Kathi LeSueur on mon 24 mar 03
clennell@VAXXINE.COM wrote:
>Charles: I figure that you did indeed buy what was advertised. Bill has
>about 40 employees and 2 or 3 hydraulic presses. he has a killer rutile
>glaze that is fired flawlessly. Much of the work is pressed.>>>>
>
Have you ever been to Bill's studio? He had one press last time I was
there and he hated it. He does have a killer rutile glaze. But it is a
killer in two ways. One, it looks great. Two it produces an enormous
amount of seconds and pieces that just go into the dumpster. In fact, if
you have visited his studio you know that between the production area
building and the packing building is a huge dumpster devoted to pieces
that had to be destroyed.
He does have a great operation. One that I envy yet have no desire to
duplicate. I couldn't tell you how many employees he has, but I know
that the little town he lives in is greatful to have him there employee
the citizens.
Bill has made a different choice than many of us. He chooses to be a
designer. And he's a damn good one. He's paid his dues and is willing to
share his knowledge with anyone who approaches him in a friendly and
respectful manner. I've always believed that everyone has something I
can learn from and Bill is no exception. My visit to his studio was an
eye opener and caused me to change the way I do a number of things. I
thank him for his help.
K
clennell on mon 24 mar 03
Re: the China trade & US "trade"
> The friend travelling with me said that the gallery owner said
> that she bought the Bill Campbell pieces outright and that Campbell makes
> deliveries from Pennsylvania twice a year. That made me wonder if Campbell
> cleared even $5.00 per salad plate.
>
> Upon arriving home I noticed that the plates had no maker's name on them
> and, more surprising, that each plate was absolutely identical, though the
> glaze on each piece was slightly different. Though the glazes were
> beautiful, I realized that these were not handmade pieces. My mind return
> to several other forms at the gallery--quite large bowls, bowls with
> identically pinched rims, etc. I remembered that these pieces had exactly
> identical shapes and sizes.
>
> I mention this experience because I think the "China trade" extends far
> beyond China to our own shores.
>
> Charles Moore
> Sacramento
>
Charles: I figure that you did indeed buy what was advertised. Bill has
about 40 employees and 2 or 3 hydraulic presses. he has a killer rutile
glaze that is fired flawlessly. Much of the work is pressed. Junkyard Dawg
and i have have gone toe to toe with pressers on the list before. If the
work is lifeless and you bought it, don't blame it on the Chinese. And
incidentally to all those on the list that seem to think that Made in China
and poor quality are synonomous -think again! China is the motherland of
fine porcelain. Pots hundreds nearly thousands of years old that have never
been equalled. Since China is opening up to the West many of my Canadian and
American potter friends are making a pilgramage to the home of fine
porcelain. Potters in Jingdegen(sp) making porcelain vases 20 feet tall/1500
lbs of clay. skill and craftspersonship unequalled anywhere in the world.
Made in Japan equalled poor quality when I was a kid. Today I drove my
Subaru Outback, with the Sony Cd player going to the Royal Ontario Museum to
take photos of pots with my Pentax. All quality goods.
sometimes the threat is from within our own walls. Wendy might consider
reading David's very excellent article "Handmade is Really Handmade"(
forgive me David if I got the title wrong but the substance for me was on
target).
cheers,
Tony- in awe of chinese porcelain
A woman drove me to drink. I never took the time to thank her.
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