages.

Thank you to the Scottish Glass Society team that organised and displayed the exhibition and to the hosts Perth Museum (and thank you for letting me take images).

Some excellent news

2011-05-09T17:25:00.000Z

I relocated from London to Dumfries & Galloway almost 6 years ago now and have been working full time in glass for the last 5 years but have only exhibited a couple of times in the city since I've been here.Over the weekend I received official confirmation that I've been accepted as a member of Contemporary Applied Arts in London.

From their website:

"Contemporary Applied Arts was founded in 1948, as The Crafts Council of Great Britain, preceding the current Crafts Council as the national representative for craft. In 1967, it became the British Crafts Centre, and in January 1985, Contemporary Applied Arts (CAA). Formerly located in Hay Hill and Covent Garden, CAA has been at its current location in Percy Street since 1995.

CAA is a registered charity set up to promote and champion British craft. CAA is the premiere exhibition and retail venue for learning about, appreciating and purchasing contemporary craft. The organization offers dedicated exhibition and retail space across two floors with a changing programme of shows and associated events."

I will be showing new work in the shop as soon as I can get some down to them and hopefully followed by a focus exhibition later on in the year.

Revolution at The Harley Gallery

2011-05-09T17:08:00.000Z

I have been invited to take part in Revolution opening today at The Harley Gallery in Welbeck 9 May - 20 June, I sent a collection of Dark Skies, Bright City and some Labyrinths of Love.

From The Harley Gallery website:

"The Harley Gallery Craft Shop is being hijacked by Hannah Obee, curator at Chatsworth, who is taking over with a revolutionary display from 9 May - 20 June. She will draw inspiration from Welbeck’s Portland Collection and Chatsworth’s Devonshire Collection to show how craft fits into the rich history of these stately homes, focusing on the Royalist and Baroque styles of the 17th Century.
The 17th century saw uprising and change, with the Civil War and the Glorious Revolution. The Cavendish families at Welbeck and Chatsworth were deeply involved with both of these revolutions.

The family heroes and heroines include Lady Jane Cavendish, who was left in charge at Welbeck to host visits by King Charles 1 and defend the Estate against the parliamentary army. Local legends say that she even buried the treasured family silver in the grounds to save it from the approaching troops.

The Revolutionary Craft Shop will give visitors the opportunity to buy contemporary pieces inspired the fashions of Lady Jane Cavendish's day - pieces to treasure and care for (but we can't recommend burying your favourite pieces in the garden).

Some setting up of the exhibition images can be seen here.

The Curated Craft Shop project at The Harley Gallery is part of museumaker, a prestigious national project involving sixteen museums across four participating regions. museumaker is supported by Arts Council England (ACE), Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) and its Renaissance Programme

Teaching Kilnformed Vessels in Zurich

2011-05-09T16:28:00.000Z

This March I was invited out to Creative Glass in Zurich to teach my first 'drop-out' course or kilnformed glass vessels. Above is some starting points for colour inspiration and below a photo shoot for our first tester vessels (mostly to learn how the kilns I wasn't familiar with worked and where the hotspots if any existed in the kiln and also to give the students there first piece to coldwork).

Here we can see one of the kilns with 6 vessels after the slumping firing.

The coldworking!....diamond flat bed grinding the rims of the vessels.

We also had a quick look at engraving and this was one of the students experiments. It was a great course and I really enjoyed giving the presentations of my work and how I'm inspired by colour. There was a little language barrier but Erna (one of the owners at Creative Glass and a wonderful glass artist herself) spent much of the course translating for me and the students. There was a waiting list for the course so hopefully going back to Zurich later this year. I'll be running the same course in Austria next month and we are trying to plan one in the UK in Rochester this year.

Many thanks to all at Creative Glass who made this possible and with great hospitality and also to the students who were all glass artists themselves for being patient and interested in learning about kiln formed vessels.

Unite at The Collins Gallery

2011-05-09T16:11:00.000Z

I'm afraid it's too late to visit this show but there is still lots of information on the craftscotland site here and at The Collins Gallery website. My camera decided to go a little wrong so my images are not the best but these pieces are the first experiments into revealing the colour and design led from my light work research.

