Eva Gallagher on wed 23 nov 05
Well Tony - whether you are selling a Caddy or a Chevy I want to know where
have all the car dealers in Canada gone? However I have to agree with you
that of the few dealers out there, there are more Caddy dealers than Chevy
ones. This summer on a trans-Canada trip I was dismayed at how few craft
galleries there were in tourist areas: Whistler - I couldn't find a handmade
mug in Whistler Village. There were several high-end fine art galleries -
paintings selling for thousands and tens of thousands of dollars, several
very very pricey native craft galleries and then the very high end Mountain
Gallery at the Chateau Whistler. However this gallery was really out of the
way from the mainstream village centre and most visitors unless they were
staying there would not visit it. Lots of cheap souvenirs though. To be fair
there was a potter selling from his studio somewhere in the town and another
store in Fuction Junction which advertised crafts - these were in the less
"posh" areas of Whistler/Blackcomb and which I never had time to visit.
Jasper - no real craft gallery except for again the Mountain Gallery in the
Chateau Jasper - a ways out of town. In town I found a rock shop selling
some handmade pottery - but it was mixed in with all sorts of mass produced
stuff - same thing in a store in Lake Louise. This mixing of handmade with
commercial stuff really demeans handcrafts and tends to lump mass produced
and handmade all together in the minds of the everyday buyer.
Banff was better. An interior decorating store whose owner stocked two
potters as well as imported stuff. She had some really beautifully made
wooden platters by a Canadian designer who had his work made by artisans in
the Philippines to cut costs. In addition Banff did have two small stores
that carried just Canadian crafts - but the third - the largest one had
stopped selling pottery a few years ago and replaced them with paintings -
due to customer requests - according to the sales person.
Well I thought perhaps in Medicine Hat - home to the historic Medalta
Potteries and Plainsman Clays - but no craft gallery - just one pottery shop
jam packed with stuff (country cutsey style) all made by the owner who had
started beading to help expand her clientele base. The college there had a
potter's guild - but the tourist info place did not have any info on them.
So thousands of tourists really have no chance to buy reasonably priced,
handmade Canadian souvenirs. Sixteen years ago there were several beautiful
craft galleries in Whistler - I still cherish the bowl that I bought there
then.
Regards,
Eva Gallagher
Deep River Potters Guild, Ontario
----- Original Message -----
From: "clennell"
To:
Sent: Wednesday, November 23, 2005 9:03 AM
Subject: The Canadian Cobalt Blues
> Big GM layoffs announced in my town this week. GM lays off 30,000
> employees
> globally and the Chinese haven't arrived in town with the new Cherry yet!
> David Hendley is to blame for all this. Driving around Texas of all places
> in a bright red Honda CRV when he should have bought a Cobalt. He never
> knew
> the Cobalt Blues where written for GM. Texas a place where macho pick ups
> should rule.
> As a potter how can I see the same cause and effect happpening here. Any
> gallery we deal with now wants BIG! They don't necessarily mean BIG they
> mean significant(I always hated that word). They want something that is
> pricey. Why? Could it be the Chinese, could it be the guild sales and
> numerous craft fairs supply all the low end things, could it be the
> retirees are flooding the market?
> The students yesterday noticed we are sitting on a fence making two
> distinct
> lines- a studio line of $20 to $100 items and a group of one offs that go
> from there. We are getting asked for more of the later but are afraid to
> leave the studio line. GM got clobbered on it's studio line but there is
> still nothing like a Caddy. The wealthy Asians would love to drive a
> Caddy.
> So maybe America it is time to be in the Caddy business and leave the
> Cobalts to the guild members.
> I ain't ready to live entirely by this sword yet!
> AT least at this company we have some input into our destiny.
> Cheers,
> Tony
> Tony and Sheila Clennell
> Sour Cherry Pottery
> 4545 King Street
> Beamsville, Ontario
> CANADA L0R 1B1
> http://www.sourcherrypottery.com
> http://www.sourcherrypottery.com/current_news/news_letter.html
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
> 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.
clennell on wed 23 nov 05
Big GM layoffs announced in my town this week. GM lays off 30,000 employees
globally and the Chinese haven't arrived in town with the new Cherry yet!
David Hendley is to blame for all this. Driving around Texas of all places
in a bright red Honda CRV when he should have bought a Cobalt. He never knew
the Cobalt Blues where written for GM. Texas a place where macho pick ups
should rule.
As a potter how can I see the same cause and effect happpening here. Any
gallery we deal with now wants BIG! They don't necessarily mean BIG they
mean significant(I always hated that word). They want something that is
pricey. Why? Could it be the Chinese, could it be the guild sales and
numerous craft fairs supply all the low end things, could it be the
retirees are flooding the market?
