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) 

Those Cute Little West Virginia Bears

I have a new favorite post card. It features a complacent- appearing black bear. He or she is quite authentic in appearance-- right down to having a few pine needles and bits of dry grass caught in his/her fur. The print accompanying this fine photo says: “Send more tourists to West Virginia. The last ones were delicious.” 

You may have to be a West Virginian to appreciate that, but it tickled me since no one I know believes anything larger than the occasional small animal likely to get eaten by a bear. Most of the year the bears here exist on berries and other vegetative goodies, given that there is not much water deep enough to provide nourishing fish. I love seeing the few bears we have around and we’ve never known them to come looking for trouble. On the other hand, bears are associated with our area and we capitalize on that. I often put their images on my pots, and I always put them on pots that celebrate the Lost River Valley.

Doug Gronholn, our store manager at Lost River ArtisansCooperative, is an ardent and creative crafter. Recently he volunteered ME to make bear ornaments for the yoga institute coming to town in June. Having taken my “Play in the Clay” class last year, Doug came and spent a whole day making bears with me—between 70 and 80 of them. We got them cleaned too, which was big job. Then they dried and were fired. A week later Doug returned and we glazed bears all day. Each one has LRV on it for the Lost River Valley. He’ll soon be back to help attach ribbons for hanging them. There will be an adequate supply of LRV bears to give one to each delicious tourist!