Big Blog Catch Up

2011-05-09T15:52:00.000Z

.....starting with Trove - Scottish Glass Society Annual Exhibition at Perth Museum. This is open til the 31 December 2011 so plenty of time to see it. These were my first large scale pieces made in my new kiln (image by Colin Tennant)

From the Scottish Glass Society Website:

"The Scottish Glass Society is pleased to present – Trove, a contemporary glass exhibition showcasing the work of emerging and established Scottish glass artists. The theme of the exhibition is for artists to create new artworks that reveal the hidden treasure of the Perth Museum and Art Gallery reserve collection. As the collection is too extensive to have everything on display at the same time, glass artists have been invited to visit the museums reserve collection. The show will bring together a collective of glass artists that actively challenge and contribute to the rich Scottish Art scene. The exhibition will run from the 28th of March 2011 until the 31st of December 2011 and will be previewed on the 26th of March 2011 between 2-4pm. The exhibition will feature 25 selected glass artists; the range of work will include cast, etched, engraved, slumped, fused, leaded, stained and painted panels, forms and sculptural pieces. The following artists have been selected: Carolyn Barlow, Susan Bradbury, Elizabeth HH Cull, James Denison-Pender, Junko Eager, Rachel Elliott, Carrie Fertig, Catherine Forsyth, Alexander Galloway, Siobhan Healy, Kate Henderson, Alan Horsley, Jessamy Kelly, James Maskrey, Fiona McGarva, June Morrison, Rachel O’Dell, Inge Paneels, Liz Rowley, Amanda Simmons, Louise Tait, Graeme Thyer, Jeff Zimmer, Emma Butler Cole Aiken and Jean J Campbell.

Trove will embody and celebrate the society’s policy of inclusion and the representation of its glass artists at various stages of their careers. The result will be a stimulating, diverse and vibrant collection of glass art, which encompasses a broad range of techniques and applications by new graduates, and both emerging and well established glass designers, and thus provides a flavour of the calibre and developments within the field of contemporary glassmaking in Scotland. In addition an exciting series of talks and workshops have been planned to coincide with the exhibition programme. For more details see our website: www.scottishglasssociety.com

Perth Museum & Art Gallery (PMAG) is pleased to be working in collaboration with the Scottish Glass Society on the 2011 annual exhibition. Trove has presented an exciting opportunity to take a multidisciplinary approach to the collection. The array of objects selected by the artists has created some unusual juxtapositions and will allow the collections to be seen in a less conventional fashion. Through this exhibition we aim to support working artists and promote contemporary work to the local audience, as well as providing a means to reinterpret our collections and to present objects that have not been on display recently. We are delighted that the artists have been so inspired by the collections and in turn, we have been encouraged to look at the objects selected in new ways; for more details please see the PMAG website www.pkc.gov.uk

Prototypes and light images

2011-03-04T10:48:00.001Z

Working on the next set of work for COLLECT this May (hoping to have 3 different sets....first one mostly sorted now even though I had serious kiln disaster yesterday on some samples....must remember to slow done the slumping firing when a piece has been engraved).

These pieces will slump onto the kiln shelf making more of a 'tube' vessel....many layers of repeated patterns and colour inspired from my light images (originally taken from a slab of slumped glass projected onto a wall).

Old Vessels Re-Visited

2011-02-23T16:53:00.000Z

Playing with a new OS and thinking about some old vessels and how I could re-visit them on a grander scale.

Spring Fling Taster Exhibition and the Birds

2011-02-12T12:06:00.009Z

What fun this project was! This is the culmination of my working with colours I don't like challenge. We get so many birds visiting the garden and I love watching them and their behaviour; how they fight and which species likes what. I started with images of them flying about and eating and then abstracted the colours form these images. My three favorites out of many colour tests were blue tit, coal tit and goldfinch (probably the rarest visitor) but I also tried nuthatch, woodpecker, siskin and blackbird.

Seek & Adore to find great contemporary craft

2011-02-11T10:24:00.005Z

Yesterday was the first live showing of the new Seek & Adore website.

"Seek & Adore is a community that helps artists, designer-makers and craft people sell direct to the public. It gives consumers easy access to beautiful, distinctive and handmade things for themselves and their home. Uniquely, Seek & Adore helps consumers get to know the person behind the product - their inspirations, how they make the product and what they are working on next – and, importantly, it gives makers a fair price for their goods. "
Read more »

First Show of the Year

2011-02-08T12:40:00.006Z

A much better start to this year, even though it's still been harsh making out in the cold workshop, I've managed to get 9 large slumps in the new casting kiln finished. Very happy that the transition from tiny to big has been relatively pain free.

