Its Easter Weekend.  The snow better be gone soon.  I have had enough of it.  There are lots of fun things coming up and they have no need of and nothing to do with snow.

The Made of Wood Show starts next weekend on Saturday, April 26.  The opening is from 2pm to 4pm at the Alton Mill Arts Centre.  Awards will be made for Best of Show, Best Student and Best Original Design.  It is my understanding that there will also be a People's Choice Award to be given at the end of the show.  (Directions  to the Alton Mill Arts Centre can be found on the here.)  There are some exceptional works on display. Many of the pieces have been done by students.  If you are in the area, plan to take this in and find out what the next generation thinks about woodworking.  The show runs from April 26 to May 11.

I have donated two chargers to two wonderful events, namely:

The English Harbour Arts Association is located in Newfoundland and is a not-for-profit charitable organization dedicated to the promotion of artistic and cultural education and the preservation of historic and cultural spaces. They are committed to operating an economically self-sustaining institution for the arts that provides learning opportunities for people of all ages and levels of artistic experience.

They are having an auction to raise money for their work in Newfoundland.  The Auction will take place in Ontario in Caledon.  You can find more information, directions and contact info here.  This event takes place Sunday May 4th, 1-5 pm. (Live Auction starts at 3 pm) at the Ugolini Farm south of Orangeville.

This is the piece that I have donated to the auction.  The wood is beech and comes from logs recovered from the bottom of Georgian Bay.  The story of the logging of Georgian Bay is on the back of the charger.  It is common to find logs that are in excess of a thousand years old with grain so tight that it is almost impossible to count the year rings.  For more information on this wood please visit my "History in the Making" website.  The title of this piece reflects on another time before greed and before the environment was sacrificed to progress: "When Trees were Majestic and Forests were Silent".  If you wish to make a bid on this piece but can't make the auction, please contact Barb Boag at bboag@bell.net or by phone at 519-938-8710.

This has become a spring and fall tradition at the Home Hardware in Orillia.  About 500 women attend for an evening of socializing, purchasing and education.  Some local businesses display their services and wares and guest speakers such as Mark Cullen our on hand to enlighten the audience on the latest trend in gardening and improvements around the house.

As with the event above, I have donated a white oak plate made from wood from the bottom of Georgian Bay.  I have called this piece "The Test of Time" as some of the wood in it came from trees that may have been a thousand years old.  The story of the logging of Georgian Bay is on the back of the plate.

Last year, at Ladies' Night, the Orillia Home Hardware collected nearly 7,000 lbs of food for the local food bank. This support of the community won them the Walter J. Hachborn Award for Retailing Excellence for 2013.  For more on this award, please click here.  If you want more information on this event, please call 705-326-7371.

My "History in the Making" show is coming up in September.  You can find more information on it here.  Some of the pieces are complete and many are well along.  The website is starting to come together.  I am slowly getting the stories up (4 so far) and you can follow along, if you wish, by clicking here.  

Some of the stories are relatively easy to write and some take a tremendous amount of research.  Some that I felt would be a 'no brainer' have turned out to be some of the toughest to find information on.  Making the pieces is a breeze compared to some of the research.

In my stories I give some of the history behind the wood and then I refer to my notes that I made when making the pieces.  I include pictures both from the historical perspective and from the making of the pieces.

I will be writing more about this show and others.

Until next time...

Continuing on about galleries, work and charitable donations, I received a cheque from one of my galleries and it included a covering letter.  Here is a quote from the letter:

This is a very refreshing change from what I normally receive.  Mostly what comes in the mail is a cheque and an inventory update.

For many of us in the arts and crafts, emotion is an integral part of our work.  It shapes what we make and who we are.  It is therefore important to me to have a gallery reciprocate by assuring me that what I do is important enough to warrant mention.

Until next time...

Christmas and the holiday season are fading from the rear view mirror and winter has moved in with a vengeance.  In the past few years it seemed that when it got to -12 that it was cold.  Now when it it gets to -12 it almost feels warm and I don't have to put on so many layers!

This posting is a follow up to my comments in November.

I made a donation to one of my favourite charities in early November - a special set of chargers made from wood they had given to me that included comments on the back about the story of the wood.  I regret to say that once the donation was made I have heard nothing more from them.  They have fallen into somewhat the same mold that I described before.

However, over Christmas, I met the couple that purchased the vase that I had put the reserve bid on.  They really wanted the piece so I am happy that it is where it should be.  I heard through the grapevine that the charger set went for several times its retail value and that the buyer is very pleased with the purchase.  Again good news for the bidders and the charities.  Not so great for the artist.  This shouldn't be how we find out about these things!

