Right from his early days (60+ years ago), Ron was looking for a canvas on which he could apply a pottery glaze. Creating pottery with thicker or thinner rims would dictate which glaze would go where. 
In his earliest days, information of raw materials was hard to come by, so potters often had to guess their way through recipes. Then calculating the percentages of different ingredients to assure that there is not too much or too little of either a flux (an oxide that lowers the melting temperature of refractory oxides), or a stabilizer (alumina) or a glass former (silica or borax) in a pottery glaze, never turned out the same two times in a row. 
Ron wanted to visualize the inside of a ceramic glaze, so when he got his first computer, a new world opened for him. This experience of getting to know glaze making and to break the uncertainty and thumb sucking to obtain good and stable glazes became reality when Tony Hansen from Digital fire fame created the first Insight program. 
​
It was with this program that Ron Roy became the glaze doctor, helping potters around the globe to fix glazing problems and to obtain sturdy clay and glazes. 
Being a person that believe you have to give to receive, his contributions to Clayart, is (at age 86) to this day still unmeasurable.

The pottery book Mastering Cone 6 glazes, with co-author John Hesselberth is back on the market after it was first published in 2002. This book took the potters market by storm and almost every potter that worked at ^6 developed glazes from there; learning about the importance of stable and food safe glazes. ( scroll down for video)

  #glazes #calculatingglazes #stablepotteryglazes #foodsafeceramics #durablepottery 
#virtualpotteryclasses #potterye-course #TeachinArt

Knowing Curt Benzle has been a blessing in many ways. Not only is his work inspirational in nature, but as a person, his insight into the art business is encouraging. 
As a college professor, he realized that students need more than art education to become successful. Therefore, over a period of 20 years, he developed a course to help get students knowledge of how to be successful in the art of business. All Artists Making A Living (AAMAL) is now available as a 10-week online class at TeachinArt.
Listen to the stories from his days as a young artist, finding his way with porcelain, becoming an artist, and seeing his work in the library of the Whitehouse. 

Learn more about Curts' art and business classes

Classes at TeachinArt  ( Teach in Art)
​If you are interested in becoming an online instructor in any art form, you can contact us. 

#glazes #Virtualpotteryclasses #calculatingglazes #stablepotteryglazes 
#foodsafeceramics

Bradley Gordon is a wildlife painter from Oxford Mississippi. He exhibited his colorful paintings in the Gumtree Museum of Art in Tupelo, Mississippi - the birthplace of Elvis Presley. His art is inspired by Japanese Pop Art and is enriched by his upbringing in the Mississippi Delta. Gordon studied at the University of Mississippi in Oxford and taught English in Taiwan and Japan.

​Michael is an award winning porcelain artist who came from a heritage of craftsmen. 
Through his porcelain clay processes he tells stories about tradesman, their tools and machinery. Empty paint cans become canvasses through which he stages the finished job and the worker. He opens up conversations with his patriotic objects about the US flag and military equipment.​

When parents and grandparents sets examples to children, it may benefit them for life. It is one of the best ways to teach children problem solving skills and to help them grow into strong confident individuals.
learn more about art and arts integrated programs for children

Lynn is a production potter and co-owner of Hinkle Creek Pottery in Corinth Mississippi. 
​Lynn, her daughter Rebecca and the grand kids ( now all grown - ups and in professional careers) are well known for their production pottery. Their family business started when Lynn's grandchildren were still very young and had an opportunity to learn and play in the potter's studio. As a member of Make Mine Mississippi, Hinkle Creek Pottery had a huge influence on the pottery culture of this Southern state.

​Susie Bowman is the owner of The Kiln Studio and Gallery in Fairhope, a beautiful coastal town in Alabama. Antoinette presented a hands-on workshop in the well equipped studio. 

Susie hosted workshops and shows of well known ceramic artists and potters like Curtis Benzle, Mary Louis Carter, Ron Meyers, Ken Baskin, Chris Gryder, Bertice McPherson, Sebastian Moh, Fong Choo.

Since this interview the gallery closed, but there are very interesting conversations about ceramic artists.

