◊ News, Events, Inspiration ◊

December 2024-January 2025

Inside this issue: Full 2025 first-term class schedule. Holiday Show and Sale sneak peek. Studio holiday calendar. Why is it called B-Mix? Plus exhibitions; events; and informative videos about underglaze, economical use of a clay slab, and a slow feeder bowl for pets.

Lie Ladendorf

stands behind her work

Two Sunday classes...

...are now on the schedule for the first term of 2025: Introductory and Continuing Wheel and Intermediate Wheel Throwing, both taught by instructor Savanah Conrad. We've also added a new class, Pouring Vessels, with Kristina Greenstone. Our Early Bird discount for first-term classes is available through December 2, so you still have a few days to take advantage of it. Register today.

Join us and make 2025 a happy new art year. Here's the full class schedule:

Introductory and Continuing Wheel

• Mon, Jan 6-Feb 10, 3:30-5:30 pm, with Kevan Wilson
• Mon, Jan 6-Feb 10, 6:30-8:30 pm, with Kevan Wilson
• Wed, Jan 8-Feb 12, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, with Kristina Greenstone
• Thu, Jan 9-Feb 13, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, with Nancy Bulkley
• Thu, Jan 9-Feb 13, 3:00-5:00 pm, with Savannah Conrad
• Thu, Jan 9-Feb 13, 6:30-8:30 pm, with Nick Glynos
• Sat, Jan 11-Feb 15, 9:30-11:30 am, with Laila Chalati
• Sun, Jan 12-Feb 16, 11:00 am-1:00 pm, with Savanah Conrad

Early Bird discount effective through Dec 2.

Intermediate Wheel Throwing

• Thu, Jan 9-Feb 13, 12:30-2:30 pm, with Nancy Bulkley
• Sun, Jan 12-Feb 16, 1:30-3:30 pm, with Savanah Conrad

Early Bird discount effective through Dec 2.

Coffee and Clay (In studio or via Zoom)

• Wed, Jan 8-Feb 12, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, with Nancy Bulkley
• Sat, Jan 11-Feb 15, 9:30-11:30 am, with Nancy Bulkley

Early Bird discount effective through Dec 2.

Hand Building

• Thu, Jan 9-Feb 13, 6:30-8:30 pm, with Elliott Kayser

Early Bird discount effective through Dec 2.

Advanced and Intermediate Clay

• Tue, Jan 7-Apr 8, 6:30-9:00 pm, with Elliott Kayser

Early Bird discount effective through Dec 2.

Advanced / Intermediate Independent Study

• Wed, Jan 8-Apr 9, 6:30-9:00 pm, with Rose Gomez

Early Bird discount effective through Dec 2.

New! Pouring Vessels

• Tue, Jan 7-Feb 11, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, with Kristina Greenstone

Early Bird discount effective through Dec 2.

Atmospheric Soda Firing

• Tue, Feb 25-Apr 29, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, with Kay Yourist

Early Bird discount effective through Dec 2.

Reserve your seat now.

Stunning pitcher by ceramic artist Brian Beam

December Try It

We still have one Try It class on deck before the new year begins. Taking this class is a fun and artful holiday activity with a family member or a friend.

Try It Once on the Wheel

• Sat, December 21, 1:00-2:30 pm, with Laila Chalati

Register now.

Come to our Holiday Show and Sale to get

a close-up look at these ceramic beauties

December 13th-15th

Make sure your plans for these dates include a trip (or two) to the 2024 Yourist Studio Gallery Holiday Show and Sale.

Opening and Artists' Reception

• Friday, December 13, 12-8 pm,
• Artists' Reception, 4-8 pm

The Show and Sale continues on

• Saturday, December 14, 10 am-5 pm
• Sunday, December 15, 12-5 pm

We invite you to experience our artists' reception on Friday, December 13, from 4:00 to 8:00 pm. It's a busy, buzzy occasion full of festive spirit, where you will be able to browse exceptional ceramic art, talk to the artists, enjoy delicious holiday edibles, and meet with friends old and new.

This year we're showcasing a wide array of unique, carefully hand-crafted ceramic works by 35 of our talented participants:

Kathleen Anastasia | Alison Bank | Hosanna Broner | Nancy Bulkley | Cheryl Cameron | Laila Chalati | Ireen Cleaton-Jones | Savanah Conrad | Rose Gomez | Kristina Greenstone | Astrid Giese | Amanda Heckenkamp | Linda Heckenkamp | Judith Hoge | Jessica Krivan | Lynn Kryska | Elan Lange | Amy Lesemann | Jacob Longmeyer | Jennifer MacLeod | Michelle Massey | Robin Mendenhall | Tempest NeuCollins | Beth Peterson | Averi Phan | Amy Roehrig | Brenda Shea | Katie Schroeder | Keith Shoultz | Elisha Talley | Tiffani Todd | Jeff Warrow | Kevan Wilson | Deborah Wood | Kay Yourist

You'll find an ample variety of beautiful handmade pieces, from dinnerware to decorative, that are perfect for everyone on your gift list (including yourself).