Just this past week I have been approached by yet another group for a donation.  I resolved to handle this differently.  I suggested how I could make a valuable contribution but that the time was very short.  I also asked that they read my blog and get back to me if they were still interested.  I pointed out that if the past pattern was repeated, then my donation to them would be the last I would make to anybody.

I wasn't sure if I would hear from them but they called back yesterday.

We agreed that the time was too short for me to make a meaningful contribution to their event but we are going to put something special together for next year. Great.  I don't have to jump through hoops in the next two weeks although I was willing to if they could have found the wood.  Better to work on something very special that will be to the benefit to all concerned.

The blog had been read and they resolved not to be like the others.  As I am not contributing this year I won't be able to test that resolve directly.  However, I have several friends in the arts who have promised work and I will follow up with them to see how they are treated.  

I will report back on this in my next posting.

If you are outside, may the wind be at your back.  If you are inside may you find yourself with a good book by a merry fire.  If you are in a warm climate, think of us but don't be smug!

Stay warm!

Until next time...

The Holiday Treasures show is on now until December 8.  All the rest of the shows are completed and I am now in the final frantic rush towards Christmas.  Its funny this year.  It is still November but Christmas seems like it is just around the corner.

I have a number of commissions going into Christmas and, temporarily, all is in hand.  I have my work in a couple of new venues, namely, The Kingston Glass Studio & Gallery and The Art Gallery of Hamilton Gift Shop.

The show at the Art Gallery of Hamilton went well - I sold a couple of pieces.  I was really impressed with how the work was displayed.  The lighting was fantastic!

I am starting to assemble wood and research for my two solo shows next year.  They are at least ten months away but I am already starting to panic.  I have to put together some 40 pieces, 20 of them with historical documentation and this on top of my regular work.  However, I am really looking forward to these shows, especially History in the Making.

This year I have had a number of people bring me their own wood so that they could have something to evoke the memories of what that wood represents.  To this end, I have made an addition to the website that answers some of the initial questions that arise when going down this road.  Please have a look at the Custom Made page and let me know what you think.  I would be interested in your feedback.

I know that this next year is going to be a busy one but I am still hoping to get some more videos completed and up on the site.  I want to get the stick vase series completed and I have been shooting some raw footage on various tips and techniques that I have been using.

There is something that has been bugging me for sometime and this year it has come to the forefront.  The issue is how I and my fellow crafts people and artists are treated on the one hand and how we treat others on the other.

The artists and crafts people in my area are regularly asked to donate to various causes, charities and events.  We are seduced by free advertising, getting our name out and the inevitable tax receipt.  Our group is extremely generous and we seldom say no.  We are easy marks.  I have a couple of groups to whom I regularly give my work and am happy to do so regardless of any return.  It is the others in my area that wish me to give to them also.

Here is what happens.  I am offered promotion of my website and work on Facebook, a picture on their website, a page in their brochure, a tax receipt, promotion at their event, a pair of tickets to their event, etc.  We enjoy a wonderful correspondence up until I ship the piece.  Then nothing.  I check Facebook - nothing or maybe a passing reference - no web link.  I check the website - nothing.  Months later I receive a tax receipt and nothing else.  I resolve not to get sucked in again.

One group that I had been giving a couple of pairs of wooden earrings to for several years contacted me this past spring for a donation.  I said that I would give them the usual.  They said that they wanted one of my artistic pieces.  This was quite a jump up from a couple of pair of $20 earrings.  I was promised some serious profile at their event, tickets, prominent position on their website and on Facebook and they even offered to come and pick up the piece.  I selected some work that I could consider for this and let them choose the piece that they wanted.  The work had a retail value of $1000.  I put a reserve bid on it for $500.

In the course of events, my wife delivered the piece to their offices.  Several days later, they phoned to see if they could come and pick the piece up.  We explained that it had already been delivered.  The first red flag should have gone up then.  I checked their website and Facebook page - nothing.  I was busy in the studio and the time went by.  Sometime later a friend mentioned that my piece sold for the minimum bid of $500.  I had not been sent tickets to the event as promised.  I have still not received the tax receipt nor any word on how the event went.  Not a thank you, nothing.

This was not the only time this happened this year but it perhaps the most extreme.  I think that groups that want work from us should adhere to a code that respects those who donate.  Here's what I would like to see: promotion, especially a web link, acknowledgement of receipt of the work, a tax receipt sent in a timely manner, a letter of thanks that includes how much the piece sold for and to whom it was sold including contact information where possible and a report on the event; how much was raised, how successful it was, etc.

On the other hand, I am troubled by how we crafts people and artists treat our galleries.  Some in our group think that the galleries are ripping them off by charging a 50% commission (this is the standard - some are higher and some are lower).

