Saturday, October 20, 2012

Texas Clay Festival 2012


The best Clay Festival in the country is this weekend! Don't miss it!
Diana will be giving a demo on Saturday @ 10:30. Click here for all the info.
See ya there!

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

First Annual Summer Clearance Sale!

Kersey Ceramics Studio & Shop is holding our first
Summer Clearance Sale!


15% off everything in stock!!
Sale runs from Tuesday, July 31st to Friday, August 31st. 
Make Diana make all new work for the Fall season!











112 Broadway, San Antonio, TX 78205

Hours of Operation: Tues-Friday 11A-6P, Saturday 12-4P

Special hours for duration of sale: Tuesdays open until 9P, in conjunction with:






Don't forget, we can always offer one hour of free validated parking in the Alamo Parking Lots behind our building (Travis and N. Alamo), just tell the attendants you are coming to visit our shop and they will give you a ticket for us to validate.

In other news, we are very happy to announce that we will have a new neighbor: The Charles A. James Bicycle Shop is moving in next door! Yes, bicycle mugs are in the works! They are joining a great group of shops and restaurants on our block: Taste opened its doors yesterday! They join Thai Lao Orchid offering great food. Legendary Paris Hatters is just across the street, and next door to Paris is a funky little bar: The Texas T Pub. To round things up is the Alamo Antique Mall. I am also happy that a block away Jimmy Johns subs has moved in and The Coffee shop should be opening up within the month!


Also, if you try out Downtown Tuesday this coming Tuesday July 31st, a ton of Food trucks will be around Travis park. Travis Park is just a block away from Kersey Ceramics! So is the Alamo, if it has been awhile since you have given it a look! And every Tuesday night The Esquire Tavern has been offering great live music, along with very creative cocktails exquisitely crafted...totally old school, with the longest bar in Texas to boot!

In other, other news, NowCastSA just created a great little video about the irrigation ollas that Diana is making. The Olmos Park Terrace Community Garden has been using ollas for the past two seasons and love them! They use 70% less water than conventional watering techniqes and only require refilling 1-2 times per week!

Friday, July 13, 2012

Next Public Art Project: Houston Street Bridge, at AT&T Parkway

Back in the Fall of 2011, Bernice Williams and I were awarded a public art commission to create artwork for the Houston Street Bridge. So far, we have contacted many area stakeholders and received a wealth of information regarding content ideas for our artwork. We have presented our preliminary ideas/format to the San Antonio Public Art Board, and we are now fully in the concept development phase of the design process. I thought I would share bits of the process on this blog. 




The basic format of the bridge is very similar to my Toad and Golf Bridges, The artwork will be on the interior only, and will consist of a total of 40 ceramic panels inset into the guardrails. The panels will be no bigger than 2x5', and once again, I will provide the contractors with foam cutouts so they can cast a 1" void for my panels to be mortared into. 

Bernice and I are working on the concept for each panel and have started laying out a "story board" using post it notes. After we finalize the concepts we will start gathering images and making sketches to use when we begin building. Bernice's main job to to help gather information, documentation, and concept development. We are hoping that we can get 4 finials approved to be included in the artwork design (2 on each end). If we can get that approved, that will be her main focus when we build the project, while I execute the 40 ceramic panels.

Next steps are to meet with more people that live and work in the area in order to gather more information about the history and future use, begin sketching the panels and developing the shapes and motifs, and start coming up with a glaze palette.  We hope to present our ideas the the community in August and then to the Public Art Board for approval. If all goes well, we hope to start building by late fall/early winter. Installation will be complete by 2013.

Thanks!
Diana

Friday, May 4, 2012

Ollas a la Christina.

Well it was just a matter of time before I dove into the mud myself. My initial attempts to make these was very frustrating and Diana had to help save my pots from the misshapen mass of earth they became under my inexpert hands. But I am happy to post that after the third one, the ollas started to take shape. I made two sizes, the larger ones are for outdoor gardens; the smaller ones I am experimenting for indoor planters. My hope is that folks in apartments will buy these so they can leave town for a week and not have to worry about watering their indoor plants. We are getting ready to take them to a presentation for Green Spaces Alliance garden group near Gardenridge on the 19th.


So far, I noticed just this morning, that where our ollas are planted in garden plots, the vegetables are a third size larger than those plots without ollas. I did not have my camera with me this morning. But tomorrow I will post a photo about this. I so like not having to worry about forgetting to water our veggies, when I was absent last week from home, while taking care of my mother, my zucchini got watered via ollas and I returned to find a ginormous squash under the leaves (whose photo was posted on Facebook previously).


Ciao, Christina

Friday, April 13, 2012

Los Compadres

Hello Fiesta Revelers!


We got a sneak peak of Fiesta yesterday April 12th when Diana was invited to attend the Los Compadres Gala that was held on the grounds of the beautiful and recently renovated Mission Concepción.


What a beautiful evening and event this was. We were invited guests of Cynthia McMurray. Diana created a unique piece to donate for this worthy cause: all monies from the gala go to support our beautiful missions. The event had great food, music and a Texas-style auction with professional "old school" auctioneers! Diana's pot went for a whopping $3,500!  What a fun time this was. Thank you, Cynthia! 


