france – Rae Dunn - Fine Handmade Pottery

Sunday, May 13, 2012

shop talk.

i leave on wednesday for my residency in france . . . i’m so ready to be in my french studio on RUE REY to make some NEW WORK ! i’ve been advised by my advisors to NOT close my online shop, but rather leave it open for purchases that will be shipped in JULY. there is an announcement in the shop, but i think very few people actually read the small print, so . . .

if you order between now and july 1rst, your order will be shipped mid july.

merci beaucoup.

france, rae dunn, residency, studio

Monday, May 07, 2012

je ne parle pas tres bien le francais.

. . . and i leave for FRANCE next week !

france, french, rae dunn

Thursday, April 26, 2012

evolution of the leaf.

i made this teapot in france last year. it was inspired by the beautiful foliage in the south of france (one of my favorite places on earth). a gentleman, who lives in germany, saw this teapot, and asked if i would make and sell him just the leaves . . .

here are some of the 300 porcelain leaves i made for his equisite jewelry store in munich, germany. it was actually very meditative making each leaf by hand. i will definitely be adding these to my clay repertoire. i just love how some things evolve.

france, leaves, made in france, rae dunn, teapot

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

au revoir . . .

i am SO excited to be going back to FRANCE to do another residency!

because of this, i am CLOSING my online store for MAY + JUNE.

if you “need” anything, you better get it now !

clay in france, france, rae dunn, residency

Friday, April 06, 2012

friday field trip (from the sketch book).

june 2011

nice, france.

my idea of the PERFECT pizza.

france, pizza, rae dunn, watercolor

Friday, September 09, 2011

friday field trip (from the sketch book).

june 2011

vallauris, france

when i lived in france for the month of june, i ate caviar almost every day. it was the perfect addition to my breakfast (a spoonful over my eggs) and the perfect mid-day snack (dolloped on a cracker). my corner grocer always had it stocked but why is it so much harder to find here ? weird.

caviar, france, rae dunn, watercolor

Friday, July 22, 2011

friday field trip (from the sketch book).

june 2011

vallauris, france

this is picasso’s man with a sheep that stands in the main square in vallauris. i would pass by it many times a day. it is so powerful, you can’t walk by and not notice it.

“in the context of the symbol of sacrifice, picasso’s sculpture of the man with the sheep, of 1942-1943, assumes a unique position in his life work. it was created during those anguished years of the second world war of which churchill wrote that “everyone realized how near were death and ruin.” after the war picasso donated a bronze cast of this sculpture to the town of vallauris as a memorial to the resistance fighters.” (art journal vol.32. no. 3. spring 1962)

france, man with a sheep, rae dunn, vallauris

Friday, July 15, 2011

friday field trip (from the sketch book).

(click on image for a closer peek)

june 2011

golfe-juan, france

golfe-juan is a cute seaside town right on the mediterranean and 2 miles from vallauris, the town where i was living. i ran to golfe-juan every morning and swam in the mediterranean sea. it was the perfect way to start the day. one night while i was waiting for my dinner companion in front of tétou, i quickly sketched this view of the golfe-juan hills.

france, golfe-juan, rae dunn

Sunday, July 03, 2011

the hanging laundry in vallauris, france always caught my eye. the clothes against the beautiful colours of the buildings are like intimate art installations . . .

see more of them here.

france, laundry, rae dunn

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

NICE, france.

yesterday we went to nice. i was completely and utterly blown away with how beautiful it is there. i. never. knew. the downtown area is just a typical big city, but the old town is magnificent . . . it’s like you are stepping into an old colouring book. tiny narrow winding streets, colours that are un-fathomable, beautiful facades, doors, . . . it was simply magical. just look . . .

france, nice, rae dunn

Sunday, June 26, 2011

try-colour.

these are the THREE different clay bodies i used here in france . . .

1. limoges porcelain = super creamy, lovely and wonderful to work with. beautiful + very white when fired. though i didn’t throw with it, my fellow residents RAVED about how easy was to throw. but it shrinks and warps like MAD.

2. spanish white clay = super groggy and easy to hand build with. has a very durable feel when fired. but didn’t care that much for the colour of the clay after firing . . . sort of a yellow/oatmeal colour (especially since i like the natural clay to show through in my work).

3. spanish black clay = super groggy and forgiving when coil building. loved the wetness of the clay that dried pretty quickly (great for coil building something tall). fires to a beautiful black/brown. but doesn’t take colour very well (i.e. . . underglazes or slip) and messy, but not as messy as some dark clays i’ve worked with. LOVED the look of white words on this clay.

black clay, clay in france, france, rae dunn

Saturday, June 18, 2011

these COLOURS . . .

france, rae dunn, vallauris