First of all, the galleries perform a very valuable service - they sell our work.  They have the trained staff that know their market, clientele, and the work that sells.  They have the location and the biz smarts that many of us don't have.  They allow us to do what we do best - we make things.

Secondly, the galleries market for us.  They advertise and promote their stores and locations on a year round basis.  They take care of this expense for us.  They protect our work and wrap it and ship it across the world.  All we have to do is send them more when they call.

Thirdly, they give us referrals.  They send an interested customer to our studios, perhaps for a commission or for a piece that the gallery doesn't have.

For all of this we begrudge them their 50%.  Some of us sell our work at a lower price in our studio than in the gallery.  We encourage customers to come to us instead of going to the gallery.  What some of us don't realize is that the 50% that the gallery takes is the same 50% that we must use to do our own marketing if we are to sell outside of the gallery.  If we sell at a lower price than the gallery we are short changing ourselves twice - once because we are willing to take less for our time and secondly because the gallery will not continue to carry our work if we undercut them.

When a customer says that they saw our work in a gallery we should send the gallery a finder's fee.  This is usually about 20%.  The gallery has an investment in this customer and needs to be compensated.  Also, if the gallery refers a client to a studio, this is not a freeby.  The artist must take the time to establish with the gallery who is going to do what.  If the studio is going to handle the whole transaction then the gallery should get a finders fee.  If the studio is going to make the piece but the gallery will look after selling and shipping to the customer then the gallery should get its regular commission.

What we need are standard agreements that we can sign with those that want us to donate so that they will respect our wishes.  We could establish this by saying that we will only consider groups that are willing to enter into this agreement with us.

Many of us sign consignment agreements with our galleries.  However some very prestigious galleries have minimal agreements.  It is up to us to develop this kind of agreement where we state in writing that we will work with the galleries in honouring our commitments to each other.

I have had a very good relationship with my galleries over the years.  I have paid the finder's fee when I have been able to determine how the customer found out about me.  I promote my galleries on my website and include all information on them such as directions, maps, open times, addresses, and other contact information.  I have done joint marketing with some of my galleries.  I have been well rewarded for my commitment to my galleries.  They are my sales staff and have done an outstanding job in selling my work.  So much so, that I encourage potential customers to visit a gallery as opposed to coming to the studio.

There, I've said my piece.  Comments are welcome.

More water under the bridge.

The show at the Guild Shop in Toronto has wound down.  This was a very successful show although at first it was not encouraging.  Jane and I sold 12 plate sets (a plate set is a plate on a charger) and two salad bowl sets (a wooden salad bowl and 4 stoneware side dishes).

The plate sets were special in that the wood for the chargers came from the bottom of Georgian Bay.  The story of that wood was written on the bottom of the chargers.

The show called "Harvest", at the new Headwaters Arts Gallery, opens this Friday, September 13.  I have 4 pieces in it including 3 of my NICHE Award finalists from the years 2009, 2010 and 2011.  This event runs for about a month and coincides with the Headwaters Arts Festival.  If you are in the Alton - Orangeville area of Ontario, do take some time to visit these happenings.

Later this fall I will have my work in a new (for me) gallery in Kingston, Ontario, called Kingston Glass Studio & Gallery.  The Clay With Wood collaborative bowl sets will be there and later some of my chargers and stick vases.
 Look for more information on the Galleries page of this website.  This info will be up in about a month's time.

Now I have to get back to work.  It seems that the older I get, the busier I am.  No complaints, just strange how it all works out.

Until next time...

How could 7 months go by so quickly?  So much has happened.

Jane Thelwell and I are collaborating on some work.  Please see our website: claywithwood.com.  Our work is being shown at a show called "Medium and Muse: Wood at the Guild Shop in Toronto and will be opening on the 12th of August.  The Opening Reception is on the 15th.  All are welcome to attend.

I will be doing 2 solo shows in 2014, one at the Dufferin County Museum & Archives and the other in Montreal at the Canadian Guild of Crafts.  There is more information on these shows on the Upcoming Events page of this website.

I have just completed a very successful show at the Ojibway Club in Pointe au Baril.  It was interesting in that the show moved from its regular date of the second weekend in August to the last weekend in July.  There were many new faces and the sales varied slightly from previous shows.  The one surprise was that the only dock wood piece I sold was a charger.  Last year I sold 11 chargers and several dock wood bowls.  That was pretty well the difference in sales between last year and this year.  When I got home from the show, the chargers all went to Circle Arts, my gallery in Tobermory, and the dock wood bowls went to the Canadian Guild of Crafts.

