Journal. – Rae Dunn - Fine Handmade Pottery

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

this is picasso’s sculpture MAN WITH A SHEEP that he gifted to the town of vallauris. it stands in the main square place de la libération beside the church and castle . . .

every day in this square there is a farmers market. our apartment and our studios are 2 blocks away. do you realize how convenient that is ? oh, how i love this town.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

black is beautiful.

this spanish black clay is such a treat to work with and to look at. to me, it resembles a chocolate candy bar . . . and if you know me at all, you know how i feel about chocolate.

black clay, rae dunn

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

i’m working with this beautiful spanish black clay and getting back to my roots in coil building. oh, what joy. it’s like going home. this clay is perfect . . . groggy, wet, not too wet, easy to manipulate, and dries relatively fast. it’s a dream clay.

Monday, June 13, 2011

very unCANNY.

this is the extremely lovely laurence duarte. she recently tried to order something from my online shop, but i responded that i was going to france for a month and couldn’t do it. turns out she lives in CANNES . . . 10 MINUTES from where i was going to be. seriously, WHAT are the chances of THAT ?

so yesterday she invited me for lunch at her incredibly beautiful home overlooking the entire city of cannes. simply breathtaking.

she served much of the lunch on dishes of mine she had purchased in provincetown (very surreal and what a SMALL world, to be in france eating from my own dishes).

this is the spectacular view from her back yard.

and as if THAT wasn’t enough . . . there were TWO 3 month old jack russell terriers that pretty much sat in my lap for the entire 4 hour lunch.

am I the luckiest girl, or what ?

cannes, france, laurence duarte, rae dunn

Sunday, June 12, 2011

the french rock.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

inspiration du jour . . .

yesterday we went swimming in the mediterranean sea and i collected this handful of mediterranean sea glass. now if THIS isn’t inspiring, i don’t know what IS. the colours are so magical and the water was so clear.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

studio scene.

i made a few really thin porcelain cups. pressing letters into this beautiful porcelain when the clay is *just right* is so satisfying . . . and what is even more satisfying is pressing FRENCH words into the clay . . . ooh-la-la.

Friday, June 10, 2011

the right tool.

these are pretty much the only tools i brought with me to france. i am very much a “hands” on potter, my left thumb being my main tool + my coil building and smoothing device. the good news is that it makes for very light travel. one of my fellow residents, maja, brought a suitcase full of tools/supplies. we had a good laugh at the comparison, my tools were carried here in a pencil case !

Friday, June 10, 2011

friday field trip (from the sketch book).

03 june 2011

antibes, france

saw this hat at a flea market in antibes.

Thursday, June 09, 2011

porcelain heaven.

this porcelain called limoges, is truly delicious. it is very creamy and buttery and easy to work with (for a porcelain).

it fires to as white as i have ever seen. i’m anxious to see how my work turns out . . .

Tuesday, June 07, 2011

merci, sf chronicle.

wilma and i would like the thank the SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE for the article they published about us in the sunday paper. my first full page spread !

(you can read the article here)

Tuesday, June 07, 2011

le mediterranean.

although i have been working in my studio like a mad woman, i have also been taking time to enjoy myself here in france. my fellow residents, maja, kyungmin, and i went to antibes for a little beach time and big city life. it’s only 20 minutes away. we had an amazing lunch and then swam in the mediterranean sea, which is my favorite body of water. THIS is the LIFE.