This September I’ll have a show during Burlington’s big Arts District event, Art Hop. My work will be at Dedalus, the wine bar where I, ahem, spend a lot of time. Burlington folks, come see it if you can. September 6 – probably end of the month.

Since it’s in a wine shop, it seemed obvious to make a head of Dionysus, god of wine.

My Dionysus is a pretty boy and looks sweeter than a god of wine ought to look, but he charmed me. I dried him for a few weeks. Put him in the kiln and BOOM. He totally exploded during firing. On the kiln shelf was a pile of clay chunks and dust. And a nose and nearly unrecognizable chunks of skull, etc.

Sadly this has happened to me before. I am impatient – I don’t dry long enough. And sloppy – my hollowing is thick and imperfect. I deserve what I get.

After an hour or two of trying to glue pieces together with plans to rebuild it with joint compound and epoxy and god knows what else, I just thought, screw it. I’m going to resculpt the guy.

The second Dionysus is so different than the first. Twice the size. A healthy dose of attitude and alcohol in this guy.

Horns and Hoofs

After Dionysus I fell into a Greek mythology fever. Pan, god of the shepherds and flocks, called to me and it was so fun making a man with horns and hooves!

Next came Dedalus (above) namesake of the bar where I’d be showing, who made wings of wax for himself and his son Icarus (not a good outcome for Icarus). He also designed the Labyrinth where the Minotaur paced. My Minotaur (below) is a sweet, sad bovine.

Gardens and Grandson

Along with the days in the studio making stuff and blowing it up, I am maintaining large gardens (mine and a commercial one I created)

and having fun Thursdays with my 2 ½ year old grandson Oliver. His passion is vehicles of all kinds, so we spend the day looking at buses (“Blue bus!!”), and searching out construction sites.