in EWA this weekend...

The kiln is cooling, and I'll have all the exciting details of the weekend of glazing, loading and candling and candling and candling and thermocoupling and firing, but while I move the glaze supplies back into my studio and shake off the last four (five, fifty?) days of fun, here's a little plug for some most excellent fun to be had in East West Asheville this weekend:

A bit about the Market and the Garden Stroll: CLICK HERE
Find out about some of the 2nd Saturday Artist Market vendors: CLICK HERE

Transfigurations

A wonderful celebration in the works for and by my neighbors, Harvest Records:

Welcome to Transfigurations 2009.

We will be celebrating the first 5 years of our record store, Harvest Records,
with a 3-day gathering in beautiful Western North Carolina.

The dates are August 13th-15th, 2009 (Thursday-Saturday).

Venues will include The Grey Eagle, Diana Wortham Theatre & Fine Arts Theatre.

Much more info to be announced very soon!

Thanks for your love & support, as always,
--Harvest.

transfigurationsasheville@gmail.com

Crazy Green Studios is finally on a map!

If you've read a blog or two here, you know how happy I am to be in my little corner of East West Asheville. Excited as I was when I opened my studio, I couldn't wait to let people know, so I registered my address with Google maps... all went well until I hit the final 'submit' button and found out that for some reason the mapping powers that be think my studio is in a totally different part of West Asheville, not at all on Domino Lane. For that matter, Domino Lane doesn't even exist on any online map or GPS search engine ... please remember that if you're coming by for the first time and please use the directions on my website!

click on the image to go to the online version

As fun as it can be to hide in plain sight, I'm happy to report I've finally made a map! The new West Asheville maps are in distribution, and if you find one of those around town you'll be able to find me! You can also find me in the online version, along with all sorts of other great West Asheville locations. The map also lists ongoing events and has contact info for everyone listed.

shino plate, as featured on the back of the West Asheville map

If you're planning a trip to Asheville, or if you're planning a crawl around town yourself, make sure you add this great map to your pile o' resources, and stop by if you're in the 'hood!

Crazy Green Studios at 2nd Saturday Artist Market this weekend!

Things seem to be almost literally cooking in the studio, with warmer weather and the kiln heating the place up...and instead of slowing activity down, it's busier than ever!

I was hoping to do another slightly experimental kiln at cone 7-8 for this weekend's 2nd Saturday Artist Market, but the timing just didn't work out. The challenge in commission work keeping me so busy is carving out that time to keep developing my own work, but you won't hear me complaining for lack of things to do! That's the nice thing about the 2nd Saturday market - since it's the 2nd Saturday of each month, I've always got next month to present something new!

I'm really looking forward to this weekend's 2nd Saturday Artist Market. The area will be a buzz, as we're right down the street from the River Arts District that hosts Studio Stroll over the weekend, and the weather looks encouraging for lots of people out on the streets! I love live markets - it's funny, I don't enjoy the whole 'marketing' aspect of running the business, but I do love the live market. It's great to have the opportunity to watch people interact with my work, get to know them and help them get to know the process and the person behind what they see. And not just my booth, I love the whole interactive community dynamic of a live market and watching all the connections that happen. And... this month's Community Booth is Mountin' Hopes - the therapeutic riding center - very cool!


The Crazy Green booth will feature some new work, along with more of some of the popular sellers from the recent show at Clingman Cafe. In addition, we'll have a decorating station set up once again for anyone who'd like to decorate a bowl for Empty Bowls, and you're welcome to bring canned food and other non perishable donations for MANNA FoodBank as well. And the studio will be open as well as what you'll find under the tent, and I'll of course be there to talk to anyone about studio membership and the summer workshops.

Check out the 2nd Saturday blog for profiles on some of the participating artists, and come and check us out! And when you do, be sure to go over to Christopher's Garden for additional exhibiting artists, and there are lots of other cool small businesses in the 'hood you'll want to visit. East West Asheville has a lot going on, and if you haven't taken the time to check it all out, come by and see us on Saturday!

2nd Saturday Artist Market is expanding!

Check out the blog (click on image above) and get all the skinny ... I've been updating computer stuff far too long. Got the Red Sox on the radio, the sun is warming up yesterday's wheel work and it's time to make some more!

2nd Saturday tomorrow!

Tomorrow is 2nd Saturday, so it must be time for an Artist Market! Crazy Green Studios is pleased to sponsor this monthly Artist Market, and invites you to come on over to East-West Asheville and see what's going on!