My youngest daughter was married in June here at home.  That entailed doing a lot of work on the house and grounds in preparation for the big day.  Lisa and I spent a number of weeks camping out in our house amid the drywall dust, paint cans, rollers and scaffolding.  To Do lists that were perhaps decades old were addressed and crossed off, the deck and cars were power washed and the deck chairs were repaired.  Excess furniture was put in storage so that there would be room for the 80-90 people attending.  Plan B was to hold the wedding in the house if the weather was inclement. 

The weather broke the morning of the wedding and my daughter was married in the Fairy Circle under a bright sunny sky.  (This is where the swing is and both my daughters, in their childhood, spent many an hour swinging and dreaming.)  Did I mention that the swing had to be repaired too?  We had to put in a new cross bar.  Good thing we did.  It was well used that weekend.

Upcoming, there is the imminent show at the Guild Shop, then there is a show with Headwaters Arts (HA).  I will post more on the HA show when I have dates and info.  After that I am submitting some work for jurying at the Art Gallery of Hamilton.  Again, I will post more info on this later.  Finally there is the Holiday Treasures show in late November and early December.  There is info on this on the Upcoming Events page.

Until next time...

...and just like that, 2012 slipped away.  It seems that as I get older time slips away faster and faster.

I am looking forward to a gentle 2013 with lots of studio time.  I have some artistic and technical things that I really want to get at, but for the most part I'll be working on the pieces that people want.

Jane Thelwell (a potter) and I will be doing a collaboration and, if successful, should provide a new product variation for our customers.

Over the past several years I have become more involved in the spiritual nature of who we are and why we are here.  This has included sweats and, most recently, helping to build a kiva.  Over the course of events I have been approached to make smudge boxes.  This, in itself, is an interesting project.  Due to the spiritual use of the smudge box, I felt that I could not ask for payment for these pieces in the usual manner.  I will not accept money for them.  It is so impersonal.  The arrangement that I have made is the receiver gives me something that represents the value that the smudge box has to them.  In many of the ceremonies that I have participated in, one has to give in order to receive.  I have tried to follow that idea with the smudge boxes.

While this has been a nice interlude, I really must get back to my studio sanctuary.  It is a place of peace, well-being and creativity.  I will stop back here again, but for now, I wish you all the best in 2013!

It seems like it was only a short while ago that I last made an entry here and yet it has been months.  I have been remiss and I apologize. 

It has been a very busy time with an extremely successful show on Georgian Bay and a number of commissions to fill.  I have been busy replenishing my inventory for the fall and Christmas seasons.

It is one of those times that I have often dreamed about: good cash flow, lots of work and new bodies of work to create.  It has taken 40 years to achieve!

My fellow crafts people are all crying the blues - no one is buying - how can they survive - the studio tours are dying - no one comes to the studio anymore - and yet I enjoy success.  Why is that?  I think that I now know the answer.

Somewhere along the line somebody started calling crafts people artists.  We were creators.  We started calling ourselves artists and we started believing it.  Therefore we had to create.  We stopped being makers and became artists.  

Artists want their customers to buy what they have created.  Crafts people sell what customers want.  It would be glorious to be an artist and only make the dreams I have in my head.  However, I am a craftsman first and an artist second.  90% of what I make is what my customers want to buy.  10% is what I create - this is when I am an artist.  90% of the time I am working; 10% of the time I am flying.  This is the formula for a successful crafts person.

I really feel for the artist who has lost their way as a crafts person.

My how time slips away!  I am busy in the studio making salad bowls.  This week I have been making them in walnut.  Next week I move to maple.  I am working on two styles, namely the B-Bowl and the T-Bowl.  These are my best sellers.

It is the salad time of year.  The weather has warmed up.  The trees are finally in full leaf (although the ash trees are just starting to leaf - they are always the last).

Many of my salad bowls are purchased for wedding gifts - it is that time of the year also!

I spend 5 - 6 hours a day in the workshop part of my studio.  In order to keep the price reasonable on my bowls, I follow a set format in making them.  As this is not a terribly creative process, I have a fair amount of time to reflect on the nature of what I am doing.  Here are some of my thoughts:

I have always considered myself as a craftsman.  In the last decade or so more and more people are saying that I am an artist.  Well, I don't think that I am an artist.  I am a craftsman - I make craft, some of it fine craft.  I think that the differences between art and craft are becoming blurred.  Many craftspeople consider themselves artists and many artists are considered craftspeople.  

An artist paints her vision - it may be a landscape or it may come from within.  A crafts person can be an artist and create something of textural and visual beauty but that person also can, and probably does, make functional pieces for everyday use.  An artist may need crafts skills in order to execute a work of art but that does not mean that they are a crafts person.

I have always thought that an artist works from a concept whereas a crafts person works from functionality.  The new thinking has this all mixed up and now everyone is an artist and everyone is a crafts person.

I would be happy to hear what others have to say about this.