Studio Art Tour

The big news around here is the upcoming Studio Art Tour. Scheduled for Saturday, 10 October, it involves 9 different artisans, artists, and galleries between Mathias and Wardensville in rural Hardy County, West Virginia. The idea is to visit the studios to see where these creative people work and how they make their art. In some cases, the large or unwieldy machinery involved in the artistic process makes transport to demonstrate elsewhere impossible. In all cases, seeing how something is actually made prompts appreciation for the handmade, one-of-a-kind items.

Visiting the studios will allow you to get to know 15 year old Clayton whose creativity and imagination are expressed in the unique metal sculptures he creates in his father’s garage. The tour includes Bob’s wonderful rocking chairs that you can melt right into because they are custom made to fit your body, as well as innovative Toni’s West Virginia wine tasting. Other treats include Josh’s charming silverware jewelry and horseshoe art, and Albert’s beautiful stained and fused glass. The tour is rounded out with Joshua Miller’s fine furniture and wood sculptures made in his old church at the edge of the road on the edge of the woods, and my handbuilt stoneware. (I promise cookies to encourage people to cross our streams to get to Lost Hollow.) In addition to these art studios, there is a modern mountain general store with everything from an espresso bar and bakery to antiques, and the Lost River Artisans Cooperative co-housed with the only farming family museum around!

Whatever the weather, it will be a great day and you can see all of the studios between 10 AM and 5 PM. The wine tasting is limited to 1-3 PM, but the rest can be done in any order, at any time during the day, and all at no charge. Visit either one of these websites for the details: www.lostrivertradingpost.com or www.lostrivercrafts.com. All directions to the studios are given from state route 259. It is too beautiful an area and too great an opportunity to miss!

Bears, bears, bears

We see black bears here in the wild, wonderful hills of West Virginia-- although not as many as I’d like. I love that bears share their woods with me, but mine is a minority view. Many folks prefer not to think of anybody quite that large and omnivorous out there with them. It may make more sense to worry about deer ticks or venomous snakes, but it is bears that make them nervous. Perhaps it is the bears’ unpredictability. Our son assured his wife many times that, for all his trips out here, he had yet to see a bear. Of course, a big one immediately ran right in front of their car. When Erica joins Greg and the kids for a visit, she tends to stick pretty close to the porch.

Yet people like the roly-poly shape of bears, along with the tales they can tell back in the city. There are a lot more deer and cattle than bears in the Lost River Valley, but it is the bears we use as a symbol. At the Lost River Artisans Co-op, our store manager uses bear ornaments as special rewards for customers and they are popular. We make sheep for Fiber Fest, but we make bears for Heritage Weekend and other events. The great thing about Doug is that he shows up to help make his ideas happen. So he and I made bears. We made a lot of bears. There are dozens of them as in the kiln (hopefully behaving themselves) as I write this.

We roll out clay and cut out bears. Then we imprint the back with something textured and stamp LRV on the front for the Lost River Valley. (George Washington had no idea what he began when he failed to realize that the Cacapon merely went underground for a spell and was not lost.) Then Doug uses a straw to make a hole, hopefully in the right place so the trinket hangs evenly. The bears dry a bit and the edges and holes get cleaned—a tedious task. More drying, and then I bisque fire them. Doug returns-- bless the man-- and we glaze. First we put black on the front and back to showcase the LRV and the textured print to add interest. Then we put clear glaze on the front and I add a line of metallic gold along the edge. Into the kiln they go. A $5 purchase at the co-op and you can own one too!

PS: Just saw a post on facebook that said Kathy will be demonstrating her unique pottery making skills this Saturday and Sunday. (added by Deb Fischer of The WoodArt Studio)