We'll be easy to spot under tent tops on Domino Lane, and you'll see signs on Haywood Road at Harvest Records, as well as at Westwood/Waynesville at Christopher's Garden. Parking is available on Haywood and on adjoining side streets. In addition to the vendors under the tents on Domino Lane, Christopher Mello will open Flash Studios, next to his beautiful gardens, to take part in the Market.

And the fun doesn't stop there! Be sure to check out what's going on at the great businesses all around us in East West Asheville: Short Street Cakes, Izzy's Coffee Den, Harvest Records, Blue Barnhouse, Custom Boutique, BookWorks, the Admiral - click the image above and check out the blog for a full listing, as well as profiles on participating artists and information about the Community Booth.

Crazy Green Studios & East West Asheville to host Empty Bowls Event for MANNA FoodBank!

Join us at Crazy Green Studios for a hands-on event to benefit MANNA FoodBank on Saturday, April 11, 2009.

The event will run from 10am - 3pm, and will offer many ways for you to support MANNA FoodBank, learn about what they're doing to end hunger in Western North Carolina, and how you can help:

* decorate a bowl that will be used in the annual Empty Bowls luncheon on World Food Day
* purchase a t-shirt from Imagine/RENDER to support Empty Bowls
* bring some canned food or other non-perishables for MANNA FoodBank
* purchase beautiful handmade pottery - all proceeds go directly to MANNA FoodBank

Representatives and information will also be on hand from both MANNA FoodBank and Imagine/RENDER, so you can learn more about how hunger issues affect our community and how easily you can help.

Crazy Green Studios is located at 15B Domino Lane, site of the upcoming 2nd Saturday Artist Market. For more information, contact Lori at Crazy Green Studios (lori 'at' crazygreenstudios.com).

2nd Saturday Artist Market!!

I just noticed that I passed my 100th post - who knew? I think it's great to break into the next 100 posts with an update about the 2nd Saturday Artist Market.

We've had a lot of good response to the Market, but feedback from artists told us that committing to three months of Market at a time was too much to ask, so the application process has been revised so that artists, craftspeople and musicians may apply for individual OR multiple months.

It also took us a little longer to work out the organizational aspects, so to have a stronger opening, we're starting the Market in May. We're excited to open on Mother's Day weekend, expect great weather and hope all readers within reach will come check it out!

May is also Hospice Month, and Market sponsor Care Partners Hospice and Palliative Care will be at the Community Booth for the opening Market.

Any artists interested in applying for booth space, applications are being reviewed on an ongoing basis, and you'll find all the forms and more info by clicking on the logo link above.

2nd Saturday Artist Market!!

East West Asheville, who brought you the very well-received Holiday Art Walk, now brings you a monthly Artist Market. What makes this Market special? It's like a Tailgate for Artists - a monthly venue to mix and meet with the artists in lovely and sunny West Asheville (yes, it's always sunny in West Asheville!).

The 2nd Saturday Artist Market will take place...can you guess?...the 2nd Saturday of each month! The Market begins April 11, and will continue through December, when we encore the Holiday Art Walk, which expands the Artist Market to include holiday events and promotions with surrounding businesses.

Crazy Green Studios is one of the sponsoring producers of the 2nd Saturday Artist Market, which will take place in the lot adjoining my studio to my neighbor and co-sponsor, Mimi Strang Design. We'll have a booth outside the studio each month, and for the most part, our booth will feature either demonstrations or hands on participation in events that will support Empty Bowls. Those events will include throwing and/or decorating demos, bowls for patrons to decorate, and always bowls that will be for sale, with all proceeds going to Manna Food Bank.

The Crazy Green Booth will also feature some of my own work, and during the season I plan also to invite studio members and assistants to display their own work.

In addition to the Empty Bowls activity at our booth, one booth per month (out of a total of 20) will be donated to a community organization for their use.

So if you're an artist interested in taking part in the Market, follow the link on the logo (which is temporary...a much nicer one is in the works!) to the 2nd Saturday blog.

AND...if you're a business interested in becoming a Market Sponsor, we'd love to have you! There are a number of levels of sponsorship available, all the way down to donating a tent and table for the Community Booth. If you go to the 2nd Saturday blog, you'll find a link for all Market forms and information.

I'm very excited about what's going on around here: studio members are doing very cool work, new glazes are in development, the summer workshops are already getting good feedback, new and exciting work for clients and galleries, and now the Artist Market. I'm excited yes, but I'm cross-eyed from being on the computer a LOT over the past week, so I'm stepping slowly back to the wheel for some much needed catch-up work and a little muddy therapy!