American Craft Council Show in Baltimore--Redux

So returned from "the show"- and am glad that I went--though honestly 4 days of hanging behind a table is a bit extreme--It was fitting that I was watching the olympics in the evenings as I truly felt as if I was engaging in an endurance sport by day! I did really enjoy the comraderie of my fellow artists who surrounded me--mostly from Baltimore (Elisa Shere, Val Lucas, Sherry Insley and Yasha Butler from NYC) though one also trekked east from Northern California (Banansaurus Rex!), which was really boosting when the energy level wained. And I even had the pleasure of visiting the booths of some of my uber fave jewelers--Denise Betesh..and Dahlia Kanner--so that was a real treat too.

As a result of this captivity some interesting things came out of the whole experience. As an artist who sells/exhibits their work-you do not often get to hear people's reactions to your work in such an immediate and intimate context. And it also forces you to be clear about your story and inspirations and significance of your work-since you have to really discuss it all day long. I found that I really enjoyed this aspect and was satisfied with people's reaction and take on my work-plus, I got to talk with many wonderful people.

I found particularly inspiring one woman's comments. She came by my table several times--feeling the bowls, pressing her fingers into the design in almost a meditative way. I could see that she was really contemplating it. She ended up buying one bowl and returning later on to purchase a second one--and then told me of how closely the imagery in the bowls represented what she was currently experiencing in her life and that it was offering her some peace and comfort.
I was so moved by her story.
It all confirms for me the power of an image and how a vision can assist us in different ways--sometimes people come and chuckle at the whimsy of a design-or like this woman feel the depth of it as it relates to something deeply personal. I think it is for me, one of the reasons I have been so drawn to photography and its captured combination of an emotion and an image. It is what I try to translate into clay and into pieces that can really be used-transcending just the pure aesthetic of it all.

Honestly, this woman's story made the whole show worth it for me-and encourages further exploration in my work.

Here's a plate--informed by a distinct image of a dress blowing in the deserted territory of Southwest  Texas on a recent road trip-a lonely feeling but -eerily hopeful too.

The New York Times

If any of you are like me than you are lamenting the quick demise of shelter magazines and the chance to see things, tear them out and be inspired by other people's homes, creations and ideas. One of my few remaining go-to's in print is the Thursday Home Section of the New York Times. I love the quirky features they put out there and the colorized spread of all that is new and good, or at least interesting. 

SO it was with great excitement that I "got the call" or rather the e-mail to have some of my work featured in the Currents section on March 4th. I chatted with Elaine Louie-(whose writing on home and food, I do admire) about the Lazy Susans--and a bit about their evolution in my mind and hands.

The New York Times has always loomed large in my home as a child and still is now (the real thing in print delivered daily, thank you)--so getting to be in it is hugely fun...

For those of you who see the feature and are interested in the tableware--please feel free to get in touch-

lisa@lneimeth.com for information on how to order.
And to see images of the Lazy Susans discussed-go to the tableware section of my website and click on the sidebar New! for images. Also-scroll back in this blog to see a post on the lazy susans and to see them in action!

check it out!
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/04/garden/04tableware.html?ref=todayspaper

American Craft Council Show in Baltimore!

So, on tuesday I am packing up and flying cross country to participate in the ACC craft show-
I packed and shipped over 10 boxes (!) of work to display.
I will be there for the 4 retail days only (wholesale preceeds this for 2 days) on thursday February 26-29. However, any wholesale folks are also welcome at the retail show as well.
Check the ACC website for more details-- www.public.craftcouncil.org/baltimore.
I wil be in their new "AltCraft" section--their move to "hip up" the show a bit, I think...attract some new artists and display some different approaches to traditional mediums.
So please do come by if you are in the area- I will be sitting at this table for four days!! and will delight in some company! Fortunately 2 of my sisters will be helping me out-so I look forward to lots of fun and laughter.
Hope to meet anyone coming to the show! and hope the snow storms take a break too.....

Beach Combing

You see everything on the beach. Yesterday I saw a giant pelican that must have just died. It was settled behind a large rock by the Great Highway, near the zoo at Ocean Beach. It was pure and still flush with its spirit. A friend ended up dragging it home in hopes of initiating a new career in taxadermy. A few weeks ago I was at Stinson Beach up in Marin on a cold blistery day helping a friend walk off some grief-and we came upon a small army over a period of 5 miles. Small soldiers embedded in the sand as if they had just fought a great war. We were heartened to come upon the lone yellow cowboy--a nod to our western locale perhaps.

Out here in San Francisco-we are lucky to have the bounty of nature right inside of our urban environment. With that you get the natural beauty and rhythms of the waves, sand..and also a reminder that we humans inhabit the area as well. Which actually makes for quite an interesting juxtaposition. And I love that unpredictable mix--it is quite inspiring.

Valentine's Day

Halloween is over..Thanksgiving has come and gone..Hanukah was fine in all its 8 nights of light...Christmas--well you know where that went-but we do have room for one more holiday--Valentine's Day!

You either love or hate this holiday--perhaps depending on your relationship status. But in the end, this is a holiday about love--not just romantic love but love for your friends, siblings, children, parents and anyone else who impacts our lives in a positive way-so not a bad thing to celebrate.

Last year, the Gardener--in Berkeley and the Ferry Building here in San Francisco--comissioned me to do a series of plates with a V-Day theme. Corny? Kitschy? Maybe..but it actually ended up to be a fun venture in my efforts to capture what love is on a plate. They went over pretty darn well so we are doing it again this year--

These plates are exclusively available at the Gardener--they have a few online too--www.thegardener.com. You can always contact me lisa@lneimeth.com--if you are interested in these and are not in the Bay Area. They also have made for some fun wedding gifts--or so I hear!

Here is a sampling of a few-

SO celebrate the people you love and tell them how you feel. Life is short and too often we lose loved ones without saying the good things we have been thinking all a long-

Happy New Year.

New Year, new plates.
inspired by hand over green papayas in Granada, Nicaragua.

Marfa, Texas...

Firstly, Happy New Year to all! I am looking forward to a fruitful, adventurous and optimistic year ahead.

I have been meaning to post about Marfa Texas ever since I visited there, back in the fall when I went to help my great pal Sherry Stein (www.ssteindesign.com)style her photo shoot for her terrific line of very cool bags (do check them out). Besides having a blast with the crew-it was very inspiring to see this area and take in all of the Donald Judd-ness of this small town. It is also in the middle of nowhere close--except for the Mexican border, and two of the least visited National Parks--Big Bend and Guadalupe. A beautiful, stark area--easy to see how it inspired Mr Judd back when he came upon it. His Chinati foundation is a mesmorizing land cluster of his work as well as others whom he admires. It is an area well worth a visit-left me imprinted with some terrific images-some campy, some just naturally mysterious and ethereal--to keep in my mind's eye and captured for future plate documentaries.
Put this one on your list for places to visit in 2010.