Unloading the doublewide

Robin hit the ground running just as soon as we arrived back in the State of Utah it seemed. Sunday morning he was up early and out the door, headed back to school to unload the double wide wood kiln that he had helped load a week earlier. They call it the double wide here at USU as a reference to a manufactured home, it's a train kiln and the chamber is long and wide in comparison to the little train adjacent to it here in the kiln compound. Here's a look at part of the stack. 

This was what they call a reduction cool firing, a specialty of USU it seems, a different way of firing a wood kiln. The pots are fired to a lower temperature over about 30 hours and then the kiln is brought down in temp slowly with continued stoking to keep the kiln in reduction (starved of oxygen). The basic idea of a reduction cool is to manipulate the iron in the clay or glazes.  The colour palette is subtle, and this particular firing there seemed to be lots of red and black. 

 
Robin has been working with an idea recently to try and direct flame through holes in saggars that he has built specifically to hold some of his forms. The work related to this idea turned out as he intended and are really quite beautiful. He cleaned them up that afternoon to use in his critique the next day. 

He was happy with the dialogue that this idea created in his crit and it looks as though he is going to continue with it and see where it takes him. 

 

Landscapes Inbetween

We made it safely back to Utah, and lucky to have had two gloriously sunny days with clear roads for our entire journey south. Here's a look at the landscapes between Nelson B.C. and Logan UT. 

It was a long trip!

Spring Break ends

Our spring break trip back to Canada felt like a whirlwind of activity; catching up with friends, tying up loose ends and getting a good dose of unseasonably cold Kootenay mountain air. 

We tried to make a point to really relax while we were back and not feel the pressure to try and do too much. Robin was more successful at this, enjoying lazy mornings with Oso Negro coffee in hand, some great quality lunch and dinner dates with friends and even managed to fit in a stress free firing of his wood kiln. 

I inevitably tried to accomplish 101 things all on the last day of course, but was able to catch up with many friends and loved ones during the other four days we were home. 

Even Isla and Roscoe had their fair share of playdates and it was a good thing we packed all our winter wear since the temperatures were colder than normal for this time of year, but at least the sunshine was aplenty.  

Many thanks to my sister and her family for letting us take over their home while they were down in sunny Mexico. We sadly missed them this trip back, but are grateful to have had a familiar home to go back to. 

Spring break begins

A couple of months ago I would have sworn that the school spring semester break would be no different than a regular week for us with Robin working at the studio long hours and perhaps firing a kiln. But with a few other school related trips coming up later this spring for Robin, we decided we would use the break for its intended purpose and get away for a much needed family holiday time together. 

The break officially began Friday evening when we gratefully thanked our friend Kate for coming over to babysit and we headed out for a night on the town. Trevor Dunn, our friend and fellow graduate student was having his much anticipated thesis show Dialogs Distilled at the AVA Gallery in downtown Logan. 

Earlier during the day I had hosted a sushi making party at our place with his partner Donna and another grad, CJ, to make food for the after party. We ended up with nearly 40 rolls, enough to satisfy the 30+ people that helped celebrate Trevor's accomplished show later that night. 

Slightly groggy, but charged and ready to go on holidays, we left town Saturday morning and headed north out of Logan.  We made a midday stop in Dillon, Montana for a visit to the Patagonia outlet store, left better dressed and poorer, and carried on to Missoula for an overnight.  

Today's remainder of the journey was relatively uneventful. We hit some weather on Lookout Pass between Missoula and Coeur d'Alene, but nothing an ex-transport trucker couldn't handle, despite my white knuckling the passenger seat. 

Now we are safely kicking it back at my sister's place in Nelson. The late afternoon sun is shining down on us and we are deliberating on how to best make use of our time this week. It sure feels good to be home.  

Packing day

Thursday was packing day, both on the homefront and at the school. Robin spent nearly the entire day inside the doubleside wood kiln, carefully accepting the pots being passed through the arched door and scrutinizing over each one and ultimately deciding their fate. 

The loading itself went fairly fast considering the number of large pieces going in. Robin was especially  keen to be on the 'inside' of the loading process because he is particularly interested in manipulating the placement of the pots and considers this another part of the creative process. By placing pots with the intention of directing the flame, he likens it to painting with fire for a desired surface treatment in wood firing.  

The kids and I came by the kiln compound around 4 p.m. to check on how things were going and there were not too many pieces left to go in. We stayed for about half an hour and tried to stay out of the way, but a curious little person couldn't resist sticking her head in the kiln for a better look. We then headed home to finish up our own packing of clothes and toys for our road trip home to Canada. 

Robin was also wanting to play a significant role in the loading since he won't be here for the actual firing. With the strange inverted weather this semester, the kiln schedule got moved around and unfortunately that meant bumping the doublewide firing to this weekend (the start of the USU spring break), also the same weekend that we had made plans to drive back to the Kootenays. 

He's disappointed that he won't be here for this much anticipated firing, and the crew has generously offered to hold off on unloading the kiln until next Sunday when we plan to be back. Our trip home this week will be a short one but we are both looking forward to the drive and time together.  

Bok Bok Chicken

Tonight I made a roast chicken for supper. And as I went about my business dressing and stuffing the bird, Isla and Roscoe went about theirs tearing the kitchen apart drawer by drawer. Isla decided she wanted to help out with the supper preparations and climbed up on a chair beside the counter to get a better vantage point. 

What came next was not what I was expecting. "Is that a bok bok chicken?" she asked. To which I replied yes and glanced over at her face to see a look of shock and confusion. "Like the ones at Anna's house?" was her next question. 

Anna is Isla's friend and daughter of some great folks that we have met here in Logan. Mike and Sandra have a chicken coop in their backyard with about 10 hens and we are some of the lucky recipients of their eggs on a weekly basis. Awhile back we were at their place for supper and got to take a tour of the coop and collect some freshly laid eggs. Anna (also three years

 old) has a very endearing way of addressing the rooster in the flock each time by letting him know that he'll be soup if he doesn't keep quiet. 

I finally caught on that Isla was realizing for the first time that we actually eat those feathery friends she had the pleasure of chasing around that day at Anna's. And the way she was staring at the slippery chicken in my hands, she was also realizing for the first time that before we can eat a chicken it has to lose it's feathers, feet and head first. 

Needless to say, it was an interesting conversation.  

Smokie Clennell

Meet Smokie Clennell. He also goes by Tony and is the other Canadian graduate student in the USU ceramics program. Tony has been working away for the last three years, having been back and forth from his home in southern Ontario and here in Logan and is now on the homestretch to graduate this coming spring. 

We had Tony over for supper this weekend and our kids were immediately taken with him. A grandpa-like figure for them, Roscoe was happy to sit on his knee and Isla keen to have him read her some stories before bed. Nothing like coming over to the DuPonts for a little dose of kid energy. 

Robin and Tony are studio neighbors and can peer over a chest height divider that defines their work space to check on what the other is up to. Robin has mentioned several times to me how he values this setup, being able to talk and observe each other. Robin has a lot of respect for the experience Tony brings to the program - having made a living from making functional pottery for a long time before deciding to embark on his MFA.  Tony is also a great writer with a fun sense of humor and used to write a regular article for both Clay Times and Contact (two ceramic magazines). He also has his own blog. Right now he is making large scale handbuilt vases as tall as he can to still fit in the kiln.

The upcoming firing this weekend of the doublewide will be full of large pieces, Tony's and Robin's. This Canadian contingent is also firing with Heidi (another student soon to graduate) and Dan Murphy, one of their faculty.