Rookwood Pottery

On Sunday afternoon, my friend Mari and I went to the Cincinnati Art Museum which is in the beautiful Mount Adams neighborhood of Cincinnati.
My favorite exhibit that we got to see during our museum visit was the display of art pottery. In the late 1800's through the early twentieth century, Cincinnati was a major producer of art pottery. Rookwood Pottery was one of the major art pottery manufacturers. I think I have seen some examples of Rookwood Pottery before or at least Rookwood-like pottery and it is absolutely beautiful. Much of it has a very organic look to its design. It seems to have been heavily influenced by the Art Nouveau movement in art and architecture. However, there were also pieces that were really modern looking especially when I noted their date it seemed as if they were really ahead of their time. Along with this, there are some specialty Rookwood pieces that are hard to categorize. They seem to be almost novelty pieces. I was also totally amazed by the architectural works in the museum's collection including a fountain and a fireplace mantel. I've included a photo of a Rookwood vase that is part of the Cincinnati Art Museum collection.
Here's what Wikipedia has to say about Rookwood Pottery:
Maria Longworth Nichols Storer founded Rookwood Pottery in 1880 as a way to market her hobby - the painting of blank tableware. Through years of experimentation with glazes and kiln temperatures, she eventually built her own kiln, hired a number of excellent chemists and artists who were able to create high-quality glazes of colors never before seen on mass-produced pottery.

Each era of Rookwood work has its own unique character:
The earliest work is relief-worked on naturally-colored clay, in pinks, greys and sage or olive greens. Some were gilt, or had stamped patterns, and some were carved. Often these were painted or otherwise decorated by the purchaser of the "greenware" (unfinished piece), a precursor to today's do-it-yourself movement.
After this period, Storer sought a "standard" look for Rookwood, and developed a number of very common treatments: the "standard glaze," a deep gold, red and orange over dark brown fired in such a way as to effect a very high-gloss finish, often in leaf or flower motifs. A series of portraits - often of generic American Indian characters or certain historical figures – was also produced using these particular glazes. Next was the "matte glaze," a flat but textured glaze developed by Artus Van Briggle, often painted on soft colored clay, which used "sea green" for aquatic and floral motifs. This pale blue-green glaze was usually applied over a soft yellow, bluish or red base. Another common Rookwood style of this period was the "vellum" glaze, usually a matte light blue, put on top of a very lightly colored clay. This was most often used for landscape scenes.
Other popular styles that came out through the lifetime of the Rookwood factory included the "iris" glaze, a high-gloss white over pinks, blues, and yellows and usually used for floral motifs, and the less-common but very collectible "tiger eye" which left gold streaks from ingredients in the glaze. This last glaze was unstable and it is not clear whether it was abandoned for reasons of chemistry or popularity.
One of the last styles of Rookwood was the "ombroso" glaze, not used until after 1910. Ombroso, used on cut or incised pottery, is a brown or black matte glaze.
In 1902, Rookwood added architectural pottery to its portfolio. Under the direction of Watts Taylor, this division rapidly gained national and international acclaim. Many of the flat pieces were used around fireplaces in homes in Greater Cincinnati and surrounding areas, while custom installations found their places in grand homes, hotels, and public spaces. Even today, Rookwood tiles decorate Carew Tower, Union Terminal (Cincinnati) and Dixie Terminal in Cincinnati, as well as the Rathskeller Room in The Seelbach Hilton in Louisville, Ky. In New York, the Vanderbilt Hotel, Grand Central Station, the Mayo Clinic, Lord and Taylor and several subway stops feature Rookwood tile designs


If you ever get a chance, I encourage you to check out this great collection of Rookwood Pottery at the Cincinnati Museum of Art. You won't be disappointed.
Thanks for being a part of my journey!

Extreme Knitting: You Have Got to See This!

