برچسب: Michael

Halloween Week Special | Michael Bridges

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Michael Bridges | Episode 1075

Michael Bridges is a potter living in Chicago, Illinois. Michael is a hand builder that identifies as a wheel thrower. Skulls, jack-o-lanterns, and spookiness are right at home in Michael’s work.

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How do you fire your work?

I work with as many different firing processes as I can. Soda fire, earthenware. 04. sculptural, I do a little bit of cone 6 as well.

How much time to do you invest into each piece?

Too much. (laughter) I work on it until it’s done. Sometimes that’s an hour, sometimes that’s four or five full days.

Your work has very child-like features although I know you are a skilled potter. How much effort are you putting in to make sure it’s not too refined.

Learning how to walk away from a piece is harder than making something look perfect. In my opinion. It’s taken me years to learn when to let it go.

Do you sell your work year round?

I do sell year round, often by appointment or email or direct contact. In terms of online sales I generally put most of my work online towards the end of the year in October, November, December. And that allows me the freedom earlier in the year to explore new ideas. So I don’t have that pressure of constantly having to sell.

Is there a piece that you would like to make but your skill levels don’t quite reach?

I would really like to work large. That’s a big want is to work five, six feet tall. Life size. I don’t have the facilities for it now but that is the vision at some point is to make life-size work.

What is your favorite holiday?

Hmm. Favorite holiday. I am going to have to think on it. As a side note I grew up working on all holidays. I worked in a vacation town so I never took holidays, I worked through every holiday. And then in the bakery industry I also worked through the holidays. So I kind of hate holidays for that reason. (laughter) So that’s a tough question. So I am an antiholiday guy. I guess I am going to have to go with Halloween. It’s the one where you get to dress up , that’s probably the closest that I’ve had to enjoying a holiday would be Halloween.

Book

The Last Conversation by Paul Tremblay

Contact

Etsy: michaelsmug

Instagram: @michaelsmugs

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23/04/2025
A Little Chaos | Michael Corney

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Michael Corney | Episode 1087

Michael Corney was raised in the greater Los Angeles Metropolitan area where he was influenced by the bright colors of nature and the vibrant cultures that surrounded him. Michael received his BA from Cal State University Fullerton and his MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art. While primarily a studio potter, Michael has taught workshops at Anderson Ranch, Penland School of Crafts and Santa Fe Clay. He has participated in shows at Santa Fe Clay (NM), Northern Clay Center (MN), The Schaller Gallery (MI) and Akar Design Gallery (IA) Michael is currently a working artist in San Miguel De Allende, Mexico!

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You have a BA and an MFA. Is education critical for an artist?

That kind of education? It all depends. For me it was because I did want to teach and we all know if you did want to teach at the college, whether it’s university or community college or even high school, you do need the MFA. So that was important for me. It was also important for me because if I had not gotten it any accolades along that way that I did not get I would say, Oh that’s because I didn’t go to college. Once I went to school and I didn’t get those accolades it’s like, No, dude, you just didn’t do very well.

How did teaching impact you as an artist? To give away your ideas to those behind you?

Well, it kind of solidified what was important to me. It kind of reminds me of when you are a young student and they make you do a description of your work, a summary of your work, an artist’s statement. It doesn’t matter to anyone else in my opinion, but it makes me, or you as the artist kind of define what you are trying to talk about, what you are trying to say.

You used to make your work inside of the States and now you are in Mexico. Has changing cultures influenced your expression as an artist?

You know, not really. And I say that only because I was really kind of engaged in this culture prior to moving down here. The artwork that I look at, whether it’s contemporary art or folk art or art of the people, it’s sort of what I was looking at before. And now that I am here I just feel comfortable being here.

How do you put work out about your story with vulnerability but also with a sense I don’t want you to be too close? And keep privacy?

You kind of can’t get away from that, you know, everything as an artist is…I would say, everything is a self-portrait.

Have you found a favorite place to have down time or restaurant where you are now as a couple?

Actually we have. For us, a part of me liking Mexico is I love the food. We call it food here, not Mexican food because we are in Mexico. My big complaint has been, I live in a very touristy town, it’s sort of like the Sante Fe, New Mexico is what San Miguel is. So there’s lots of fancy restaurants but we found this garage, it’s a family every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, sets up their grill and their deep fryer and they make tacos and stuff like that, and that’s what I like. The street food, the taco stand on the corner, that’s what I like, that’s what she likes, and that’s our special thing here.

Contact

michaelcorney.com

Instagram: @michaelcorneyware

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19/04/2025
Next Level | Michael Cole

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Michael Cole | Episode 1118

Michael Cole, largely self-taught, has refined advanced techniques through workshops with esteemed artists like Noel Bailey, Steven Hill, Jon Townley, Deb Lecce, Sarah Wells Rolland, Simon Leach, and Jenifer McCurdy. Michael was a member of the 2024 Steven Hill Journey Workshop at Alison Palmer Studio. Michael makes his living as personal assistant to Broadway composer Stephen Schwartz.

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How important is it for us to just be honest with where we are with our work?

I think it’s very important. Extremely important. And I do feel like there is validity in the beginning of our pottery journey to try all the things. There are so many different avenues that you can go down. We learn a lot by doing all that, but for me working in this new way it makes the making far more meaningful and enjoyable.

Then how important is the influence of a mentor assessing your work?

For me personally I found it very moving and a sort of personal answer is that I didn’t really have that kind of support when I was younger. With my father specifically. And in Stephen Hill I found a father figure who was encouraging me in ways that I had never really experienced before as an artist, in the artistic side of my life. For me it was exceedingly important.

Was it a scary thing to admit and to reach out and get help to grow?

It wasn’t scary for me because I have never been scared of that kind of thing. I love trying to make myself better. I’ve spent all of my life making. When I was a struggling actor in New York City I made my living doing finish carpentry. So I learned tiling and sheet rock and all that. So I have used my hands my entire life. So I am not afraid of doing anything. Except if I am working with really expensive materials and as we know clay is not expensive.

How important is mindset and persistence to level up?

I think it’s important and I think I struggle with it a little bit because I have a full-time job. And I find myself away from my studio for chunks of time. I find I do my best work when I am really connected with it for long periods of time. Therefore, I can concentrate on it more.

What is your reaction to this? Be responsible for your own journey.

I knew you were going to throw me one of these questions. (laughter) I think it’s good. Throughout my days, trying to follow the passions that I had in some ways I felt like I was…earlier in my life I felt like I was following a journey that my brother was on. He was a farmer and at some point, I decided to join the choir. And that break made huge difference for me. So I started to take some control over my own journey then and I guess, to a certain extent, I did that for a large portion of my life. In terms of my journey now I think it is very important to take control of that and decide where I want to go with this.

What is your favorite piece to make in the studio and why?

My favorite piece is probably a mug, which is kind of remarkable to say because I used to hate making handles. Hated it. But I knew it was something I should do. So that ends up being a really nice form for me to work on and also turns out to be a really good test tile.

Book

Every Tool Is A Hammer by Adam Savage

Contact

mastercraftceramics.com

Instagram: @mastercraft_ceramics

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13/04/2025