search  current discussion  categories  wanted/for sale - wanted 

i dont know what to do when looking for studio work

updated mon 5 jan 04

 

Vicki Hardin on sat 3 jan 04


Keisha, you might try asking around at the Craft Guild of Dallas. Their URL is www.craftguildofdallas.com. They might know of someone that is looking to hire if they don't and might be a starting point.

Best Regards,
Vicki Hardin
http://ClayArtWebGuide.com

Keisha on sat 3 jan 04


Hey everyone

I know my subject line is pretty long but I didn't
know how else to put it. I have been lookin for
pottery studios in Texas, and I have found a couple
adn even found a few potters that work in the area I
will be moving to. When I get there I plan on
contacting some of the potters to see if they need any
assistance around their studios. The problems is that
I dont know how to go about that. How do you search
for a job in clay? What can I do to make contact with
them? For example do I email them or go and pay them a
visit at their studios? Over flow me with info. I'd
appreciate any help and would love to hear past
experiences if you want to share. Blessings....



=====
Keisha Pegues
Mound Bayou, MS

__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Find out what made the Top Yahoo! Searches of 2003
http://search.yahoo.com/top2003

Jennifer Boyer on sat 3 jan 04


Contact them by all means, by email, phone or letter. And have ready a
list of what skills you have. Do you wedge clay? Mix glazes? You might
not need any skills, as active studios have lots of work for all skill
levels. I recently started employing a young woman who emailed me out
of the blue about a job. She had just moved to the area, and found my
web site. It's working out great: she comes in 6 hours a week.
There are many ways for someone to work at a studio:
paid by the hour, work in exchange for studio use, work in exchange for
teaching

If someone is interested in meeting you, consider the first visit to be
a job interview for both sides.
GO for it!
Jennifer ex apprentice
Side memory: the potter I apprenticed to always had young apprentices
in her studio: mostly college age. There were 2 of us when I was there.

My college had arranged this apprenticeship as part of the off-campus
learning component of the degree: pretty enlightened, eh?

She had us clean up her glazed pots after she dipped them: no wax, just
dipped em. SO we had to sponge off a full coat of glaze from the
bottoms...guess you can do that when you always have young potter pups
panting to help out! I gradually worked my way up to throwing for her.
I learned invaluable lessons on what the life of a potter is about...

On Saturday, January 3, 2004, at 10:37 AM, Keisha wrote:

> Hey everyone
>
> I know my subject line is pretty long but I didn't
> know how else to put it. I have been lookin for
> pottery studios in Texas, and I have found a couple
> adn even found a few potters that work in the area I
> will be moving to. When I get there I plan on
> contacting some of the potters to see if they need any
> assistance around their studios. The problems is that
> I dont know how to go about that. How do you search
> for a job in clay? What can I do to make contact with
> them? For example do I email them or go and pay them a
> visit at their studios? Over flow me with info. I'd
> appreciate any help and would love to hear past
> experiences if you want to share. Blessings....
>
>
>
> =====
> Keisha Pegues
> Mound Bayou, MS
>
***********************************************
never pass on virus warnings or emails without checking them at:
http://snopes.com

Jennifer Boyer - Thistle Hill Pottery
Montpelier, VT 05602
http://thistlehillpottery.com
***********************************************

Krista Peterson on sat 3 jan 04


Howdy Keisha,

Well, studio work can be difficult to find. Especially if you want to get paid with money. But a good place to start would be any art centers you can find. Even if they don't have an opening, they may know some local potters or maybe even some production places locally. My experience in looking for that kind of work is that most people in ceramics are of the "Lone Wolf" variety and usually do all the work themselves. I have worked at a few studios doing production work of various sorts in Arizona. If there is a local art fair, check it out and talk to people that do ceramics, find out if they are local and see if they need help. Much of it will be part time work or piece work so be open to taking other part time jobs if you need to earn income.

If you have contact info for potters in the area I would email first, if possible,or sometimes some one at a local art center will give you someones phone # and then it's fine to call. Many of these people work from their homes so they like to be contacted first. And then sometimes they have a sign out on the highway with a big red arrow pointed up their driveway, "POTTERY--->". My experience with contacting potters is they are very welcoming. They like to show their work and talk to other people interested in clay. I may not have gotten a job out of it but had some good conversations and found out some stuff too. Ya get the lay of the land by talking to the local folk.

Also try the local community college or university if there is one. If they have an art dept or ceramic dept, they may also know of local potters needing studio help.... and of course try the local pottery supply house. Those potters gotta get their clay and materials somewhere. There's usually 1 or 2 in every state and hell, maybe since Texas is so big, just maybe they have 3!

Good Luck!! I would like to hear how you do. I'm always looking for studio work.

Take care
Krista Peterson

-----Original Message-----
From: Keisha
Sent: Jan 3, 2004 7:37 AM
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: Re: I dont know what to do when looking for studio work

Hey everyone

I know my subject line is pretty long but I didn't
know how else to put it. I have been lookin for
pottery studios in Texas, and I have found a couple
adn even found a few potters that work in the area I
will be moving to. When I get there I plan on
contacting some of the potters to see if they need any
assistance around their studios. The problems is that
I dont know how to go about that. How do you search
for a job in clay? What can I do to make contact with
them? For example do I email them or go and pay them a
visit at their studios? Over flow me with info. I'd
appreciate any help and would love to hear past
experiences if you want to share. Blessings....



=====
Keisha Pegues
Mound Bayou, MS

__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Find out what made the Top Yahoo! Searches of 2003
http://search.yahoo.com/top2003

______________________________________________________________________________
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org

You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/

Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.

May Luk on sun 4 jan 04


Hi Keisha;

A letter of introduction with CV and/or photo of work; kind of work that you
do; what kind of experience you are looking for; time available for work
etc. State the time you will call to follow up. If you like, you can enclose
a self-address stamped postcard to make it easier for them to reply [just in
case they never answer the phone for whatever reason].

When you call, always ask if it's a good time. If it's not a good time, ask
when it's a good time to call back.

If you leave a phone message, try to state the time you will call back and
do what you say you'd do.

Don't call on Monday morning, Friday afternoon, lunch hours. I was told the
best time to "cold call" is between 10-12, 2-4, but that's really for an
office setting.

Send hand-written thank you notes.

I do the above when I solicit new freelance day jobs. Most studios are
pretty informal and relaxed. A little professionalism will not hurt though.
I worked for a production pottery in exchange for studio space last year,
but I got it through word of mouth.

Best of luck

May
London
UK