Elizabeth Priddy on mon 1 feb 99
This was a fantastic way to work a critique! There were helpful suggestions,
positive feedback, appreciation, good criticism, interesting comments and
response, and best of all: no flaming.
I am enormously grateful and am now considering your remarks as I make my next
batch of work.
There is no other way I could have gotten this kind of response from such a
broad spectrum of people. I want to thank you all for your contributions.
Please let me know if you are interested in doing this again with perhaps
someone else's work. I would encourage anyone to be "it", as it was painless
and remarkably insightful and helpful. I hope I will be able to return the
favor.
I have made a list of the people who helped out. If you are interested in
participating in the future, let me know and I will keep you on the list that
I will use to announce the call to critique. If you would not like to be
notified of this event, let me know and I will remove you from the list. I
am hesitant to publish the list to protect such kind people from spam, but am
torn because it is such a good starting point. Any suggestions?
As more information comes in, I will repost and update the results. I am also
sending personal copies of the results to participants, with feedback as soon
as I have had a little time to digest.
THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH!
I meant to shout that...Thank you for not thrashing me for that
gross breach of netiquette. I sincerely apologize. Please disregard previous
posting.
Elizabeth Priddy
The results follow in the order they were received.
The background posts are at the end of this message.
AND HERE IT GOES!
With all the pictures you have it loads remarkably fast. An as far as your
pottery, you wanted a critque. I think the tiles I'm selling are great! They
are unusual and have a freshness about them. Even though they are a kind of
a production line they don't appear that way. When you were working with Hsi
Mei I thought the painting looked too perfect. Like what you would get from
a Chinese factory (only finer of course). Then the perception changes from
hand made to factory made. Still very beautiful but put in a different
light.
I like pottery that looks hand made. Not always perfect, pieces not always
the same size. When we get folks that are weird about things being exactly
the same we suggest that they readlly don't want hand made and maybe they
need to go to Belks.
Janet Fancouer, Carolina Creations, New Bern, NC
as for the two tile samples i saw at your site, the bee/plum and the
shrimp, let me say that:
1. it is a very beauitful idea, and classically rendered.
2. several distractions for me.
a. the proportional relationships of the parts got my attention,
e.g. very similar amounts of "frame" on all sides....e.g., placement of
objects on tile, i.e., shrimp low, bees crowded.....where is the
breathing space?
b. i found the canvas marks on the work distracting.
overall, i think this is a great idea, and you are well
named...............
kik
"Kathleen \"KIK\" Kimball" dkimball@nh.ultranet.com
I think you have a winner there . Unfortunately , I am a traditionally
trained oil painter , so my critique would only be to keep on observing
nature . I preferred your black and white to the colour , also, I keep bees
and found the drawing a little weak ,perhaps too much butt .Very much liked
the contrast between the coarse tile and the painting. Not a great critique
, hopefully some Japanese Sumi-e Practitioners will leave a few comments. I
hope you keep pushing yourself , and don't reduce your painting to pottery
decoration , [ but thats the painter in me , I handbuild for a hobby ] .
Always look at nature , Thank you for allowing me to view , Khaimraj
Seepersad
"Khaimraj Seepersad"
Subject: very nice
Your site was very enjoyable
kaniofhawaii@webtv.net (Sandy Sater)
Just saw your tiles; I think they're beautiful! I'm guessing they're hi
fired stoneware . The idea of stamping a rectangular depression in an
irregular shaped clay slab is interesting....It's an attention-getting
presentation- tiles with something more than the clinical rectangular
shape. When I first saw the brushwork, I thought "She's been practising
for a while!" and then read you've been studying for three years. May I
ask if you are using stains, or mostly oxides?
Thanks for sharing. I could have put this on Clayart, should have, I
guess, but I just clicked on your e-mail line.
Ann Brink in CA e-mail billann@impulse.net
Elizabeth, your website is really great, the animation, the gallery and the
rest of it is great. By the way, I love your wall paintings. The rustic,
earthy texture of the clay of your frame is a great contrast to the refined,
smooth detailed tile in the center. Your subject matter suits your personsal
expression well. Primitive / earthy medium that has a polished presentation.
Nice Work!