So, there I was innocently checking my email account and I saw a photo of a city bus covered in what looked like frosting. Well, I had to click on the story to read more about this. To my total amazement, I discovered that the bus was not covered in frosting but in colorful yarn. It was a part of a renewed interest in knitting. In fact, there's a whole movement called Yarn Bombing in which people use knitting as a kind of graffiti. Instead of spray paint, these folks knit cozies for fire hydrants, stop signs, and even cars.
Of course, someone has written a book about this craft movement and the book is quoted in the article. I particularly enjoyed reference to an artist who knitted colorful pothole covers and installed them on city streets in Paris to call attention to Paris's deteriorating roads. Now that's what I call art with a real purpose.
Anyway, you can read the entire article and see photos of yarn bombers' work and photos of an artist who does macrame food. It's quite a trip.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/43254903/ns/today-today_fashion_and_beauty/t/why-would-you-knit-crafting-goes-extreme/?gt1=43001

After reading the article, it does make me smile when I think about everything having its own colorful cozy.
Thanks for being a part of my journey!

Writing Class Wrap-Up

Well, I finished up my creative writing class last night. It was a great evening. Each participant got to go around and read the first page of his or her short story then the class continued to finish the story silently.
I got to go first. It was a bit intimidating but I was grateful for the opportunity to begin our time together by reading the first page of my story. I have been working on this particular story for about a month now and reading it to the class out loud was like meeting an old friend for lunch. I knew the story but saying the words out loud brought it to life in a new way for me.
I received good feedback from the instructor and my classmates. I sometimes wish my classmates would have given me more feedback than they did. I think we were all afraid to be critical. I tried to be open and honest with my opinions about my fellow writers' work but I suppose I did hold back some. I am a very slow reader and I don't always have very good comprehension on the first read. I think I let this get in the way of making comments that might have been helpful to my classmates.
I shared my short story with my friend Mari over the weekend and with the Executive Director at work today. I got some positive feedback from both of them and that felt good. I still feel a bit vulnerable when I share my writing with others. I guess this is part of the process though. If you're interested, I would be glad to have you read my story and get your feedback. Just send me an email and I will send it to you.
I am seriously thinking of taking the second class in this series. It would start later in January so I still have some time to think about it. I think that it is what I need to keep moving forward with my writing. The class keeps me disciplined. It's good for me to have deadlines.
I have already started on another story. I'm not sure if it will develop into a short story or a longer form. Writing a novel overwhelms me when I think about it. There's some comfort in the short story format but I want to be open to wherever my ideas and creativity take me.
I am ever grateful to God for allowing me to take this first writing class. It was the right step at the right time for me. I feel alive in new ways when I am expressing myself through the written word. It helps me to process and reflect up my life. It helps me to share what's on my mind and engage the world through the written world. I guess that's also why I write this blog.
Thanks for being a part of my journey!

An Evening of Writing

It's after 11:00 PM and I am jazzed. I think I am going to have a hard time getting to sleep tonight. I just finished the first draft of my short story for my creative writing class. I wrote for about four hours and I feel like I've just had a large espresso. I am filled with adrenaline and really excited about how my short story took shape. It's not what I expected at all. When I first sat down to write this short story, I wanted to go in a whole different direction. However, my vision of the story is not where the characters wanted the story to go. As we are learning in our creative writing course, it's important to follow the characters rather than make the characters follow the writer's agenda or preconceived plot.
In the book On Writing that we are using as our primary text for the class, Stephen King says that he never lets plot drive his novels. Instead, he takes a journey with his characters and often times he is surprised where they lead him. Now, I'm not suggesting that I am anywhere near as gifted a writer as Stephen King. I've read some of his books and watched many movies based on his books. He has a creativity and passion for writing that I don't know that I will ever experience. However, I feel like tonight I tasted a little bit of what King is talking about in his own writing process. I could not put my pencil down. I kept writing and writing until I got it all down. It just kept flowing and I am surprised about the path on which it flowed. It was totally unexpected.
Now I've got to do the hard work of editing my work. Tonight was the completion of one of the primary steps. This weekend, I've got to get my scribblings down in a form that I can present to my class on Monday night. This is going to be a bit tedious. I know that what I've written is extremely raw and lacks substantive form. It will definitely take me most of the weekend to get my story to a place at which I can share it with others.
What tonight's writing experience reminded me of is that I love to write. I don't know that I write well, but I love to put things down into words. I love to follow characters. I love to discover unique ways of telling a story. I love to express myself and what's on my mind by writing. It is a creative drive within me that helps me to share my heart and views of life with the world.
I will let you know how it goes as I edit and then present my short story to the class. I'm a little anxious about it. I feel vulnerable sharing it but I know that receiving feedback is what can help me to become a better writer.
I appreciate you taking the time read what I write on this blog. I know it's always not the most exciting or intellectually stimulating blog on the Internet. However, it is my way of connecting with others through the power of the written word. For you to spend even one minute of your valuable time reading my blog is a great honor to me.
Thanks for being a part of my journey!