This festive holiday event only happens once a year, so do join us. There is plenty of free parking on site. You'll find a map to our location on our web site. See you there!

The sale continues in the gallery during regular hours through December 23, with special hours on December 24 from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm.

A special thank you to Deb Wood for the lovely photos in the sneak preview.

Gift tip

Give a family member or friend the gift of choice with one of our Pick Your Own Price gift certificates. Buy a gift certificate in the amount you choose, and the recipient can apply it toward a purchase of any pottery in our gallery or an experience with art in one of our classes. Our gift certificates never expire, and you can easily buy them at our holiday show or any time on our web site.

Year-end holiday hours

• December 1-11: Regular studio and gallery hours are in effect.
• December 12: Open for pottery pickup only. Studio time is not available.
• December 13-15: 2024 Holiday Show and Sale.*
• December 16-23: Regular studio and gallery hours are in effect.**
• December 24: Open 10:00 am to 1:00 pm.
• December 25-January 5: Closed for the holidays.
• January 6: The first class term of 2025 begins.
• January 7: Opening at 12:00 pm for regular hours.
• 
  

*The studio will be unavailable for any clay work during the Yourist Studio 2024 Holiday Show and Sale from December 13-15. Please put down your pottery tools and come join us at the show.

**Because there are no classes on Thursday December 19, the studio and gallery will be open during regular hours from 12:00-6:00 pm.

Happy holidays to all!

What's in a name?

Clay body names can sometimes be puzzling and lead to amusing anecdotes about clay. For instance, have you ever wondered how Laguna's B-Mix—a combination of stoneware and porcelain—got its name? Does it have anything to do with honey bees? Or if it's alphabetical, is there an A-Mix? A C-Mix?

Here's the story from someone who worked for the man who created B-Mix, Martin Butt. When he sold the clay body to customers from his shop, it was simply called Butt Mix. When he sold the formula to Laguna, however, they apparently decided Butt Mix was not a good name for their new product and changed it to B-Mix.

By the way, did you know that we have restocked our Aardvark clay bodies? If you've been longing to work with one of these clays or need more of your favorite, check out our new supply now.

Job opportunity

Studio intern

We're interviewing potential studio interns for fall and winter to help with studio maintenance in exchange for studio use. The successful applicant should know how to mix glaze, load kilns, mop floors, and perform other typical studio duties. An internship is a great experience and resume building opportunity. Please send a letter of interest, including your previous pottery studio experience, to Kay Yourist.

We're preparing...

...to bid farewell to 2024 and to refresh the studio for the new year. On December 21, we will clear the decks for 2025 by removing all bisque ware and glaze ware that has accumulated on the shelves in November.

• Please pick up your glazed pieces and take them home to enjoy.
• Please glaze your bisque ware now or take it home for glazing in the future.

Regrettably, any unclaimed bisque ware and glazed pieces remaining after December 21 must be discarded to make room for new work.

Potters quick tip

Q. How do I get a smooth, solid coat of underglaze on my pieces? The underglaze turns out streaky and blotchy instead of even.

A. Potter Patricia Rollins, offers these helpful tips: clean your pots of dust, choose the right brushes for the job, make sure your underglaze is the right consistency, and apply the underglaze correctly. She also advises making sure the top on your underglaze jar is tight before shaking it up, a lesson I learned the hard way with a jar of black underglaze.

See pottery by Patricia Rollins on her Instagram page.

These videos are part of our continuing series for beginners at all levels.

Ceramic artist Mary Fox

and her Legacy Project

On-site exhibitions

We'll let you know when new ceramics exhibitions are on display and open to the public. Before you go to an on-site exhibition, be sure to check the art museum's web site for any current health precautions.

Pewabic: Detroit's Pottery: documents the pottery's past while celebrating the present. Pewabic Pottery. Ongoing. More . . .

Playful Dining: a virtual exhibition that is mostly about toy dish sets belonging to children of the past. International Museum of Dinnerware Design. Ongoing. More . . .

Ceramics Soul Lab by Cristina Joya. A self-discovery journey with clay. Michigan Medicine Gifts of Art. Taubman Health Center, Now–December 6, 2024. Also viewable online. More . . .

Motor City Griots. Faces of the superheroes that will protect and save Detroit by Steven Glazer. UM North Campus Research Complex, Now–December 14, 2024. More . . .

From Asia to the World: Ancient to Contemporary Art. Display includes blue-and-white porcelain, celadon, and enamel ceramics from China, Korea, and Japan. Toledo Museum of Art. Now–June 29, 2025. More . . .

