I made some movies:
- http://youtu.be/FkhGZV_EPwc About the exhibition.
- http://youtu.be/_F4vxCZ_DNQ About the historical surroundings of the show.

- http://www.flickr.com/photos/swanica/sets/72157628372545471/ A slideshow of the exhibition and the surroundings.

Tegelen is a village in the province of Limburg in the Netherlands. It was an independent municipality until 2001, when it was merged into the municipality of Venlo.
The name of the glacial era of Tiglian (part of the Pleistocene) is derived from Tegelen because of the many fossils found there from this era in the local clay.
During excavations in Tegelen Roman pottery and tile ovens were found. The Sint-Martinus church is mentioned in diocesan and monasterial archives dating back to the year 800. Because of its strategic location, various castles and reinforced farms were soon established. The most important of these were the Castle of Holtmühle (with the barn Tiendschuur) and the Munt. During the Middle Ages, there were several battles in and around Tegelen, because of its proximity to the walled city of Venlo.
Early in the 19th century Tegelen developed into a regional centre of industry. At first, tile and pottery factories were established, and later that century, metallurgy and tobacco factories. After 1900 agriculture was added to the mix. Pottery and related industries were very successful in Tegelen from 1750 until World War II. They specialized mainly in the low fire red earthenware with a lead glaze. The pots were decorated with slips in many colors and engraved.

The centuries old expertise in ceramics and pottery is kept alive by courses held in the ceramic center of Tiendschuur.

At the moment, there is also the Toki Ichi, the yearly May Pottery Festival in Mashiko from about 400 potters. We were amazed to see luckily so many tourists visiting this festival. But they were mainly all Japanese; no blue-eyed people around.

First, we arrived at the Togei Arts Center from Furuki-san. He made beautiful renovations at the Minshuku which had fully survived the earthquake, but the kilns were all damaged. Euan’s kiln was already repaired so people can start firing, and next will be Kusakabe-san’s kiln. His anagama was completely destroyed.

We had some lunch and met with Euan Craig who was manning his booth. He will help me still with the tour and interviews on May the 19 and the 20st of the Dutch journalist/magazine writers Yna and Mels and consequently, an exhibition in the Netherlands. But after the earthquake it takes on a whole different meaning and we are looking for other possibilities to make people aware of what happened in Mashiko and how to help them survive and continue the legacy of this incredible potters community.

Then we met with Ken Matsuzaki-san. I introduced Adriaan and he explained his idea how to help Mashiko and bring them out into the world. Luckily, Koi-san and one of the students helped with the translation.
After that, we went to Hamada Tomoo, the grandson of Hamada Shoji, and explained the same idea. They are very supportive but have to get used to the ideas.

A big shard pile at Matsuzaki-san’s place.

In the meantime, we saw the destruction of the kilns. Some were already cleaned up, but there was so much damage. Hamada Tomoo showed us the devastation of the Reference Museum of Hamada Shoji. Some potters were cleaning the bricks of the broken-down Noborigamas. So, much to do and the rebuilding of the treasure houses. The whole walls shifted. And so many of Hamada’s pots broken. But they had that all cleaned up and refreshed with other works from Hamada Shoji and Tomoo-san also had repaired some important plates from the collections.

Tomoo-san’s damaged salt kiln is already all cleaned up. Ready to build a new one.

Today, we met Fujiwara-san, Baba Yuchiko-san, the mayor Ohtsuka-san, and of course, Tsukamoto-san from the Toko Gallery and some other friends. So, we had quite a lovely day. We returned with the bus to Utsunomiya. We caught at 3:15pm the 2pm bus! Traffic was completely blocked in Mashiko.  It was that busy. The weather became cloudy and everybody of course started to leave at the same time. We got of the train in Tokyo to stay with my friend Lara and her wonderful family.

I was not able to write about this exciting workshop, because a lot happened last week with the preparation for my “Sakura” exhibition at the end of this month and my 2-week trip to the US.

On March the 4th and 5th I attended a Master Class Ceramics Workshop given by David and Margaret Frith at the International School of the Sacred School in Steve Tootell’s ceramics room and organized by Steve Tootell and the JapanASCD (Assoc. of Supervision and Curriculum Development).