"Cindy Ginter"
I visited your page and was impressed with your work. As has been stated on
Clayart, it's hard to judge work over the computer. I had a student who did
great tall vases with wonderful carving on them but, they were two inches
thick at the bottom. With that in mind I like your Sumi tiles very much but
do not care for the blue color around them. It is neither blue nor black on
the computer and kinda dull looking. But I'm sure they look good in
person. I love your brushwork on all your work.
Also, I would switch the presentation around on your page. Load the pot
with the words first so we have something to do,(read) while your images
load. Or, maybe add a descriptive paragraph or two to the Sumi ,detailing
either process and/or intent and that would have the same intent.
Far too many folks still have pretty slow modems so you have to expect the
worst for the lowest common denominator.
Have you optimized your images? =They are reduced in size but still look
the same. I noticed you have not followed normal formatting with your
images. They will load much faster if you include the Width and Height
attributes in the brackets, also an ALT= Bowl helps keep folks from getting
antsy. I added them to my images and it really speeded things up. You can
get free optimizers online.
Stop by and visit and do a 'view' 'source' to see the extra info in my
images.
Frank Gaydos fgaydos@erols.com http://www.erols.com/fgaydos
I recently rejoined the clayart list after a long absence (just didnt'
have the time to keep up with it) and was intrigued by your open
invitation to critique your work. I'm not sure I'm qualified to
critique, but, I felt compelled to e-mail you and tell you how beautiful
I think your work is. You bowled me over! I've been making pots on a
hobby basis for about 10 years, been admiring potters work for many more
years than that, honestly your work is exactly what I'm drawn to!
Thanks for sharing that with us!
"Pierce, Joan"
I take up your invitation with a bit of trepidation. I hear the
sincerity of your request but I am not quite sure what you want.
I will tell you my honest reaction to your tiles- the brush work is
exquisite, the composition great. The only problem I see is with the frame-
for such delicate and careful brushwork the frame is so large and open that
it does not work with the tiles. This may be a traditional technique that I
have not seen but I would say that the juxtapostion of the frame and the
drawings isdistracting .One does not not compliment the other.I think a
tighter much smaller frame would accentuate the brushwork better.
The bee's frame has a square opening not a natural shape-you could
make it into a window which might work as if we were peeking in on
something. I see it working better if the frame was the hive and there was
a hole opened in the side-not an exact square but something more organic.I
think the frame is so big for the tile.
The lobster frame does a better job of taking shapes from the
drawing and accenting them-as the feeler goes almost all the way out the
right corner of the frame. But the lobster is floating in space and the
picture needs a few more things to connect it to the bottom of the
frame.Again I think it is too big for the picture.
Does that make any sense to you? Does it help you? I was trying to
give you help. If it does not or it is not wheat you are looking for then
just delete it and forget it.
Kathleen Gordon Palo Alto,Ca email:emgordon@batnet.com
LETTER WITH PERSONAL REMARKS OMITTED:
Then I noticed your website and took a look...first, at your throwing
demonstration, which I found very instructive and clear. I will attempt the
lemon juicer the next time I am at the wheel! Thank you for sharing the demo
with all of us.
When I viewed online your gentle and beautiful brushwork, as demonstrated
in your Chinese Brush Painting, it resonated deeply within me. I went right
out to a local art supplies center and the local library to find books on
Chinese Brush Painting. I only found one, and it will be a good place to
start. It recommends that I use watercolor brushes and that I practice
simple brushstrokes with Tempera paints on newspaper until I develop a
facility and fluidity with simple brush strokes. The brush strokes were
likened to letters of the alphabet wherein once the letters are mastered,
they could then be combined to form simple words and, eventually, complex
phrases and narratives.
While I am practicing my brushstrokes, I would like to be researching the
best approach to painting them on ceramics. I've noticed when painting on
earthenware with Majolica paints, that the bisque ware soaks up the paint
from the brush almost on contact. I wonder, then, what kind of glaze/brush
you use to achieve your delicate and fluid strokes. I also wonder what type
of clay body you use and at what temperature/cone you fire the clay.
If you have some literature or a video that I could purchase that answers
these questions, please let me know how I might obtain them.
I thank you in advance for your time and help, and, especially, for sharing
yourself in your work with all of us.
Sincerely,
Linda Pahl JessAdair@aol.com
Hi! wonderful work. I too have done sumi-e and appreciate that using the
ink on rice paper and using the same loaded brush on the chalk-like glaze
are two very different things! I love your description that it doesn't
seem that it will work, but it does. Takes years and years of practice to
get those deft strokes down! The contrast of the free-form and the sleek,
inner rectangle is very effective. The translucency of your insects and
the peas is especially appealling. No doubt these have been winners for
you!!!
