Thursday Morning Class

Tutor: Renton Murray 

Focus on Throwing

Christine and Mervyn

Jim and John

Sarah

March 2012 Body of Clay

I have had a break from the blog while I tried to sort out in my mind what it was all about once the 50th anniversary was over. I think I will just keep a loose record of goings on at and around ASP.  We have the website and the newsletter so there will be overlaps. By around, I mean if members are in a show somewhere or have a ceramic event they want recorded, just let me know.



Body of Clay, The Steel Gallery, Pukekohe


3 March - 31 March 2012

Featuring work by a group of  fifteen artists who have either graduated or are studying Ceramics through Otago Polytechnic through Auckland Studio Potters.

Opening night

Suzy Dunser

Michelle McKinstry

Carol Stewart

Ann O'Sullivan

Helen Perrett

Jo-Anne Raill

Merilyn Shuker

Roy Burgoyne

Marilyn Wheeler

Kim Rochester

Peter Baas

Susan St Lawrence

Margaret Bray

Mark Griffin

Michelle Brown

ASP 50th Birthday Party

Begining with an afternoon tea, entertainment included an ASP quiz,  songs from Yuko Takahashi and an impromptu song from Les Andrews.  The day moved on to a Happy Hour and then a Spit Roast dinner and music from two band: ASP's very own The Porcelaines followed by the dance band, Humble Souls.

A feature of the evening was a spectacular birthday cake kiln cunningly matched by Peter Lange to Suzy Dunser's exquisite Birthday Cake Kiln cake.

Suzy Dunser is an exceptional baker as well as a very fine potter.

Duncan, Stuart and Tony

Les and Sonia sing with the Porcelaines

The Humble Souls

The completed kiln cake with the cake kiln beyond.

Peter Stichbury watches as the kiln cake blazes.

Afternoon tea with an ASP history trivia game

Tony stoking

The Porcelaines

Susan and Chester Nealie

The New Workroom - 1994

Some new photos have come in from Christine Lloyd of the site being prepared for the new studio/workshop building.

I have added some photos posted elsewhere on the blog to add to the story.

Robyn Paul (red trousers) is choosing the spot to turn the first sod.

Tony Bacon on saw duty

An Informal History of Auckland Studio Potters - Introduction

I thought I would keep this blog as a way of sharing some of the history of the Auckland Studio Potters in 2011:  the year it turns fifty.  I have no qualifications for this, I have been a member of ASP for the past ten years and volunteered to do this as my little bit towards the ASP's birthday. 

It is a bit of a mission for me, learning how to publish a blog, this is my fifth attempt.  They keep disappearing.  I wonder about all those words floating around out there. Hot air -  potters are quite good at hot air.  Just so you know what I am having to deal with and why it has taken me two months to get this far, there are dashboards to negotiate, there were kitchen sinks, slugs and pingbacks.  I have been warned about the risk of cutting and pasting turning my blog into spam (and maybe that's what happened to my other attempts...I am not really surprised.)

I would like to post on this blog (that's what you do!) pages that I have typed up from the little blue publication The First Twenty Five Years. But first I want to publish this introduction in case it's the cutting and pasting that's the problem. I think some of the history will be a good starting point, but it would be nice to get lots of anecdotes and stories and I have visions of themes, Visitors from Overseas, Special Firings, Exhibitions but I suppose I will have to see how this goes. And what people send me.  Lots of old photos would be great.

For a full history please go to this page:

http://www.ceramics.co.nz/History/history.html

Here's one from 1975.