The students yesterday noticed we are sitting on a fence making two distinct
lines- a studio line of $20 to $100 items and a group of one offs that go
from there. We are getting asked for more of the later but are afraid to
leave the studio line. GM got clobbered on it's studio line but there is
still nothing like a Caddy. The wealthy Asians would love to drive a Caddy.
So maybe America it is time to be in the Caddy business and leave the
Cobalts to the guild members.
I ain't ready to live entirely by this sword yet!
AT least at this company we have some input into our destiny.
Cheers,
Tony
Tony and Sheila Clennell
Sour Cherry Pottery
4545 King Street
Beamsville, Ontario
CANADA L0R 1B1
http://www.sourcherrypottery.com
http://www.sourcherrypottery.com/current_news/news_letter.html
Tom at Hutchtel.net on thu 24 nov 05
This list is amazing. Tony C. goes to make a very important point (or
points) using an analogy, and immediately someone has to take offense and
uses a literal interpretation of the message to 'dis' the original. Sorry
Lee, you apparently missed the point entirely.
Tom Wirt
Hutchinson, MN
twirt@hutchtel.net
www.claycoyote.com
Lee Love on thu 24 nov 05
clennell wrote:
>We share many ideas and problems.
>If you fill your car lot with Cobalts and no Caddys it is my contention that
>like GM you will be run out of town by cheap imports and folks that can make
>similiar items and don't have bills to pay( other than clay bills).
>
>
Tony, folks buy imports because of quality and value. They are not just
cheap cars anymore. The Lexus was made for the American market.
It is heart-breakingly difficult for me to say, having grown up in
Detroit: GM is to blame for their situation for not paying attention to
making cars that people want to drive.
>still nothing like a Caddy. The wealthy Asians would love to drive a Caddy.
>
>
What Asians? In Jackie Chan movies? ;-) Currently, In Japan they prefer
Mercedes or BMW.. This year is the first year that the Lexus will be
sold in Japan. It was made for the export market. I think it will cut
into the German car market in Japan because the quality is so high.
In 6 years here, I can count the Caddilacs I have seen on one hand.
Usually old ones, sold to young guys who are into "Pimp Style."
Caddilacs aren't the car they used to be. I owned one. Sold it to make
my first trip to Japan. I'd much rather have a hybrid Lexus. Tony, you
take the 15 mpg Caddy below, I'll take the 31mpg in the city Lexus. ;-)
Vehicle Make/Model 0-60 acceleration EPA MPG
2006 Lexus RX 400h AWD 6.9 sec 31/27
2005 Porsche Cayenne S (4.5L V-8) 7.3 sec 14/18
2004 BMW X5 4.4i (4.4L V-8 AWD) 7.1 sec 16/22
2005 Cadillac SRX (4.6L V-8 AWD) 6.7 sec 15/20
2005 Range Rover HSE (4.4L V-8 4WD) 8.2 sec 12/16
--
Lee Love
in Mashiko, Japan http://mashiko.org
http://seisokuro.blogspot.com/ My Photo Logs
"Human subtlety will never devise an invention more beautiful,
more simple or more direct than does Nature,
because in her inventions, nothing is lacking and nothing is superfluous."
--Leonardo da Vinci
Mary White on thu 24 nov 05
Eva, you're sure right about Whistler. I was there for the first time
in September and I too was unable to find a handmade pot in the
place. However Vincent Massey, a wonderful potter, has a studio at
his home north of town which is well worth a visit (I'll send you a
photo off-list). He says the galleries in town only like to carry
really expensive stuff like huge oil paintings for $1000+ and pottery
is just too small potatoes for them. I must say I came away with no
souvenirs except a free hotel pen!
Mary White
Madeira Park, BC
Canada
>Whistler - I couldn't find a handmade
>mug in Whistler Village. There were several high-end fine art galleries -
>paintings selling for thousands and tens of thousands of dollars, several
>very very pricey native craft galleries and then the very high end Mountain
>Gallery at the Chateau Whistler. However this gallery was really out of the
>way from the mainstream village centre and most visitors unless they were
>staying there would not visit it. Lots of cheap souvenirs though. To be fair
>there was a potter selling from his studio somewhere in the town and another
>store in Fuction Junction which advertised crafts - these were in the less
>"posh" areas of Whistler/Blackcomb and which I never had time to visit.
Jim Willett on fri 25 nov 05
Eva,
On your next trip may we suggest you visit Canadian Naturally at Lake
Louise, stop in Canmore, not far from Banff and visit Two Wolves Trading
Company, Cafe Books, or The Sugar Pine Company. In Jasper you should have
stopped in to Bearberry or Bearfoot in the Park. Obiously you didn't make
it to Edmonton but the Alberta Craft Council has a very good range of
pottery from several different potters, and the Legislative Assembly Gift
Shop also features pottery.
