mel jacobson on fri 7 may 04
up and wandering about. have to make tea/ have some/ and
get back to sleep.
but,
`glaze on metal` just was going through the old noggin (brain).
one of the first times in my life that i saw compounds of glaze
melt was 1950 or so, and a rich kid i knew had a small oven and copper
pieces from a kit....and made enameled jewelry. his name was richard dorden.
he did not have a dad...strange. just a mom, and she worked. strange family.
we would clean the copper with steel wool, add flux and that wonderful
powered glass stuff on the copper, place it in the little
open electric kiln and watched til it melted. take it out with
a tiny metal spatula. watch it cool and change color. and, the
best was.....the color of the glass compounds were not the
same at all as the finished product.
we had to experiment to see what colors we liked the best.
keep a little chart....see how they melted together.
man, was that fun.
i was so jealous of that sorta rich kid. he had a chemistry
set, made stink bombs, he had a schwinn bike with a big
spring below the handle bars/// we thought it was the best
bike in the world. red and white. his family could afford to
get coke in a wooden case. keep it on the back porch. rich kid.
real ceramic tile in their bathroom, not plastic. and a shower
that was not a bent pipe in the basement. (next to the coal bin.)
it is amazing how those simple experiences stay with you
forever. they were pure science, influential, magic. it is how
we learn. and for a visual learning kid like me, it was pure heaven.
i remember watching warren mackenzie throw pots that same year
at the minnesota state fair....a wonder. (maybe 1952) he was a kid
then too. just back from england...his wife alex was beautiful.
(the first real `earth mother` i had ever seen.)
going to the downtown library and walking up to the landing on
the second floor...a real mummy. from egypt. scarry as hell.
i always wondered how they did that. (still do, even though i have
read six books on the subject.) by the way, there is a wonderful
book written about world mummies...from denmark to egypt.
so, time to get that tea.
get back to bed.
just had an email conversation with phil. he will be coming
to minnesota this summer. i will get to spend some time with
him. great craftsman. you should see his other work...wood, boxes,
gunsmithing, metal craft of all kinds. he is a true craftsman....of
the old order.
told phil to get to bed too.
mel
From:
Minnetonka, Minnesota, U.S.A.
web site: my.pclink.com/~melpots
or try: http://www.pclink.com/melpots
new/ http://www.rid-a-tick.com
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