I started with a very, very conservative firing schedule for the first big drop but soon realised I could use a very similar firing to those of the medium size. The vessels start to drop a bit quicker once half way down but that's because the firing elements go all the way down the sides of the kiln.

Colin Tennant Photography

2011-01-29T16:13:00.005Z

I took the chance of the upcoming Scottish Glass Society (SGS) Annual exhibition at Perth Museum, to try a new photographer. I've known Colin now for a couple of years as he was the Arts Officer at Gracefield Arts Centre in Dumfries. He has been working as a freelance photographer for the past 3 years since leaving Uni.

I was struck by the quiet intensity of his images on first viewing and his use of natural (or unnatural) lighting and hoped he would be able to bring something different to my work. He's not someone with a huge 'product' style back catalogue which is great for where I want my imagery to go with this larger scale work.

Snow Dogs

2011-01-14T14:57:00.004Z

Artists Gathering 2011

2011-01-11T14:23:00.002Z

This should be fun! It will be good to meet up with some friends and I find it useful preparing for a talk like this as it gives me a chance to reflect which I don't do very often....always looking forward and thinking about what I'm making next.

Glass Courses 2011

2010-12-22T10:03:00.005Z

Great bit of news to finish the year off.....next year I have been asked to teach my version of the technique of forming vessels at Creative Glass in Austria and Switzerland. A 3 day course focusing on the basics of the forming of vessels with some colour experimentation, cameo engraving and mould making thrown in. I've yet to finalise the plan for the course (but will soon Erna I promise).....for now you can see dates and venue on the Creative Glass site here Click on contents and register to get more information.

.....they have just added Catherine Newell, Jeffrey Sarmiento and Klaus Moje (all represented by Bullseye Gallery) to the list for next year so well worth having a look!

Victoria Scholes

2010-12-15T16:23:00.004Z

Now it's a little quieter here in sunny Corsock I've a bit more time to reflect on the year and post something a little different other than what I'm up to.

A few months ago the chair of the Contemporary Glass Society, Victoria Scholes posted a blog piece about the challenge of pricing contemporary craft in the mid-range market and used my work as example after a visit to Origin this year...read it here.

The image above is from Victoria's 'Swathe' series (you can see more in the series that was featured at this years Glass Biennale on her website here). I'm intrigued by Victoria's work as you can't pigeon hole it into one group or another and is highly original. Reading more about her I see she comes from a science background too (originally trained as a pharmacist); I have met quite a few glass artists that have had science training....seems that glass as a medium attracts a mind that likes technical challenges and a tendency to a methodical practice. There are certain rules in glass making if you want a piece to make it through the kiln/casting/blowing process....of course they can be broken for arts sake but a collector spending hundreds or thousands on a piece would like to know it will outlast them!

I particularly like the 'Domestic Gospels' series of work from Victoria...from her website about this series and it's inspiration "Inspired by a scene from the Wizard of Oz where Dorothy, after all her technicolour adventures, goes back to her black and white (literally, film-wise) existence and announces that all her heart's desires can be found in her own backyard....." Quite a lesson for us all.

Colour Thinking

2010-12-15T11:20:00.003Z

Thank you for all the replies to my pondering on colour and whether or not you can be creative with colours that you just don't like together (or separately). They were mixed responses and I felt all of them made sense.

I wanted to shake up my colour palette as I have been using about a core of 8 or so colours (looking back on my glass orders shows a distinct pattern) and thought I would take myself out of my comfort zone and try something new. I'm working on a project which involved abstracting colour from the constituents nature has put together. Looking at the colours I chose separately felt almost painful but putting the colours together as they appeared in nature improved the situation.

Now I am just working on getting the correct balance and how the colours sit together (there may be reactions with some of the colours that throws some interesting results into the mix). I will post some of the further experiments as for now I just can't face the samples I have done already never mind put them on here!

Question of the day?

2010-12-09T14:27:00.002Z

Is it possible to work creatively with colour you don't like?

Aesthetica Creative Works Competition 2010

2010-12-09T14:17:00.003Z

I’ve been commended by the Judges in the Aesthetica Creative Works Competition 2010 with my kiln formed vessels ‘Labyrinths of Love’.

Aesthetica is a British-based art and culture publication that engages with contemporary art and culture both in the UK and internationally, combining dynamic content while exploring the best in emerging and established contemporary arts and design. Established in 2002, Aesthetica Magazine is stocked in WH Smith, prestigious locations such as Tate Modern, Serpentine and National Portrait Gallery, and in March 2008 the company added a second publication to its fold, the Aesthetica Annual.

