new treasures new inspiration

I've been busy busy busy since my last post.  Dave's mom (Janet) was here for what turned out to be a week full of gallery visits and studio tours.  Today I'm catching up with checkbooks and stacks of mail and the explosion of chaos in my studio and sharing some of the wonderful things we found last week.

Our first day out and about we hit Weaverville and two of my favorite shops - Miya Gallery and Mangum Pottery and on the way back one of those places I've been meaning to stop into for ages, Thyme in the Garden.  As Janet and I were exploring the gardens we were captivated by all the little buzzing critters.  Then this morning while catching up in blog-land, I chuckled to see that Andrew and I had discovered the same amazing little creature last week - a hummingbird moth.

Tuesday was a big day - Penland, Bakersville, and Burnsville and some of the best artists and potters in the country.  Our first stop was Nick Joerling's studio, hands down our favorite potter of all time.  As you can see, between the three of us, we came away with quite a haul - Nick had a very lucrative day ...

Our next stop was the Penland Gallery and School, one of the premier craft schools in the country ... amazing how much talent lives and is drawn to this region - really amazing.  In the gallery was an exhibit with the work of Maggie Taylor - a new discovery for me.

Let me just say, Dave and I are absolutely in love with her work and aesthetic and were 'this' close to coughing up a large chunk of change for one of her pieces.  And me, I'm really really in love with her work.  Funny thing - we thought this tree image borrowed heavily from one of our favorite photographers, Jerry Uelsmann.  Turns out, she's married to him - we felt much better after that discovery.  Her website's got a bit too much 'flash' stuff going on for my taste, but the work is incredible.  I might just have to have a copy of her Alice in Wonderland.

Next was the studio of Melisa Cadell.  Melisa's figurative work can be quite challenging and is way out of my price range.  What I have been collecting are her small wall pieces.  I have one from several years ago that's very sculptural and just bought one of her ravens at the Guild show last month.  Janet was smitten by them as well - she got one from Melisa and another from the superb Crimson Laurel Gallery in Bakersville.

All in all, a fun week, albeit a bit expensive.  The weeks ahead will see me back at work - continuing the re-vamp of my wholesale line, catalog and website.  The ideas and inspiration continue to flow and, for that, I am enormously grateful and super excited.

I'll leave you with three words that came together a few nights ago, just as my head hit the pillow ...

embrace  ... empower ... engage

Not sure where or if these will get used, but I like how they feel.
Now back to my sorting and organizing and being productive.
blessings - kvk