OOJ: Taos Pottery

before this weekend, i never would have claimed to be interested in pottery. sure, i'd seen pretty plates and cups before, painted and glazed in controlled decorative patterns, but that kind of pottery did not get much of a reaction out of me besides, "that's nice." 

then i went to Taos, NM for a weekend to flee the ABQ heat. it was almost noon; i was in line for ice cream at Taos Cow ice cream behind two people who were taking a very long time deciding which flavors they wanted. i gave up on ice cream and wandered across the street into Rottenstone Pottery studio. suddenly i was in a room full of pottery as i'd never seen it before: powerful, roughly shaped pieces that somehow managed to evoke the desert landscape. looking at one of these pieces was like staring out a window. Scott, the owner, explained how it works: the pigments and patterns on his pieces don't come from colored glaze, but from the ash of the wood that feeds the kiln. wood from different areas give off ashes that produce distinctive effects. my favorite pieces had earth-colored ribbons that resembled a landscape, like the mug in the bottom left corner of the photo above. Scott said those pieces had been fired with wood from Kalamazoo, MI. twice a year, he loads up his truck with clay and drives up to Kalamazoo to create pieces there. i love the idea of art pieces that carry geographical imprints of where they were created.

Scott also carries work from other local artists. i fell in love with these owls (center photo), carved out of found burnt wood by Duane O'Hagan, who also carved the other spirit birds shown. 

and finally, a sign from the Taos Gorge Bridge rest area. i love it.