"Why is the world in love again?
Why are we marching hand in hand?
Why are the ocean levels rising up?
It's brand new record for 1990.
They Might be Giants' brand new album:
Flood"---They Might Be Giants

 Why does it seem like before every big exhibit we have a flood? Before Circular at NGU, my basement flooded. I thought I lost the 200 plus bowls, tea bowls, and mugs I made for that show. On the bright side, I was able to wash everything and reconnect with TMBG's amazing album Flood. Tonight I've scurried around my basement studio making sure all drying disks for the last firing for  the Waterworks exhibit will be safe. Maybe I need to carve an ark for one of my Go By... disks. Cross your fingers the flood and tornado hype is just that. 
Below is one of the last Go By... disks I carved to include whitewater rafting and rappelling. Rappelling was part of an eco-adventure tour my twin and I did in the Yucatan. During that tour, we also got to bike, hike and kayak into the forest, rappel down a cliff, swim in a cenote cave, and zip line over the tree canopy. It also included a blessing from a local native shaman. Whitewater rafting was done in Peru down the Urumbamba river. For those of you who know me well and know the story about the critters I accidentally brought back in my stomach, I think that whitewater trip was the culprit. My twin and I have a hard time keeping our mouths shut during death-defying acts. We laugh and laugh and laugh. Things get in. If it floods tonight, I'll keep my mouth shut. 

It's been such a busy summer but I couldn't be any more thrilled. In the words of my student Tyler Hill's favorite song, I had to "work work work work work." Multitasking between throwing on the wheel and carving disks, I squeezed in a bit of travel time to Vermont, Pawley's Island and Charleston. All of the mugs I have been making will be sold to fund the Art Department's trip to Spain for summer 2018. All of the disks carved will go into my exhibit at Waterworks. 

Toy Museum in Vermont, Summer 2017.

Farmhouse stay at Top Acres Farm in Woodstock, Vermont. We enjoyed watching a huge groundhog (woodchuck) each morning and hearing stories about the local "dumpster bear." I need to carve another Vermont disk just for those two characters. I did talk to some of the farmers about the upstate New York Bigfoot! 

Farmers' Markets in Vermont are amazing!!!

How can you not love jackalope wallpaper!!! I could live in Vermont if I could get used to shoveling snow. 

After nine days of nonstop beer, cheese and kombucha tastings in Vermont, I came back home to detox and continue with my work. I started tinkering with some pint cup shapes and did a few disk/tiles inspired by my trip including "Champ" the Lochness-type creature in Lake Champlain. 

After finding out that I'd be in a group show this upcoming January in New York, I began researching images from past trips and carving works for Southern Sampler. This image was from a trip to Nashville last summer. Shortly after carving began, I drove home to Tennessee to research more southern inspirations. Below is a picture from the front porch of my family farm. 

 While home in Tennessee, we went to the Sutton Old Time Music Hour for some home cooking, picking' and grinning'!  ​http://www.granvilletn.com/attractions/sutton-ole-time-music-hour  . Summer ended with a trip to visit Emily Tuttle in Pawleys Island. While in the low country, she took me on an amazing image/idea hunting trip in Charleston so I could carve for the Southern Sampler show. Images to come.