Jack Sures is one of Canada's premier ceramicists and art educators. He was instrumental in establishing the ceramics department at the University of Saskatchewan, Regina Campus (now the University of Regina). 
He worked and exhibited in Japan, Paris, London, USA, and was appointed by the United Nations Handcraft Development Program to set up a ceramics program in Grenada. 
Jack was instrumental in establishing the ceramics department at the University of Saskatchewan, Regina Campus (now the University of Regina). ​
Antoinette interviewed Jack while she was presenting hands-on workshops in Regina and Moose Jaw in Saskatchewan, Canada.

Marcia Selsor a Professor Emerita (Montana State University-Billings) is renown for many areas in ceramics. Over a span of 50+ years in clay there are few areas in pottery that Marcia did not cover. 
Lately she specialized in alternative firing techniques, a style that she developed further than the raku techniques with horses from earlier days. 

What is alternative firing techniques. 
These firing techniques are mostly reduction firings in which smoke is formed when the fire is choked and forced to find oxygen from the porous clay work. 
Pit fire, saw dust firing, raku and barrel firing are a few names associated with alternative firing. 
​Marcia specializes in this online workshop with TeachinArt in obvara and raku techniques, while she show her students how to build a raku kiln. 

Anja is a ceramic artist from Slovenia who arranged for Antoinette to present a 5-day hands-on workshop in the city of Kamnik. She interviewed Antoinette during her stay in the lovely hills of the Swiss Alps. 

Antoinette started with a career in clay in 1981. She originally worked with pit fired work and later specialized in translucent porcelain. 
Her career takes her to different areas in the world where she teaches other potters about porcelain. See more about her career development 
​Antoinette presents hands-on as well as online workshops across the world.   

David Voorhees is working with porcelain, mostly on the potters wheel. He discussed his career and the art of his family with Antoinette in this online video interview. His wheel throwing tips and decorating techniques are reaching potters far and wide across the world in his online video pottery workshop. 

With parents that were recognized for their watercolor and oil painting across North Carolina, it is no surprise that David uses his porcelain urns as a backdrop for ceramic decorating techniques. 

John Shirley studies Ceramic Design and wanted to take his porcelain work to a new level translucency and whiteness so that he can use the canvas  as a backdrop for soluble salt patterns. 
​He started to slip-cast bone china bowls.
His work is renown. 

See recipes for Bone China on my clay recipes page

“My pots are made to be used” says Nan.  When I interviewed Nan she told me about her life as a potter, her dedication to her students and where her career started. Nan studied in England when she were "accidentally" introduced to pottery. It was an instant passion. 
Nan worked and studied in England and Ireland before returning to the USA. Her life long career has an impact on students all over the USA and now that she also teaches with TeachinArt Online School of Art, her knowledge reaches far beyond American borders. 

Connie demonstrate faceting techniques on the potters wheel. She  throw a teapot, sugar and creamer, tea-bowl, two different types of covered jars with lids, and she alter a serving tray in front of the camera.  She wraps the workshop up with detailed information of making and attaching a cane handle on a teapot. She provides information of where to buy how to prepare cane for the making of handles. 

 Connie took classes at art centers, community colleges and she attended numerous workshops. She realized that working in clay is a combination of art and science. 
Her online Shino workshop is just that: a combination between art and science

Paul Lewing used to be a potter. He gradually evolved into a China Painter. He is also a painting artist that draws inspiration from nature. Paul was always more interested in decorating his work than making the actual clay objects. His career spans over 50+ years of teaching and making. He is one of TeachinArt Online School of Art's prestigious artists. His book about China Painting is the only one of its kind in the world, due to the fact that he broke away from traditional methods. 
This interview was recorded in the pottery studio of Antoinette when he presented his online class China Painting as a teaching artist for TeachinArt.

Marie was one of the most talented artists that I ever knew. She had the ability to use anything to create and decorate with. Her vision to take an idea and transform it into a story with clay and other found objects was extraordinary. She created multiple ceramic sculptures, often starting out from one specific element which she build out in several different narratives. 
Marie past away in 2019 and we miss her new inspirations tremendously, but I am very fortunate that I could talk to her in front of the camera, so her voice, her teaching and great example lives in. 
The last time that Marie and I were sitting on a porch, discussing her online workshop over a glass of wine, Marie expressed the wish she can reach students far and wide, therefor I am happy to to confirm that The online workshop will Post-fired Finishes continue to be available for students.