David and Margaret are potters in stoneware and porcelain. They set up their first workshop in 1963. Their reputations are well established. David with his mastery of the potter’s wheel makes majestic pieces decorated with his personal style of waxed motifs under heavy reduction over- glazes and glaze trailing. Margaret concentrates on individual porcelain with carved decoration or colored glazes as well as producing a comprehensive range of domestic ware and decorative stoneware. Their pottery is housed in an 18th. century woollen mill which was later used as a brewery hence the name The Malt House. The mill is situated on the banks of the river Ystrad, on the outskirts of the market town of Denbigh, in the beautiful Vale of Clwyd in North Wales, UK. Their website is: http://www.pottery.demon.co.uk/

They taught us all kinds of throwing techniques and personalized it for each attendee. They showed us their way of throwing and trimming pots and the next day talked about decoration. For me some things were very familiar and I learned some different techniques especially for throwing big pots. They have 48 years of experience in making pots! I will add some YOU TUBE videos I took at the end of this blog, but next time it will be one movie. I have to learn to edit movies and put them together as one.

Steve introducing Margaret and David.

Margaret throwing.

David pulling up the clay for throwing a big platter.

David throwing a big vase in two parts. The base he threw the day before and the top he threw first separately and then turned it around and put it on the base. He is finishes it directly.

Some YOU TUBE MOVIES:

1. David and Margaret both throwing a plate:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_QJUsxzu08

2. David pulling up clay: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=td5GNJoX2P0

3. David throwing a big vase: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzn4t5Gf-I8

4. Margaret explaining decoration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzEE0hR3qaE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnyUNEK90Ls

A movie made of my show by Steve Tootell, Head of Creative and Performing Arts at the Sacred Heart International School in Tokyo:

http://gallery.me.com/s.tootell#100330

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On the 28th we first went to Ge Jun Pottery Arts Center. Mr. Ge Jun is a researcher and the director of the Yixing Ceramic Research Center of Chinese Culture, especially for the Purple Teapot. He was one of the sponsors of the event. All our teapots were exhibited in his Arts Center. The exhibition holds pots from 100 potters from 100 countries of five continents around the world.  It is impossible to show all the pots on my blog. They published a catalogue and I will show you just a few.

The white pots are from Antonella Cimatti, Italy; the blue and red teapots are from Christina Wiese, Austria; and the lower teapots are from Evgenija Portnoj Kostic, Serbia. A YOU TUBE movie from the exhibition.

Standing with Evgenija in front of Ge Jun’s Art Center.









Then we had the opening ceremony in the morning. To the left is the curator of the Shanghai Arts and Crafts Museum; in the middle is Mr. Ge Jun; and to the right is Linda, the translator. A YOU TUBE movie from part of the opening.

Two ladies were showing how to make a Yixing Purple teapot. It is incredibly precise and fine and perfect work and takes a couple of hours to make and all by hand. A YOU TUBE movie of a little part of the making of such a teapot.

In the afternoon we went to the Shanghai Arts and Crafts Museum which is a model of the architectural style of the Renaissance of France. The museum has some beautiful art and artisans show how it is made.





A group picture in front of the Shanghai Arts and Crafts Museum.

Next day we went on a bus all the way to Yixing city. We started to get to know each other better, had some interesting discussions and sang songs together. Watch the YOU TUBE movie.




Yixing is China’s pottery capital. The Yixing clay dates back to the Song Dynasty (960 – 1279) when purple clay was first mined around Lake Taihu in China. The finished stoneware, which is used for teaware and other small items, are usually red or brown in color. The clays are very cohesive and can be formed by slip molding, coil forming, or most commonly, slab forming. They are known as Purple Sand ware, and are typically unglazed. The most famous wares made for Yixing clay are the teapots.

First, we went to the China Ceramic Cultural Institute, Research Center for Purple Culture of the purple teapot. It was interesting with some beautiful work. We went to a factory and saw students working on their teapots.

