How does an octopus respond to a human touch and can we stay calm enough to feel past our instinctive squirm response?
I would like to imagine that my hand feels as cool to the octopus as the octopus feels to me.
either way there is a connection and that is everything.
Waiting to hear how this conversation will pan out.
Who knew fat cats would be so fun to make. I even want to make them fatter
What do you think … In or Out
I was photographing these two elephants for my sister. She was to choose one or the other for a gift to her dear friend who loves elephants and finds herself in need of a little heart-lifting elephant power right now. 
Will she choose the big one or the little one?
I turn them around and around so she can better see.
they pose themselves just right … choose me! choose me!
I can see they are getting a little distracted by flower garden
(they don’t get out much before they find a new home)
by the end of this photo session I can see that these two have totally bonded and there is no way I am going to separate them. I have decided they will go together … and if I don’t put down my camera right now, they will just simply wonder off by themselves
as we all know elephants will do
I have a little show at Circle Craft down on Granville Island in Vancouver this month
here is a little peak
      
a real softie under that tough exterior
I tried to join in the conversation.
… excuse me please, I just want to…..
if I could just say a word ….
I was just thinking that ….
maybe if ….
Oh well … they don’t need another voice
I was showing a friend a new piece, a Life Boat. She asked me if those were people …..
I thought she asked because she didn’t have her glasses on. But she said that
one never knows with me …
They could be animals or creatures
fair enough
It got me thinking though. Yes their faces are undefined.
I do that for a reason.
I am talking in Body Language
This is how a Gathering Bowl begins ~ Owl always comes first, the owl is the knower, the one who grounds the others. Then the conversation begins.
A mouse starts up a bit of a nervous conversation with owl. “Ya know I’ve been thinking, maybe I’m not so tasty after all.” The owl just listens, but the owl is Listening, so that’s a start, a new beginning.
Another owl flies in to add an opinion. “What! are you crazy! That mouse looks delicious, we can’t stop what we’ve been doing for, for… For ever!” “Well let’s think about this” says the first owl. Mouse is looking nervously at this new developement, mouse doesn’t like the second owl enthusiasm. He has a point … The mouse, I mean.
“What are those 3 talking about over there?” Fox muses to himself. Fox could catch them all in a second, he knows, but Fox is too interested in their apparently urgent discussion…. He finds it rather interesting and even a little amusing that they are talking to each other. He will listen for a while.
Little bird wonders what fox will do.
Little bird’s cousin is dying to know too!
More join the conversation and the great thing is … is that they are All taking. They have all stopped going about their everyday business of surviving and are exchanging ideas, listening, and speaking with one another.
This is how it goes in my head as I build my Gathering Bowls. Everyone one has something to say to each other and everyone listens. It grows and grows and becomes a grand conversation. And I like to imagine …. towards a new paradigm.
We have a lot to learn from them.
now these are weird …
not for the faint of heart or squeemish…
these are Creepy Cool so hang on to your hats
Here we go
a bowl full of teeth!
now don’t fret because I made them myself
from porcelain clay, I’m a potter, remember?
They are knitting stitch markers, you can use them to mark where you are in your knitting pattern, they make knitting easy and enjoyable because they tell you when you need to change your pattern, they are kind of like being on cruise control … in knitting
I was just looking to make something a little EDGY
and these are …
look closely, there is a gold cap on one of them
one could even use them as a Brooch, which someone I know does
I’m selling these in my Etsy shop (my shameless plug) and they come in this cool tin box
Wisdom Tooth is the one with the gold Tooth
Sweet Tooth are, well, 6 sweet teeth!
~ Sometimes you gotta just stir things up a bit ~
VaRooooom
Start with a bit of fine white mud
Make a tear drop then ever so gently coax out the tip until it becomes an elephant trunk. They are very forgiving …. but you still have to be gentle
Roll out some legs so they can walk around, being careful to remember their toes, then give it the ability to hear and express. Oh yes, don’t forget their tail, it’s more important than you might think.
Then let it walk around.
If you’ve done it right, it will and before you know it, other elephants will join in, they are very social creatures. They will immediately recognize each other and begin to carry on
as elephants do ….
I’ve been making elephants all day long. And tomorrow I will make some more.
They have an interesting shape to start with. It’s a tear drop shape, which given the plight of elephants these days, is quite poignant. I pull this tear drop tip out long enough until I have a long truck. Then I add all the rest.
Each elephant is then on its own to express it’s self, I just keep it upright while it’s deciding.
When I get enough made and put them all together, they seem to mingle around getting to know each other, I can hear them a mile away…. not really … but they do seem lively >
Tomorrow I’ll have twice as many …. An elephant rave!>
I am compelled to make what I call Gathering Bowls. They are simple white porcelain bowls that have a flurry of conversation and connection between all sorts of different animals. They are all Talking and Listening on the Edge. That’s it isn’t it … Talking discussing, debating, and Listening which is probably more important than talking (but someone does have to be talking to be able to listen) and on the Edge because as we can all feel in our bones, we are on the edge.
I always start with the owl. Owl grounds the conversation to come.
This one is thinking, listening.
and now there is the beginning of a discussion. A between.
The Finished bowl is ready for the kiln. I had many more figures to place on the rim but these 5 little owls whispered “enough now, all we really need is a window”
Listen closely, can you almost hear what they are saying?
These are 2 pieces from my series ‘Life Boats’ were in a group show down at the Pendulum Gallery. It was their premiere showing.
I have been working on this series for almost 3 years now, making 3-4 Life Boats a year. The concept has been growing and morphing. It feels like it might be time for us to be building Life Boats at the same time we are trying to save our planet.. These are not hopeless pieces, they are the coming together of inter species minds and hearts, they are acknowledging the fact that we are all connected and share one home planet, they beg the question; who are we waiting for to help us?
Big Giveaway coming this week! Go to Susan B Anderson’s blog to enter
http://susanbanderson.blogspot.ca
Win my brand new Talking Sheep Pin. You can see what it loos like here- Etsy.com/shop/talkingclay
Talking Sheep says ~ Knit Me
28 Porcelain Elephants soon to be walking around in a shiny bright coat
And many Deluxe Owl and Home Talking Pins in the making!
Etsy.com/shop/talkingclay
Nancy Walker Studio 