Ann Arbor

I’ve been back from Ann Arbor for about 10 days.  I’d forgotten about how draining it is, how much recuperative time is needed to get back to a productive state in the studio.  It was something I used to plan into my schedule, but I guess in the three years I’ve been away, that memory went away too.  So, after four days of the show, getting up at 6:30 am to prep for the day, and getting back to my hostess’s house at 10 to 10:30 at night, and two days of travel and set up, I’d figured I would just slip back into the studio and get on with my packed schedule.  Wrong!  The first couple of days went just fine…unpacking the van, getting pots back on shelves, booth paraphernalia back in place, processing credit card sales and other receipts, updating my mailing list and taking care of the many bits of correspondance needing to be addressed from show attendees…it was just like the show had been extended.  I was running on adrenaline.  But when the time came to get out the clay, start wedging and making pieces, my psyche rebelled.  I just couldn’t do it.  Every bit of me was calling for an extended time out, a break.  I felt like taking naps at all hours of the day, felt a malaise in me that another cup of coffee couldn’t cure.  It went on for a few days, and I began to get worried.  I knew by that time that I’d overestimated my physical and psychic reserves, but still wanted to will myself forward.  It was no use.  So, I gave into the urge to get away from things not by leaving for the beach, but by doing different things around the house and studio.  My computers went into the shop for a week (explaining the long absence from the website) for upgrades and repairs.  I organized my office at home like never before, cleaning out piles of drek and catching up with most of my tasks there.  I performed studio maintainance that had been patiently waiting for my attention for months.  All good things to do, and necessary, but not what we normally program into our heads.  I continued to fret that I wasn’t “making things,” a condition of anxiety that I seemed to have hardwired into my brain in the struggle for survival in this most difficult arena, being a self-sustaining potter.

But, (important lesson here…am I listening?) we are not machines.  The pieces of us that enable us to make the work we do, need rest, and tender loving care, and maintainance.  It’s not just the drive chain of the slab roller, the tank of the compressor, the fins of the spray booth exhaust fan that need attention.  Our bodies and our minds do too…  Funny that a person of my capabilities finds that such a hard lesson to learn.

So, the show, how did it go?  It was Ann Arbor…lots of people around, lots of sales, lots of time to catch up with old friends, both customers and exhibitors.  It was a grind, but at the end of the day I made what I needed to do to go forward.  It’s a special show…there are so many knowledgeable and enthusiastic customers, which is a treat in this time of downward spiralling shows.  You get to meet and talk with lots of other potters who come by, from aspiring college students to people I’ve admired for many years, like John Glick.  You get to know some of the good folk who stroll by your booth, get to hear a bit of their stories, tell them a bit of yours.  You talk with the people who have spent many hundreds of hours putting the show together, and making it happen, trying to convey your appreciation for their efforts as well as whatever your concerns might be about what could be improved.  You people watch, from the dog lovers carting their charges about the grounds in all manners of conveyances to the exhibitionists who parade about in the crowds, displaying their “wares.”  You become a part of a scene…

I’ve wondered at times about the future of these craft events, these bazaars, which can be bizarre.  It’s a strange way of life, doing shows, but they do have their own attractions, their lure.  At their most basic level, they are all about getting to meet the people who like what you do, what you make, and passing some of your product and your knowledge on to them.  But, they are also so much more.

Enough for today…time to go make more pots!

This entry was posted on 1. August 2008 at 07:52 and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.

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