Diana is in high gear for the Fiesta Arts Fair coming very soon-April 21st and 22nd. We will be closed at our retail location on Friday April 20th so we can set up at the fair. The shop will be closed on Saturday too.


We hope you all got to pick up the free issue of Trends this past week April 2012 issues -most HEBs.  Diana is so much in the limelight these days that I hope her head will fit through the double doors after all is said and done! It was a well written article and our photogenic muddy gal shows off her clay-dyed apron-again!


One last braggadocio----Diana's frog from the Mulberry Bridge is the theme chosen by PASA (Public Arts San Antonio) for a fiesta medal. 





You can purchase one at the Fiesta Stores. 





Fiesta Party Girl, Christina



Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Clay dyed clothes?

I was perusing one of my clothing magazines this morning and spied this. Being the wife of a potter, I could not help but laugh! All of Diana's clothes are clay dyed. Darn, now why didn't I come up with marketing idea? Maybe it's not too late. Bring me all of your white cotton things and I'll dye them terra cotta for you and you can save on the shipping charges. LOL-Christina

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Spring planting time!

March 17, 2012
Hello Kersey  Clay Fans!
Well we had a humdinger of a party on the opening of March 10th! So many of you made it here despite the afternoon downpours-Thank you! 
We had so much fun talking to you all that we forgot to take photos. Next time, we will appoint someone to do this for us.  In case you missed the show- there are still plenty of fun artworks to see here besides Diana’s beautiful pots.  GeorgieCunningham has created some interesting nouveaux objets d'art papier  pour la table as has her contemporary, Paula Cox.  And of course, Jane Bishop's vibrant and vintage designer linens set off any table arrangement whether your taste is classical, or nouveaux/funk. 

The show ends March 31 and we will be sad to see their art leave the premises- so please get down here when you can.  
Our hours are: Tues- Friday 11-6 and Sat 12-4pm.

Aside from the preparations for the
Fiesta Arts Fair
April 21, 10:00am-6:00pm, April 22, 11:00am-5:00pm
Southwest School of Art, 300 Augusta

that Diana is preparing for, she has also tasked me to remind you all that spring is here and now is a good time to try out our line of Ollas. In case you have not heard what this is, I am posting the info sheet that Diana created last year when she began making Ollas for our Olmos Park Terrace Community Garden.

We used the Ollas in our home as well as in the community garden during the horrible 2011 drought and we managed to get a decent crop of veggies without draining the aquifer! Also, we diminished the need for frequent watering- they really are a time-saver! And if you enjoy traveling, then you can fill them up and leave town for a week with no fear of dehydration.

Ollas, otherwise known as pitcher irrigation
The cost is $45.00 per Olla plus tax. Properly cared for, they should last a very long time. Ours are into their second year of use.

Here is her handout:
OLLA Irrigation
Ollas (pronounced “oya”) are porous clay pots that have been fired in a kiln and then are buried underground.  The body of the pot is left unglazed and the top, exposed portion and lid are glazed. When filled with water, the clay pot turns into an amazing high-tech device. The micro-pores of the clay pot allow water to seep into the surrounding soil. The water seepage is regulated by the water needs of any nearby plant. When the plant's water demands have been fulfilled and the soil is moist, the water seepage from the clay pot will stop. When the soil becomes dry, water seepage will begin again. This seepage is controlled by soil moisture tension. It's automatic irrigation without timers or electronic sensors!
How to Use:
1.       Bury your olla in the ground or in the center of a larger container up to the glazed portion of its neck.
2.       Place seeds or plants around the circumference of the olla. Fill the olla with water and place the glazed lid over the top to prevent evaporation and mosquitoes.
3.       Continue to water the seeds or plants daily for a week or two to help get them established, then switch to just adding water to the olla. Mulch around the plants and olla to further prevent evaporation.
4.       It is hard to estimate how often you will need to add water to the olla. Variables are: # of plants, amount of rainfall, types of plants, etc.  Based on my experience, and using one bell pepper or tomato plant per olla, I only needed to add water about every 5-7 days during the drought of 2011!
Advantages of Olla Irrigation:
ü  Good for soil structure. Because water is not poured onto the soil, the seed bed stays loose and plenty of air can circulate.
ü  Surface soil in clay pot irrigation remains dry, thereby reducing weed proliferation and direct evaporation!!
ü  System inherently checks against over-irrigation.
ü  Much smaller quantities of water and less frequent watering required, reducing the amount of labor and time needed to garden.
ü  Saves on the amount of fertilizer if it is added in clay pots and is absorbed as a solute via water movement to the plants.
ü  Clay pots have been proven to reduce water use without reducing yields.
Maintenance:
1.       Always keep pots wet by not allowing water to deplete beyond 25% capacity.  This will counteract possible clogging and enhance water flow out of the clay pot.
2.       Long irrigation intervals entailing total depletion of the pots should be avoided as this will encourage clogging particularly if the water is highly carbonated.
3.       An acid (hydrochloric or vinegar) should be used to unblock the system if clogged.