The Aesthetica Creative Works Annual 2011 is available in galleries and independent retailers nationwide and will showcase the very best in new artistic and writing talent. The Annual has been comprised of the winning entries of the Aesthetica Annual Creative Works Competition, which received an astounding 4000 entries.

Now in its third year, the Competition attracts entries from across the world, and engages with 4000 writers and artists, providing them with the opportunity to showcase their work to Aesthetica’s readers. Aesthetica Editor and one of the judges, Cherie Federico: “This year’s competition was incredible. I was thrilled by the quality of entries, equally, I had to make some tough decisions, and I spent a considerable amount of time contemplating each piece of work. Being commended in the Creative Works Competition is a fantastic achievement as there were only 50 commendations for each category.”

With three categories for artwork, poetry and fiction, the Aesthetica Competition was judged by Cherie Federico, Creative Writing lecturer Dr Kate North, and writer and editor Rachel Hazelwood. Cherie Federico says: “I think I can speak for all the judges when I say that the entries were of an extremely high calibre. We actually had to extend the judging period for a week and a half because whittling the works down proved a huge deliberation, but it’s really encouraged me to continue championing new talent and encouraging creativity in everyone. There was huge potential in so many of the works which Rachel, Kate and myself saw and I would like to urge all the competition entrants to continue developing their considerable talents.”
http://www.aestheticamagazine.com/

Exciting news for 2011

2010-11-20T09:41:00.004Z

I've been like a cat on a hot tin roof last couple of weeks awaiting this good bit of news........

I've been selected by Craftscotland to show, alongside 11 other Scottish makers, at COLLECT 2011- The International Art Fair for Contemporary Objects. Run by the Crafts Council at the Saatchi Gallery in London 6-9 May.

I will be working on much larger scale vessels over winter in my new kiln (with an impressive 18" drop space) and incorporating much more cameo engraving before and after the slumping process. The coldworking is going to be fun through January/February but I will just have to become more hardy and keep a very good stock of wood for the studio burner.

The image is a starting process for me, finally using some of the research I obtained whilst working on a Craft Maker Award from D&G Council and Scottish Arts Council (now Creative Scotland). Cast glass slabs projected onto a wall with digital photography (No Photoshop!!)...I wanted to try and draw/paint with light as it so hard to re-create an accurate representation of how glass looks without using glass. I'm trying to loosen up my engraving by looking at the movement I created with the camera.

So that will be me for the next few months.......

New Dawn

2010-11-17T15:04:00.003Z

Can you tell it's raining and generally very miserable here today?....some new work (well not that new but just took some images. The small vessels are winging there way down to St Ives to the Plumbline Gallery.

Show Round Up

2010-11-17T14:16:00.004Z

Having just returned from showing at Lustre in Nottingham this year I thought I'd have a round up of the retail shows. This was my first time doing 3 large shows in one season (and I haven't really got into the retail show market much yet....only Lustre 08 and Origin 09 before). I don't think I'd apply to do the 3 shows again for various reasons...mostly sheer exhaustion, not being able to make enough stock and being away from home for too long.

My first visit to The Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair (GNCCF) was a good one. I was impressed with how much work had gone into the organising of the show and it's promotion (great to see the two main organisers Angela and Ann-Marie on site all the time). The venue for the show seemed a great place (not knowing Manchester at all) it felt vibrant, clean and safe with many fantastic restaurants to visit (oh I do miss good dining out experiences....not that there aren't any in Dumfries and Galloway but mostly catering for people who eat meat and fish). Many visitors to the show, mostly with some sort of craft knowledge and passion. They did experiment with a smaller marqee alongside the bigger one this year which didn't seem to work that well but I didn't feel that we had less visitors just less of a 'buzz' going on.

My best sellers of the 3 shows (and now I look at this picture I can understand why I got a few comments of how well I was doing for a graduate!!). The graduate selection for GNCCF by Kelda Savage was excellent...Catherine Carr a particular favourite of mine making glass vessels from crocheted fibre glass....stunning work.

All in all, a good weekend and glad I applied.

Lustre this year was fantastic....the quality in every sense was great. I love the set up of the show and the fact it's not in a marqee just heightens it's quality. The stands are lovely and I still love my name on a lampshade. I like the fact that it's not hundreds of makers, just 55, so the visitor doesn't get too overwhelmed visually. Lots of nice places to sit and relax, have lunch.