Next, we saw the “Qianshu Dragon Kiln” in Qianshu village, Dingshu town, a state protected historic town. It is 43.3 meters long, 1.55 meters high, 3 meters wide outside and 2.3 meters wide inside. The kiln was built in the Ming Dynasty (1400 AD) and is being used since then. Coal is the most common fuel being used for firing this kiln.

After that we investigated a four-story building what will become the new “Pot” Museum. Ge Jun had put a lot of his sculptures and from his students on the first floor. Quite interesting.





The last outing for the day was the Yixing Ceramics Museum. It is the first ceramic museum established in China and has an abundant collection of exhibits. Fully revealing Yixing’s long history of pottery production and splendid pottery culture for more then 7000 years from the middle of Neolithic Age up to the present time.

A Celadon Vase. The production of Celadon in Yixing began in the West Zhou Dynasty 11 Centuries BC. The textures of Yixing Celadons is fine, its glaze is crystal clear like ice and green with blue tint like jade. Their shapes are elegant and the decoration is grand.

The last day, we first went to the Shanghai Museum with some beautiful nice and interesting arts.

Then we went to the Bund of Shanghai, an old part of the city with wonderful old architecture and their famous roof architecture and of course now many shops and eateries for tourists. Also, some performers like on the YOU TUBE movie.

After this visit we returned to Ge Jun Pottery Art Center for a last look at the show and the presentation of the Award and catalogue.

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Showing some engraving.

Showing how to throw a bowl.
















Taking the bowl from the wheel.

The Special Judges’ Award Horsehair Vase from the Mashiko Competition 2006 and the Cosmos Horsehair Plate from the  Mino Competition from 2008.

In the back a Kamakura Bori Plate and in the front my version of the use of the bori technique texture decoration.

AND NOW THE YOU TUBE MOVIE of the BROADCAST!





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My sister-in-law Inge, my son Roland and niece Esmee.













We played a board game from about a hundred years ago, which our grandfather played from my husband’s family side. It is played once a year on New Year’s Eve. It is about farmers being afraid of having to pay too much taxes. We play with old Dutch pennies not being used anymore because of the Euro.

Then at 12 midnight after wishing everybody a Happy New Year and drinking champagne, everybody rushes outside to light fireworks with a big bang starting the New Year! It is not organized. Anybody can light fireworks. It is everywhere around you!  Watch this YOU TUBE VIDEO!!

For 3 days I participated in The 10th World Art Educators’ Workshop featuring IKUZO FUJIWARA and coordinated by Steve Tootell, ceramic art and performance art director from the International School of The Sacred Heart in Tokyo and facilitated by Euan Craig, a Mashiko woodfire potter for 20 years. Please, see the following LINK.


Fijiwara-san sculpting on his “Jaki”.

It was such an interesting workshop. Seldom did I meet such a nice and interesting man. He is wonderfully creative and artistic in so many ways. He is a ceramic mural artist and the only one left in Japan in these difficult economic times. He also is a landscape artist and sculptor. Please, also see his website: www.ikuzo.com

His reputation is established with more than 500 installations in major buildings throughout Japan. They can be as high as 4 stories, colorful and creative and incredibly complicated in design. At a school he installed a multi-dimensional mural, which students can view from left, right and head-on. Each view presents a different picture.




Fujiwara-san overcame the challenge of creating landscape-scale ceramic artwork with scientifically developed techniques and clays that allow for exceptional strength, durability, and massive size. He has revolutionized the large art form with precision engineered plans and modern electric kilns. He has a great, big, well organized, clean, workshop and design studio. All is very impressive.




He uses a Japanese convection kiln, the ancient oven from the Nara period from 1500 years ago, stoked with wood, to fire his gargoyles or “Jakis”: spirits from the natural world, objects of fear and respect.








Fujiwara-san and a very big “Jaki”.

He lives in Mashiko, the pottery and ceramics town that was the focal point for the renaissance of Japanese folk art under the guidance and leadership of Hamada Shoji, one of Japan’s greatest ceramic artists.

So, it was great to be back in Mashiko and to stay at the Mashiko Ceramic Art Center of Furuki-san.

Please, watch the following movie made by Steve Tootell of the 3-day workshop!