Christina






Wednesday, March 7, 2012

This exhibit will be sweet and delicious and promises to be a treat for all who attend! This year we have four new artists that are going to make this exhibit not to be missed!


Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Diana Speaks to Fiber Artists

2/28/12
Diana and I just got back from Kerrville, TX where Diana gave a lecture on "Creativity" to the Texas Federation of Fiber Artists http://texasfederationoffiberartists.org/ for their Biannual Conference. This is the second time that the fiber artists have invited her to lecture. Unfortunately for me, but lucky for Diana, her lecture was scheduled on the last day of the event after the vendors had packed up and gone home: I missed the sales of hand-made textiles!

Diana's talk was well received and the hosts displayed real Texas hospitality. The event was held at the Inn of the Hills http://innofthehills-px.trvlclick.com/index.htm in Kerrville and those folks were very attentive and helpful to the organizers:  it’s a great place to host an artist conference.
Fiber artists, like potters, are lots of fun and super friendly. They were afraid that participants would get lost on the grounds of the large hotel, so they mapped out the way to the conference room with tie-dyed scarves from the front desk to the conference room.  In the “hospitality room” the participants traded hand- made stamp and fiber cards, which I did collect for my stash of ephemera which you can see here.

I was so excited to be there that I could not sleep, I perused the fiber websites till midnight and found that great knitting installation with the giant knitters and accidentally shared that link to Facebook from Diana’s computer- I forgot to sign in to my Facebook-so lest you think Diana has vacillated from mud to fiber, never fear- that was my happy accident, not hers. Here is the link again, in case you missed it- those women are over the top-what a work-out that must have been!


The keynote speaker for the Fiber Conference was Kathyanne White http://www.kathyannewhite.com/about.html. She spoke about her muses: the artists who inspire her and about her techniques of working with recycled objects. Her lecture melded concepts which Diana spoke to about creativity. Both talks were very inspirational.  One participant commented that at first she wondered what on earth she could possibly learn from a ceramic artist. She was surprised to hear and see the detail of surface design that Diana is so known for and commented that concepts Diana spoke on of “flow” and “structure” certainly are incorporated into all works of art and not just fiber.

Diana is an engaging speaker as well as an artist (so said the congregation, and I do agree).  We wish to thank the Federation of Fiber Artists and especially Pat Schulz for hosting us this past weekend.  Check their new website for photos of the work they displayed.

The street sign in front of the new studio at 112 Broadway is certainly drawing in the crowd now!




Today we had a “walk-in” who walked away happily with one of Diana’s extra large bowls. Here are a few photos of the matriarch, Margaret Palafox, giving her approval of our new studio.






Diana is doing the sprigging on a new sculpture for Darryl Mix today. He is a local gallery owner and art afficionado. Here is the link to his facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Art-SA-Gallery/208169372384

Happy Leap Day’s Eve!
Christina

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Latest news from 112 Broadway

Hello Dear Kersey Ceramic Followers!

Happy New Year!

Well, we moved in to 112 Broadway without hurting our backs! It took 2-26' truck loads to move the major stuff then numerous regular truck trips to and fro to get all equipment and clay here.

We are not "officially" open yet but Diana is in full swing making pots now. She and Sara were having CWS! Clay Withdrawal Syndrome- a syndrome that is known only to potters who are forced to keep their hands out of clay for any length of time. The only cure is to immerse your hands in wet clay.  It's good to see their smiles back.

Tomorrow, Friday 27th, we are having the retail space flooring re-done to blend in with the terracotta walls we painted to spruce up this gorgeous space. The flooring color will be, guess what, clay color! It's called "natural moon"  and really is the color of clay dust. We love the day skylights that flood us with light from the east. We have a wall of glass on the south side which faces an alley and a tall building shades our space- which will be good in the summer months.  Foot traffic has been steady, so far we have had just window-shoppers. But now with Diana making pots this week, she can be seen throwing from the storefront, people are curious and are actually coming into the shop now.


Next, will be our temporary signage and then we will be officially open- hopefully by the first week of February. Eventually, Diana will create her sign out of clay, like the one she did for the Bakery at the Pearl Brewery.

We love being downtown, there's plenty of places here in walking distance to have lunch and it's fun to see people walking about AND I get to see the celebs going into Paris Hatters for their new sombreros. I have not seen Chris Isaak or Merle Haggard yet, but am keeping my eye out! Abe (the owner) is great to see daily walking in front of his store enjoying the street scene. If y'all don't know about Paris Hatter's, shame on ya- it's a Texas institution!

Please come in and say hello, our hours will be officially Tuesday-Saturday 11-6P once we open, but we are here most  week days now getting things organized. If you do come by, park in the "Alamo Parking" area around back (Alamo Street) and or there are plenty of parking meters that take credit cards. Usually there are lots of metered spaces near Herweck's and behind on Alamo St. We are two blocks south of Herweck's. And five minutes walking distance from the Southwest School of Art.  If you do park in the back of us, tell the parking attendant that you are coming to 112 Broadway. They will keep your keys, we will give you a sticker for one hour free parking. So it's best to call ahead for now and let us know you are coming.

Hope to see some of you soon! And keep checking in for more news later.

Christina