The private view was really buzzing and again lots of visitors (even though this was the first time they had charged to enter....didn't seem to affect the show at all).

It was great to meet some new makers and see some brilliant work but now 'retailed' out. I'm glad I had my new plinths as I think they worked well at each show (all with totally different set-ups)....although I get bored very quickly so would need to change things a bit when showing again (not for a long time i hope).

Ruthin Craft Centre

2010-11-17T13:54:00.003Z

I have just sent a collection of 'Under the Corsock Sky' vessels down to North Wales to the Ruthin Craft Centre. Very excited about having work on show there as it is a wonderful showcase of all things applied art with many of the countries top craft makers exhibiting.

Glassy Christmas Show

2010-11-17T13:46:00.002Z

Showing back at ZeST Contemporary Glass Gallery this Christmas in their 'Creative Christmas' show alongside friends Lucy Alexandra Batt, Brett Manley and Pippa Stacey.

November 11 - December 23......more details on their website here.

Christmas Shows in Dumfries

2010-11-08T15:23:00.004Z

Delivered work to Dumfries this weekend for two shows of new work this Winter. Treasures is this years Gracefield Arts Centre Craft shop show....opening this saturday 13 November with seasonal fizz and mince pies 10am - 3pm.

Also opening on Saturday 1-3pm is 'Off the Wall', the Gracefield Christmas exhibition featuring work no bigger than 50cm x 50cm...runs til Christmas Eve. I have entered my first large scale 'proper' cameo engraved panel. I say proper because I have used engraving as more of a surface design or pattern before but this piece is just a little more detailed. I only had time to take a few shots before delivering it (always the case).

'Broken Hallelujah' 50cm diameter, Bullseye glass sheet and powder, diamond point engraving

Kaleidoscope @ Platform Gallery

2010-10-27T08:58:00.002Z

Lustre

2010-10-26T15:43:00.002Z

Rural Development Award Bowls

2010-10-18T17:28:00.003Z

I have just delivered 5 big bowls down to New abbey, Rural Dumfries and Galloway LEADER programme. They commissioned me a couple of months ago to produce large bowls to present as awards at this years Dumfries and Galloways Rural Awards.

This group is a funding programme, set up in 2008, with the theme of 'revitalising communities' and help fund projects that help create vibrant, diverse and competitive communities. The communities were asked to highlight their issues and needs they thought their local areas needed. The main issues raised became 12 key priorities of the D&G LEADER programme. The shortlisted projects for this years award (and more details) can be found here.

The bowls are mostly a vivid transparent pink with mixed colour cameo engraved opaque leaves (the table tops are my lovely new plinths made by John Galvin).

Engraved Vessels

2010-10-13T15:07:00.003Z

A few more Labrynths of Love.....

Dark Skies, Bright City

2010-10-11T10:57:00.002Z

A continuation of the dark skies theme...this time linking it with my previous city life.

Back to it

2010-10-10T09:20:00.003Z

Some new dark images for the oncoming dark months. I have used quite a few bright colours this year but feel thay have come from memory and not what was around me this year. So back to the dark and minimalist winter shades for me....oh joy.

Featured on Bullseye Glass

2010-10-07T09:17:00.002Z

http://www.bullseyeglass.com/weblog/2010/10/05/congratulations-amanda/

I love reading the Bullseye blog by director, Lani McGregor at Bullseye Glass. It features some of the most stunning work created by artists using their glass and also news relating to Northlands Creative Glass up in the Highlands (my second favourite place in the world after D&G!). I was quite shocked to see my images on the site whilst surfing this morning, almost having to double check (only had one cup of tea so far so thought it was lack of caffeine that I was seeing things).....cheers Lani for the post and hope to see you somewhere in the States next year!

New Spring Fling website

2010-10-06T14:47:00.002Z

Spring Fling Dumfries and Galloways most excellent Open Studio event have just updated their website....all up and running for next years event 28-30 May.....fingers crossed as applied again this year!

My good bit of news....

2010-10-04T12:45:00.002Z

It may have not been the best Origin ever but somehow I managed to win an award. As far as I'm aware this was the only award up for grabs this year (usually 3 or 4 for different mediums on show) so I made a point of applying in the mad rush up to leaving for London.