God of the Autumn

Autumn God, the planet turns
and the earth signals a change.
Open me to the transitions I need to face in my own life.
Be with me in the letting go,
the saying good-bye
to habits, relationships, and plans
that stand in your way of growing.
Deepen my trust that as I let go,
like the falling leaves,
I will always fall into your embrace. Amen.

- Larry Peacock, Openings

I love fall. I noticed yesterday when I was visiting my sister and brother-in-law's home that the leaves around their home were really starting to turn colors. One tree is already a brilliant gold color. I am looking forward to the coming weeks as the glorious colors reveal themselves and God's handiwork is on display.
I really like the prayer above that was a part of my e-devotional today. It seems to really speak to my current circumstances. I am trying to be open to the transitions going on in my life. I am trying to listen and to understand where it is that God is leading me.
I also need to let go of things. I think most difficult is the letting go of relationships that may inhibit my growth that this prayer mentions. That's a hard one for me. As an introvert I don't have huge amounts of friends and after being a pastor in local churches, I continue to keep my guard up and don't trust a whole lot of people. It's hard for me to make friends and I make it harder on myself to make friends. I certainly need to pray about letting relationships go. I've been grieving the separation from some folks who have been so dear to me in life in the past. However, maybe part of truly loving them is releasing these relationships to God. I need to trust God's guidance and movement in the midst of these relationships.
I absolutely love the image of falling into God's embrace. I want to be there. I want to experience to the depths of my soul the power and love and grace of God. It's only then will my true colors, like the brilliant beauty of fall leaves, be revealed.
I hope you are enjoying this fall season. Thanks for being a part of my journey!

Visit to the Dunes

When I was in Indiana over the weekend, I suggested to my friend Mari that we take a drive over to the Indiana Dunes National Lake Shore. While I lived so close to this wonderful part of God's creation for so many years, I guess I took them for granted. After living in Tennessee for over three years, I really missed seeing the wonder that is Lake Michigan.
On Friday evening, we drove over to the lake shore and rode through some of the small lakeside communities. We stopped at the Indiana Dunes National Lake Shore visitor's area and walked down onto the beach. The waves were really high - 4-6 feet when we were there. The wind blew across the sand and pelted my skin at times. The water of the lake was warm and the fine sand felt wonderful under my feet. It was a delight to be able to see the Lake again and to walk its shoreline and simply take in the wonderful handiwork of God.
I found myself lifting up prayers of praise and thanksgiving to the God Who formed all that was before my eyes. I could just make out the skyline of Chicago over the horizon of the Lake and I remembered all of the wonderful trips that I have made to that city in my lifetime. I shared with Mari the trip I made with a group of friends up to Lake Michigan on the day after my senior prom. We stayed most of the day climbing the dunes, laughing, and listening to music and then had a bonfire on the beach at the end of the day. As I stood on the shore on Friday, I felt the lake breeze blowing and saw the waves coming ashore. At that moment, I felt as if all was right with the world and with my soul.
Before we left the lake shore, we had dinner in New Buffalo at one of my favorite restaurants. It was nice enough that we were able to sit out on the restaurant's screened-in porch and enjoy the evening and some very good food. It was a delight to me and brought back a whole lot of memories as well as made some new memories as Mari and I caught up with one another.
That time on the lake shore reminded me of the many stories of Jesus in the Gospels that take place around the Sea of Galilee which is really just a big lake. I think Jesus appreciated the beauty of the water and taught, healed, and loved the people along the shorelines. He walked upon the water's surface and calmed the storms that overwhelmed his followers. He fished with his friends and even joined them for a meal along the shore after his resurrection. There was something about the water that drew Jesus and helped him to reveal to the world his power and his love.
So, I'm giving God thanks and praise this evening for the gift of my trip to the lake shore. It was a time of remembering and a time of blessing. It was a time of beauty and a time of renewal. I'm so grateful for my trip and so grateful that I am able to share it with you.
Thanks for being a part of my journey!

