Tag Archives: Poldark

Wow 2.

This is the weekend for catching my breath, reflecting what has been going on and getting the studio back into a workspace rather than a gallery space.  At last I have almost all my work back in my possession, well the unsold work that is.  I just have to nip down to Guildford on Thursday and collect the work which has been in the No Naked Walls Gallery for a while.  Sadly the gallery does not seem to be the right place for me and despite proprietor, Sharon’s, best efforts my work isn’t selling there and I think it is time for a parting of the ways.  So I want to consider the successes and less good points about the last few weeks.

From the downside, I did not take a single commission at the Open Studios.  This was a surprise.  Loads of people expressed a lot of interest and I had hoped that this might have been one of the major successes of the weekend but no-one wanted to sign up there and then.  I wonder what that was all about.

brown-padded-envelope-300x220[1]
Nobody seems willing to pay £75:00 for an envelope
Was it to do with people needing to go away, consult and think before coming back to me with their idea or was my idea for a deposit too expensive or clumsy?

 

For £75:00 I was inviting people to buy an envelope containing instructions, a contract, a small bag for their soil/clay sample and a memory stick for their maps, plans and images.  Clearly I need to rethink this a bit but I still believe the concept is a good one; personalised gifts which record a special time or place for ever. I wonder what I should do to boost the idea and translate it into sales. Indeed, others must be in agreement with me to some extent because I have 2 commissions at the moment.

On the positive side, I now have work in at least one archive: Battersea Art Station bought one of my pieces; I have completed one commission to the complete satisfaction of the client; I have sold a number of pieces, including a considerable quantity of older work which I am really pleased about as it means that I can have my studio looking more as if I know where I am going.  I have also sold a number of my new pieces, which is even more exciting!

I am feeling very fired up by my project in Cornwall.  I have a name for it, the Poldark Project, but I am not giving anything else away too early.

20151114_093020a
The early beginnings of my Poldark Project.

 

In addition, I’m sorry, I just can’t help myself, may I have just one teeny weeny boast?  I was really excited to get a piece into the Ceramics Open Exhibition at Salisbury but imagine my amazement when I discovered that I was joint winner of the vote from the visitors for the piece they liked most.  No number of sales or interest from galleries compares with that as an endorsement of my ideas.  Thank you all very much.  I feel extremely humbled by your choice.

2015-10-15 18.50.12
Fiona Cassidy welcomes everyone to the private view at Salisbury Arts Centre Contemporary Ceramics Open 2015.

Wow!

Wimbledon Open Studios is almost over – this is the last day.  My legs ache, I have spent the last 3 days eating rubbish food and repeating my explanation of my work over and over and over again but oh my goodness, I have had so much fun.

20151114_093009
Whilst one completed piece sits in pride of place another is growing steadily out of its former throughout the weekend.

I made the decision to make during the show for a number of reasons.  I have found it much easier to chat to people when I am also manipulating a piece of clay and people seem to have been more willing to come in when there is something for them to watch.

20151114_093020
Test pieces lining up on the window sill ready for firing.

It has given me plenty to do and lots to say.  Not only that but I am on target to complete the current group of test pieces for what I am calling my ‘Poldark Project’ – exploring the mineral rich spoil heaps of Cornwall within the delicate fragile environment of thin porcelain.  I think I can safely say it has been a successful experiment.

Undoubtedly the best thing about the event has been peoples’ response to seeing first the outside and then, as they draw nearer, the interior of my new work.  The word which has escaped from their lips most frequently – WOW!  People seem to love the idea of the story told in the piece, the relationship of fragile porcelain to found clay and the link to the imagery on the interior. I have made several sales and I am confident of a number of commissions as a result of discussions with home movers and extenders; the bereaved and the loved; relatives of loved ones with imminent significant birthdays and people with a special place in their hearts.  I think I might just be on to a winner here.

So this week, my thanks go to my daughter for pointing me back towards the fragile work I love so much and for feeding me smoked haddock and poached egg when I most needed it, my sister for setting me off on this particular trail, Fred Gatley for showing me how exciting polished porcelain could be, Jonquil Williamson for helping me rearrange my studio so that people wanted to come in, Louise Diggle for pouring Cava into my glass and the rich and varied landscape of this beautiful isle which I am happy to call my home . – Teamwork is everything!

12226952_1653991651521320_2570564727548950727_n[1]
My Cricklade vessel. When I took it out of the cabinet and put it on a plinth everyone was asking if they could stroke it – the power of polished porcelain!