The Art of Dining: Food Culture in the Islamic World. Paintings of elaborate feasts, sumptuous vessels for food and drink, and historical cookbooks. Detroit Institute of Arts. Now–January 5, 2025. More . . .

Toshiko Takaezu: Worlds Within. Chronological retrospective for "one of the most accomplished artists to work with clay in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries." Cranbrook Art Museum. Now–January 12, 2025. More...

Spotlight—Making Her Mark. "...highlights the achievements of women ceramicists since the early 20th century." Flint Institute of Arts, December 21, 2024–September 28, 2025. More . . .



Umbrian Ceramics: From Etruria Through Novecento and Today. A deep dive into the history and craft of Umbrian ceramics with Rob Raphael, 2018 NEA Ceramics Fellow (and pal of Nancy Bulkley). Umbertide, Italy, March 30–April 6, 2025. More . . .

Pottery perspectives

Opportunities to expand your knowledge of ceramics past and present.

Inspiring Women. Ceramic artist Mary Fox established her Legacy Project to give back by supporting the potters of the future. More . . .

Edmund de Waal on the power of clay as a medium for creativity. Master potter de Waal praises the "extraordinary bodily relationship between touch and material" as he expresses regret for the loss of arts education in schools—all while being thoroughly upstaged by his beloved pottery dog. More . . .

KleinReid: Clay Confidential. International Museum of Dinnerware Design. The video of IMODD's November online lecture is now available. More . . .

And three from Colossal:

Masterful leafy pinch pots by Paul S. Briggs. More . . .

Adorably expressive ceramic creatures by Helen Burgess. More . . .

Sculptures evoking nature and desire by Janny Baek. More . . .

Madame de Pompadour tea service,

with images of Cindy Sherman

as Madame de Pompadour

Anomalies and Curiosities of Dinnerware

In the International Museum of Dinnerware Design's final on-line lecture of 2024, ceramics historian and IMODD founder Margaret Carney will lead an exploration of the unexpected and novel in dinnerware from ancient times to the present.

Wednesday, December 11, 6:30 pm

Learn more here.

"Formation, the theme of the 59th annual conference of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA), invites us to dig deep into the historical and cultural significance of ceramics worldwide." See full details at the NCECA website.

NCECA Formation

March 26-29, 2025

Salt Lake City, Utah

A threefer

Potter Vaughan Smith shows hand builders how to get full use of a single slab of clay by making three pieces of pottery from it. Smith uses the slab to make two decorated frames for photos or tiles and one small decorated tray. No leftover clay. Genius!

Slow feeder

If you have a gluttonous pup, a slow feeder bowl might help curb your pet's enthusiastic eating habits. Potter Iryna from Keramo Studios demonstrates how to throw this clever slow feeder bowl on the wheel. Hmmm, I wonder how it would work on cats.

To see more of Iryna's work, visit the Keramo Studio's Instragram page.

Pottery donation request

You still have a few days to donate pots from excess inventory you may have accumulated to the Pioneer High School ceramics department. Your pots will be sold at the department's annual pottery sale, which will take place on December 13. All proceeds from the sale will help supplement the ceramics department budget.

Please bring all donations to Yourist Studio Gallery by Saturday, December 7. For answers to any questions or concerns you may have, contact Steve Rodriguez at (734) 417-4349.

Thank you so much for your willingness to help support student potters.

Here are our open studio, gallery, and shop hours for 2025:

• Tuesday, 12:00-6:00 pm
• Wednesday, 12:00-6:00 pm
• Friday, 12:00-6:00 pm
• Saturday, 12:00-6:00 pm

There are no open studio hours on Thursday. Saturday open studio hours begin at noon with the exception of one Saturday a month, when the Try It Once on the Wheel class meets from 1:00 to 2:30 pm. Check our class schedule for the date for this class.

Please remember to sign in when you arrive for open studio and sign out when you leave. And make sure to clean your work area thoroughly before leaving.

We welcome all ceramics lovers and all area potters to shop with us for their pottery needs during our open studio hours. Students may purchase tools as needed during their classes as well.

To help us keep our studio safe and healthy for all students and members, please keep track of current advisories on the transmission risk and hospitalization numbers for COVID and other communicable respiratory diseases in Washtenaw county at this link:

Washtenaw County Health Department page

We have curbside delivery of clay, tools, and pottery during our regular hours. If you have a specific need, please call us at the studio, during regular hours, at 734-662-4914.

Yourist Studio Gallery

6087 Jackson Road

Ann Arbor, MI 48103

734-662-4914

www.youristpottery.com | Instagram

•Classes and workshops

•Community studio workspace

•Pottery tools for sale

•Exhibit gallery