Temples of Nature

"No temple made with hands can compare with Yosemite... The grandest of all special temples of Nature."

- John Muir

I've been watching through my Netflix subscription the PBS series about the National Parks. If you haven't seen it, I want to highly recommend it to you. It is marvelous. Of course, anything by director Ken Burns is great. This series is absolutely amazing. Please know that I don't make this recommendation lightly.This recommendation comes to you from a real "indoor boy" who once suggested that the rangers of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park might want to think about pressure washing the moss off the trees in the park to "spruce the place up a bit."

I thought this documentary series was going to be more like a Travel Channel special that shows pretty pictures of the National Parks; however, this series is so much more than that. It's about the development and history of how the National Parks came to be in America. It's also about the struggle between those who would exploit our county's natural resources for personal gain and those who risked much to establish parks so that all Americans could enjoy them.

I love the biographical stories of those who rallied people to protect these lands from development.

The person I was most amazed by was John Muir. I really didn't know that much about this amazing man. I have visited Muir Woods in California and marveled at the mighty Redwoods, but I really didn't know who Muir was. I learned through this documentary series that he was way ahead of his time when it came to protecting our natural resources. He lobbied and badgered and lectured to anyone who would listen and to a lot of people who didn't want to listen. He helped found the Sierra Club, wrote books about conservation, camped with President Theodore Roosevelt, and in many ways single-handedly was responsible for saving Yosemite Valley from development and destruction.

Raised as the son of a strict Christian father who believed that anything that distracted from Bible studies was frivolous. By the time he was eleven years old, he had memorized the entire New Testament and most of the Old Testament. In in later writings, Muir expressed his belief that God was always active in the creation of life and thereby kept the natural order of the world. As a result, Muir styled himself as a John the Baptist whose duty was to immerse in 'mountain baptism' everyone he could. Muir saw nature as a great teacher, "revealing the mind of God."
While some might get the impression that Muir reverted back to some kind of nature worship or new age philosophy, I don't really think this is the case at all. Some of his writings taken out of context might lead some to conclude this, but after watching the documentary, I really saw Muir as echoing the Scriptures that he knew so well in what he wrote, said, and tried to live out. Just as the Psalmist wrote:

Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars.

Praise him, you highest heavens and you waters above the skies.
Let them praise the name of the LORD, for he commanded and they were created.
He set them in place for ever and ever; he gave a decree that will never pass away.
Praise the LORD from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths,
lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do his bidding,
you mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars,
wild animals and all cattle, small creatures and flying birds,
kings of the earth and all nations, you princes and all rulers on earth,
young men and maidens, old men and children.
Let them praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.

- Psalm 148:3-14, NIV

For me, Muir is a man who was way ahead of his time. He spoke truth to power and made a difference with his life. He was a man of deep and abiding faith. He was an amazing man whom I would have liked to have walked with through the forests and valleys that he so loved. I'm so grateful I got to journey with him for a short while through this documentary.
Thanks for being a part of my journey!

