I took the opportunity to take a nice drive in the country with Fall colors in abundance to visit Tim Rowan at his open studio. The day was rainy but the brilliance of his work was not dimmed in the least. And the rain collecting in an outdoor piece was striking as ripples collided with his strong forms. Inside, the atmosphere was warm and welcoming with Tim, Molly and Hudson (only 6 months old) providing good conversation about the work amid a stream of visitors who came to admire and purchase the displayed pieces as well as see new work drying in anticipation of the next kiln firing.

Willi Singleton will be offering for sale the results of his Spring firing. On both Saturday, June 3 and Sunday, June 4, his Pine Creek Pottery will be open to the public from 12 noon to 6 pm. Pieces similar to those in our online gallery will be available. Willi also makes a wonderful selection of functional pieces for sale. This is an opportunity to enhance your daily experience by acquiring pieces to use around your home. Pine Creek Pottery is located at 843 Hawk Mountain Road, Kempton PA, 19529; phone, 610.756.6387.

Atsumi Fujita lives in Brooklyn NY and since receiving her Master’s degree from Pratt Institute has been active in the New York art scene, She has organized and curated several shows in and around Manhattan focusing on sculptural ceramics that go beyond traditional concepts of ceramic art.

You’ve been the curator on several ceramics shows in and around New York and recently you had a show during NCECA in Portland. How did that work out?
I thought I would be in Portland for a couple of weeks but I took a job at a gallery in New York so I was in Portland only to set up and take down the show.

The title of the show was “Bodies of Clay: Am I Weird?” How did you pick that title?
At the last minute the gallery for my show canceled. So Nel Bannier, she was my teacher and now friend, asked me to combine my show with hers since my theme addressed weirdness that came from within the body. Nel’s show was “Bodies of Clay” and mine was “Am I Weird?” My original title was “I am Weird”, but some artists and Nel thought it was too strong. So, I switched it to a question and put the “?” in the title. That’s why there are two titles.

Are you weird?
Maybe. I think everybody is a little weird. Weirdness makes people more interesting. So, on some level, I think I’m weird.

You’re from Japan where there is a rich tradition of functional ceramics but little figurative and pure sculptural ceramics since maybe the haniwa. Where did your interest in figurative and pure sculptural work come from?
I spent most of my youth in Iga, one of the old kiln communities in Japan, and was raised in a ceramics environment. My father is an art dealer focusing on Japanese ceramic wares and my
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