Sometimes things are not as bleak as they seem.
Jim Willett and Cindy Clarke
Out of the Fire Studio
Edmonton, AB
http://www.outofthefirestudio.com
http://www.howtomakepottery.com
Lee Love on fri 25 nov 05
On 2005/11/25 12:42:28, Tom at Hutchtel.net (twirt@hutchtel.net) wrote:
> Lee, you apparently missed the point entirely.
No, I didn't Tom.
I left Michigan for Minnesota just after some laid-off autoworkers beat
a Korean guy to death because they thought he was Japanese. People don't
buy Japanese cars because they are "cheap imports." It was a dumb
anal-ogy. Nothing to do with the state of the automotive industry,
unless you still wear a polyester jumpsuit. ;-) GM is not failing
because of cheap imports. First, they aren't cheap and secondly, they
are being made in America. Hondas are even being reimported to Japan
from factories in America.
GM got Toyota to help them in a joint production plant in the '80s. My
mother owned one of the first new Novas from this factory, hoping it
would be more like a their old Corolla than my Vega. Her hopes were
justified. GM is a good understudy, when it has a mind to do so.
GM learned Japanese production methods and quality controls. They
developed the Saturn system with those ideas, but somehow, they forgot
and started making junk again. Now, Toyota has agreed to help GM learn
their hydrogen fuel cell technology. Fuel cell cars have already been
certified in Japan by Toyota and Honda. We should be able to buy these
cars by 2020 for under $30,000.00 The big issue is whether the hydrogen
fueling stations will be ready.
--
李 Lee Love 大
愛 鱗
in Mashiko, Japan http://mashiko.org
http://seisokuro.blogspot.com/ My Photo Logs
http://ikiru.blogspot.com/ Zen and Craft
"With Humans it's what's here (he points to his heart) that makes the
difference. If you don't have it in the heart, nothing you make will
make a difference."
~~Bernard Leach~~ (As told to Dean Schwarz)
Eva Gallagher on fri 25 nov 05
Hi Jim - yes that was the shop that I stopped in Lake Louise - and I did see
some of your cups there. However they were on the shelves next to mass
produced ones. Most people (those who are not familiar with handmade
pottery) would not have been able to tell the difference without taking time
to read the tag that you had in the each cup. Both were priced the same
around $20! Contrary to the name of the store, very few things in the store
were handmade - and that's my point. I would not have called that a craft
gallery - but a souvenir shop - though a bit more upscale than most. (I hope
you do not take this as saying that your cups were not good - just that they
were overwhelmed by all the commercial stuff.)
And yes, you are right - Canmore was great as I did see several galleries
in Canmore - more than I expected for such a small town.
Regards,
Eva Gallagher
Deep River Ontario
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jim Willett"
To:
Sent: Friday, November 25, 2005 12:45 AM
Subject: Re: The Canadian Cobalt Blues
> Eva,
>
> On your next trip may we suggest you visit Canadian Naturally at Lake
> Louise, stop in Canmore, not far from Banff and visit Two Wolves Trading
> Company, Cafe Books, or The Sugar Pine Company. In Jasper you should have
> stopped in to Bearberry or Bearfoot in the Park. Obiously you didn't make
> it to Edmonton but the Alberta Craft Council has a very good range of
> pottery from several different potters, and the Legislative Assembly Gift
> Shop also features pottery.
>
> Sometimes things are not as bleak as they seem.
>
> Jim Willett and Cindy Clarke
> Out of the Fire Studio
> Edmonton, AB
> http://www.outofthefirestudio.com
> http://www.howtomakepottery.com
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
> 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.
derekmoorepottery@TELUS.NET on wed 30 nov 05
Eva.
The best place in the Vancouver/Whistler area to find pottery is still
down on Granville Island. Between the Potters Guild of BC's Gallery, the
Craft House, Circle Craft, as well as, a few other pottery studio's this
is the best place to start.
Just coming back from three years in Alberta, you missed some absolutely
beautiful work. Just outside of Banff, in Field, BC, is the studio/gallery
of Ryan Cameron. To get to Medicine Hat you probably past through Calgary
and therefore, should have visited the entire floor of hand crafted
production pottery at Galleria and then hit the Croft for a wide selection
of hand crafted work. From Calgary, there are also many small towns very
close by that other production potteries are located: the Pikes Studio in
High River, the Terra Cotta Dudes in Black Diamond or Mudslide Stoneware
in Airdrie. Im not positive but I believe there is even a pottery/gallery
driving tour that has been set up. The Croft or Galleria would probably
know.
Wow. Maybe I should be a tourist guide instead of a potter....
Derek
derekmoore pottery
www.derekmoore.ca
derekmoorepottery@telus.net
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