Thunderstorm

We had a thunderstorm here that moved quickly through the area this afternoon. I love storms. I love to see the lightening and hear the thunder. I love the way it smells after a hard rain. I love the sight of sun rays bursting through the dark clouds as the storm passes.
Every time I experience a thunderstorm I am reminded of God's mighty power as Lord of all creation. Only God could even think up something like lightening. What an amazing thing.
They say it's supposed to start cooling down tomorrow and Monday. I hope this is true. I am over this heat and humidity. I am hoping for more comfortable temperatures next week.
I hope you are having a great weekend. Thanks for being a part of my journey!

Quiet Day

Not much happening today with me. I'm laying low. I ran some errands this morning and then have been watching movies for most of the rest of the day. I'm not feeling so well. I think it's sinus stuff. I think I'm headed to bed early tonight.
The highlight of my day was seeing two young deer when I was out on my errands. They were beautiful to see. Just another reminder of the wonderful hand of our Creator all around us. I'm grateful that I got to see them.
I hope you are having a good weekend. Thanks for being a part of my journey!

As the Deer

As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.

- Psalm 42:1, NRSV

Yesterday morning I did not want to get out of bed and go for my walk. I woke up early and just lay there for a while. I am not sure why. While I usually enjoy my walks, I often find it hard to pry myself out of bed and get on my way. Yesterday morning was not exception.
I did make it out for my walk and I am glad I did. I walk by an open field on my walking route. When I walked by that field yesterday morning I saw a deer grazing on the fresh green grass. She saw me and then trotted off into the tree line on the other side of the road. However, for just a brief moment, I was blessed to see the wonderful creation of God. It was a truly a holy moment and I would have missed it had I not crawled out of bed.
Seeing this deer, made me wonder how many wonderful signs of God's love I miss because I am either distracted or just too lazy to notice. All around me, God has filled this world with signs of love, hope, and grace. God continues to call my name and show me the path that leads to life. My hope and prayer is that my soul will continue to long for and seek God's presence in my life.
I hope you are having a great weekend. Thanks for being a part of my journey!

Being Human

What are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?
Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor.

- Psalm 8:4-5, NRSV

I watched another documentary yesterday through my Netflix subscription. The documentary was about the historical quest through archeology to discover the origins of humanity. I found it fascinating. I remember learning about Dr. Louis Leakey and his archaeological expeditions in Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania when I was in school. I still don't understand how they date these fossils and determine so much about the life and culture of ancient humans. However, I am grateful that there are people who commit their whole lives to the study of such things.
One of the things the documentary drove home for me is what amazing creatures human beings are. We are set apart from all other living things because of how we are made. We walk upright which frees our hands for use in other ways. This means that we eventually learned how to make tools out of stones. This helped us to chop wood and hunt animals for food. We also were able to control fire which increased our chances of survival and quality of life. We also are the only creatures to be able to reason and to create.
I was deeply moved by one segment of the documentary which talked about the discovery of a human leg bone from the very early period when humans lived in caves and were nomadic hunters. The leg bone showed signs that it was once broken and had healed. Now in other animal species, this would have meant certain death. Those animals who are not strong and able to outrun predators die. However, this human leg bone had healed. This could only mean that this individual was cared for by the rest of the community until he could walk on his own. They did not leave this weak individual to fend for himself. They helped him to heal. They helped feed him when he could not hunt for himself. They were compassionate for one who needed their help.
It is this one act, human beings stand out from all other species in the world. We are social creatures who have the power to heal and care for one another. Within us is the ability to be compassionate for those in need. In our actions, we can reflect the image of our Creator. In spite of our broken and selfish nature, God gives us the grace to bind up the wounds of the world in the name of love.
I hope you have had a great start to your week. Thanks for being a part of my journey!