Carolyn DiPasquale
Nice work! I am not a brush person, so I'm envious. I'm stuck with shape
and glaze.
Corinne Null Bedford, NH null@mediaone.net
Hi, I wasn't prepared to see such beautifully painted work, let alone on
clay. When I read your post to Clayart, I thought that the work would be
cliche. I'm sure seeing it on the computer screen takes something away, but
I was still able to see the richness and the originality of the work. Would
love to see them in person and up close. How large are they and what temp
are you firing to? And what do they cost. Thanks for the opportunity, I
think this project has merit. I don't have my web page together yet. My work
and my aesthetic are very different. I make large stoneware pieces for
gardens and homes. The work is rough but bold. I attached one. Check it out.
John Fazzino CeramicBar@aol.com Providence
I don't have a crit to give you right now... I've just taken glances
through the tiles. But I must commend you on putting your work on the net
and asking for a critique.
I'm putting together this web site called Critical Ceramics which is, as
the name implies, interested in critical and aesthetic discussions of
contemporary ceramic art and artists. I don't really have all the pages
together yet, but I will in short order. I want this site to be international
in scope and continuously growing.
Anyhow, seeing the discussion on ClayArt and viewing your pieces gave me
this idea: would you be interested in moderating a weekly discussion called
something like "the virtual crit"? The idea would be for Critical Ceramics
to solicit works for critiquing from around the world and then have at it!
The artists would do it (I think) because it would give them exposure and
feedback. Discussion participants would do it because everyone has an
opinion and in this virtual atmosphere you don't see the glares across the
room! Most importantly, we'd all learn something. Your job would be to make
sure that the discussion stayed on track and didn't get too insulting ("Go
back to Grandma's Mud Hut") or lame ("ooooh, NICE pot").
Sincerely,
Forrest Snyder, Editor
Critical Ceramics
Forrest Snyder
THIS IS HOW IT STARTED ON CLAYART:
I made this request by group email to my list of
pottery-interested people that I
have corresponded with over email and personally.
From: Elizabeth Priddy
Subject: web page update and test
Date: Monday, January 25, 1999 3:26 AM
Hey!
I finally set up my new gallery pages and would like any feedback you
might have to offer. I hope everyone is well.
the site is; www.angelfire.com/nc/clayworkshop
the page is the 1999 new work page
Any comments or criticism will help me out a lot. I have looked at it
for too long and need some help seeing it. . .
Thank you!
From: Elizabeth Priddy epriddy@usa.net
I ALSO made this request on CLAYART:
From: Elizabeth Priddy To: CLAYART@LSV.UKY.EDU Date: Thursday, January 28, 1999 7:46 AM
Subject: Open call to critique work
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>This is not a problem. This kind of critique can take place publicly right
>here on Clayart. Wouldn't it be nice? For example: Someone has a gif. or
>jpg. of the work they wish to have critiqued. They put it on their
>homepage (or anyone elses for that matter) and post to Clayart requesting
>critique. The internet offers us an opportunity to do this. Just serious
>criticism based on what is there. No gratuitous offensiveness. ect...
>Just an idea for the group to consider.
Sounds like you need a guinea pig: my new 1999 work is tiles with chinese
brush painting decoration. I have a page postng about 30 ish pictures of
them. Anyone who is interested in critiquing them here is public is welcome.
I have a thick skin and can take it as well as I dish it out to my students.
The trouble where I live is that there are only a few potters here, so it is
hard to do a critique by peers. I will not describe them, as I would like to
get your unaffected reaction. If you would rather send a post to me by
email, I can get back to you either here or personally.
This is one thing that I need most, because I am happy with them, so happy
that I need someone dispassionate to point out the flaws. My friends who
are not potters are very supportive, but that is a reflection of their
feelings for me, not my work.
I will compile the results into one folder and include it on the page with
the pictures on my home page.
Thanks for your help!
the site: www.angelfire.com/nc/clayworkshop
the page: new Work 1999
-Elizabeth
**************************************************
I speak from experience and sincerity, rather than authority...
Elizabeth Priddy: potter, philosopher, artist
epriddy@usa.net www.angelfire.com/nc/clayworkshop
I can't recommend this process highly enough. It actually worked!
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