I won the Gold Award for innovation, creativity and potential to export 2010 awarded by the Crafts Council and Uk Trade and Investment. Over 200 contemporary craft makers exhibiting at Origin this year were eligible to apply and it provides the successful applicant with the opportunity to explore a chosen overseas market and get bespoke expert advice from an International Trade Advisor.

I chose America as my export market, mainly because there is a rich history of glass making and collecting out there and the fact it is the birth place of my medium of kiln formed glass. I'm not entirely sure what I am going to do yet but it will centre around visiting SOFA, a very large international exhibition of sculpture objects and functional art held in April in New York. I drool over the images at each show they put on (also shows in Chicago and Santa Fe) as it really is the pinnacle of modern applied arts.

Check back in Spring for a full report!

Origin is over....

2010-10-02T12:42:00.001Z

Origin is over for another year and in many respects I’m quite happy about that. I’m glad I have taken a few days to calm down and enjoy being back in beautiful Dumfries and Galloway. I drove all night straight after the show and on my way into my wee village at 1.30am I was greeted by two otters frolicking down the road….my welcoming party (never seen a live in the wild otter!)…..and then a even warmer greeting from my two lovely dogs who seemed extremely happy to see me.

I’ll start by saying that personally I had a good show; I was happy with the work I managed to make in the short notice that I had and I have some very exciting news, but more on that later. However, I am so glad that my first taste of the Crafts Council Origin show was last year as there was little to compare it with this years show. I won’t go into all the teething problems as there were too many, the saving grace of the show was the quality of the exhibitors. You would expect that the show would be focused on them and contemporary craft but it felt like we were very far down on the list in the mind of the new organisers Tent London and even the Crafts Council.

My main feeling about the show is that it looked and felt like any other craft fair; there was nothing special about it (except the exhibitors as already mentioned). No extra touches, craft interventions, workshops…nothing to make it feel like the best show for contemporay craft (at a maker level) that it used to be. It looked thrown together with high imposing walls with nowhere for the visitor to sit and relax and enjoy the atmosphere (which was non-existent). I’m really not surprised that in general sales seemed to be lower (taking into account the current economic climate)…it just didn’t feel like a show where collectors would spend big money (saying that all my highest priced work sold and not so much the less expensive!). The only other positive was the visitor numbers; it was packed day to day (with many queues to get in) with a knowledgeable audience but this is because of past history and not due to the current show. If they haven’t sorted out the ‘pavillion’ design by next year I think visitor numbers will drop off.

A positive thing for me personally is that I no longer feel so excited about the show, which means I’ll probably not apply next year and won’t have to suffer the stress of waiting for an accepatnce or rejection! I really hope that they pull it together again next year….if there is a next year!

something got in the way

2010-09-25T20:59:00.002Z

Feeling like a proper tourist this morning.....the bridge was up for a very small boat with two huge masts.

The sun shining through the fab roof at Spitalfields, great help to show off my glass. Another busy day with queues around the block.....

Glass at Origin

2010-09-24T22:13:00.005Z

Andrea Walsh is directly opposite me at Origin this year and I have loved seeing her new work in the flesh....much better pictures here http://www.andreawalsh.co.uk/recent-work/. Andrea combines ceramics and glass quite sublimely,with the most amazing thin walled slipcast clay vessels and beautifully frit cast Bullseye glass.

Great to see Ruth Lyne here this year with a brilliant new body of work....again the pictures do her work no justice as the level of detail and texture in the panels is absorbing. Read more about Ruth here....http://www.ruthlyne.co.uk/

Kasia Czarnecka-Clarke returns this year with new work and a stunning chandelier made of such delicately fused glass pieces. Kasia's work makes use of the wonderful range of Bullseye colours with intricate lace texture....to see her lovely use of colour and form see here....http://www.formm.co.uk/index.htm

Images from Origin 2010

2010-09-24T21:54:00.004Z

Just finished the second day at Origin, seems like it's zooming by as lots of visitors, lots of chatting and today lots of shivering (it's a great site here in Old Spitalfields Market but I wasn't very well prepared for a great drop in temperature in the great open space). Above is my very able and extremely kind helper Hannah McAndrew (fresh from a successful show at Ceramics in the City), behind her the great pink of Origin 2010 and in front a massive burger after a very long morning setting up.

A few sneak previews of my stand this year. The wonderful plinths above were built (in a very short amount of time) by furniture designer maker John Galvin and have made my set up alot easier and great storage.

Hannah and I enjoying a glass of bubbly at the gala night before the mad crowds!....more to come soon....

