Internationally Renown Artists Come to Studio 1219
Posted April 11, 2010
There’s still time to register for the amazing Raku pottery workshop with internationally known artists, Robert and Gail Piepenburg on Saturday, May 1 at Studio 1219, Port Huron, MI. Considered to be two of the top Raku artists in the United States, the Piepenburgs will do demonstrations in the morning, beginning at 10am and a Raku firing in the afternoon with the students’ work. This amazing workshop—a full, fun day —is only $100 and runs until 5:30pm. Students can register online at
: http://studio1219.com/classes/more/raku_workshop_w_robert_gail_piepenburg/
Or register by calling the Studio at (810) 984-ARTS (2787), or mail in the registration to Piepenburg Raku Workshop, Studio 1219, 1219 Military Street, Port Huron, MI 48060. Class size is limited to 18, so students are advised to register now. Participants need to be at least 14 years old.
Robert Piepenburg, professor of ceramics on the faculty at Oakland Community College, has written five books and produced a DVD – including: “Raku Pottery,” “The Spirit of Ceramic Design: Cultivating Creativity with Clay,” “Treasures of the Creative Spirit: An Artist’s Understanding of Human Creativity,” “The Spirit of Clay: A Classic Guide to Ceramics,” and “Raku Firing and Reduction.” Two of the books have been honored with Best Books Awards by USA Book News. His work is in numerous collections—both private and public—including the collections at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington DC, the State Foundation on Culture and Arts in Honolulu, Hawaii,. the Cadillac City-County Building in Cadillac, Michigan, the Federal Mogul World Headquarters in Southfield, Michigan and the Orlando Airport, Florida – to name a few.
Gail Piepenburg is an artist whose work has been included in many contemporary books on ceramics and has received many awards. As a Farmington High School Teacher Gail loves to help her students reach their potential. Her two-dimensional Raku is extraordinarily creative.
Raku pottery is a special kiln-firing technique begun in Japan over 350 years ago. It is named after the family that created the process for pottery that uses fire and smoke to create unique patterns and designs in the glazes on the pottery pieces. The firing process only takes about 45 minutes to an hour, plus cooling time.
Each student to the workshop should bring three (3) bisque pieces. They can be glazed ahead of time, or use the Studio’s glazes during the workshop. If a the student doesn’t have three pieces – for example, they are an artist from another discipline or are new to pottery pottery —they are welcome to purchase from a wide variety of inexpensive pieces at the Studio that are available to be fired. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from the masters, and take your finished pieces home the same day!!