Origin 2010

2010-09-14T09:04:00.002Z

Anyone wanting to visit Orign: The London Craft Fair next week...email me at www.amandajsimmons.co.uk for a promotional code to get reduced entry to the show.

Andy Priestman Open Studio

2010-09-07T12:52:00.005Z

Andy Priestman, wonderful potter and painter, is opening his studio this september and it is well worth a visit if you missed him at Spring Fling (see flyer)....the two pics above are from Spring Fling '10.

The Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair

2010-09-05T12:51:00.003Z

All the details are now coming together for GNCCF '10. The website with this years exhibitors is now live....www.greatnorthernevents.co.uk

sunny dogs

2010-08-25T09:47:00.002Z

Commissioned panel on Arran

2010-08-20T11:36:00.003Z

Yesterday I took a day trip to the Isle of Arran to deliver and install a commissioned panel. Never visited the Island before and decided to go over as a foot passenger carrying my large parcel, luckily it was a superb summers day,unlike today.

The panel has been a slow piece (all on my part) but involved 'paper' communication on style and content. The colours were chosen to reflect the owners passion about Arran and the changing seasons (the pink looks a little red on my screen, but it is definitely a deep pink).

It was a great chance to see the work in-situ (along with a large sculputural dish of mine bought at Spring Fling). Quite amazing how it came to life once hung and lovely to see the changing views whilst walking around the room.

Dumfries and Galloway Life

2010-08-18T13:21:00.002Z

This month D&G Life published an article about Corsock (the wee village I live in and run my business from) written by Mary Smith. It's quite amazing who you find....

The Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair 2010

2010-08-16T09:50:00.002Z

Now in its third year, the contemporary craft buying event will feature over 150 designer-makers in ceramics, jewellery, textiles, glass, furniture, wood, metal, paper and more.. Visitors can spend the day in a relaxed yet stimulating atmosphere, chat to the makers and find out the story behind the work.

Set in a pavilion in the Spinningfields district of Manchester, in the heart of the city centre, the event was established to introduce contemporary craft to a Northern audience. The event has gone from strength to strength and 6,400 people visited the show in 2009

Building on the success of previous years, Angela Mann and Ann-Marie Franey, the organizers have added some exciting new features to this years’ show in the form of:

‘Great Northern Graduates’: an area of the show which showcases the best from this year’s creative degree courses. The place in the North to see ‘the ones to watch’

Jewellery-making workshops with Magpie Arts.Workshop bookings: www.greatnorthernevents.co.uk/workshops .

The Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair at Spinningfields will take place

from Friday, October 22 – Sunday, October 24, 2010

at Pavilion in Spinningfields, Hardman Boulevard, off Deansgate, Manchester, M3 3AQ.

For further information visit www.greatnorthernevents.co.uk

Admission on door: £6 (£5 concession)

Origin 2010

2010-08-13T13:47:00.003Z

The list of exhibnitors is now live on the Origin 2010 website....now I'm finally convinced I'm doing it again this year! Lots of changes to the format so will feel like doing a whole new show but should be fun as now everyone is exhibiting at once so no having to make choices of what week to visit....so come and visit!

More glass at Craftscotland

2010-08-13T13:43:00.002Z

This months Craftscotland Newsletter is out (you can read it here) and they are featuring 6 other scottish glassmakers on the Crfat profiles page here.....oh what a lovely sunny day!

Featured Maker at CraftScotland

2010-08-12T10:44:00.005Z

CraftScotland are featuring me as 'maker of the month' on their website.....www.craftscotland.org under the featured makers link from the homepage. CraftScotland is a great resource to find makers and gallerys all over Scotland plus a What's On guide for all craft related events (much going on in Edinburgh for the fringe at the moment).

Another Cover

2010-08-07T13:36:00.002Z

Two in one week...just had the info through for Lustre 2010 at Lakeside, The University of Nottingham's Public Arts Centre and Museum.

My second cover

2010-08-05T14:35:00.003Z

Got my copy in the post this morning....The What's On guide for Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery in Carlisle

I'm teaching there this Autumn again:

9th October....kiln formed glass bowls

20th/21st November Beginners stained glass weekend

Also back at Gracefield Arts Centre in Dumfries in September, teaching over two weekends, open kiln formed glass sessions, on the 11th and 18th September. Please contact each organisation to book or for further details.

Front and Back

2010-08-05T14:33:00.002Z