New Pottery Available April 11th at Noon

“The more of us that feel the universe, the better off we will be in this world.”

The reason why I make pottery is to enrich people’s lives. The things we surround ourselves with matter. Useful art inspired by our place in the world and in the universe has the power to impact society. These “asteroid cups” and “mountain cups” are examples of our new pottery:

One week from today you will be able to purchase any new pottery in our new online store (COMING SOON). Thanks to photography by Julia Eckart, a gorgeous new body of artwork will be available globally. Stay tuned to this email newsletter to be the first to know when pots are available, as well as to receive discount coupons on certain styles of pottery next Monday, April 11th at noon CST.

If you haven’t heard the news (like in this awesome article crafted by the St. Cloud Times) we set a new pottery world record! The world record pots are currently in the kiln and will be available soon. You can watch the attempt below:

“…push the envelope and provide a reason for people to be excited and inspired to be human.”

– Elon Musk, qtd. on 60 Minutes

Video and photo credit: Julia Eckart Photography, Wikipedia photography.

1 February, 20161 February, 2016

New Pottery: Cosmic Ambitions, Japanese Traditions

The first Moon mugs and asteroid cups have emerged from the kiln…

Plus, remaining Kickstarter pottery has been thrown. Most pots are glazed and ready to fire, but I must procrastinate for just a couple more weeks. I was given a once in a lifetime opportunity to travel to Japan to visit traditional pottery studios, Tokyo galleries and Mount Fuji- all before building my own studio.

Renowned potter Shiho Kanzaki is welcoming us in for a tour of his studio. We’re also visiting Mashiko– a famous town of over 20,000 people who are mostly potters!

New Pottery: Online Store Revamp

We hired skilled photographer Julia Echart to redesign our online store. In 2-3 weeks, we will have a new body of artwork on our gorgeous, new website, with discount coupons given only through this email newsletter.

Detail Shot, Cosmic Mug, Photo by Julia Eckart, Cherrico Pottery — Photo by Julia Eckart

Thanks so much for following along! We’re excited to build a new pottery studio this summer, inspired by historical Japanese studios. Check out the links below if you want to learn more about how Japanese pottery techniques inspired my career over the past 10 years.

Links:

Learn about my version of the Japanese Nuka glaze.

Learn how Japanese wood fired pottery inspires my art.

Learn about historical wood firing techniques that we practiced in the College of St. Benedict wood kiln.

Kickstarter Pottery in Process

My Japanese Tools and Techniques

Mount Fuji Mugs (Available Soon)

“When you try to be good, you look like someone trying to be good, and the result is that no one believes in you. The problem is to deal with these things without becoming hyper conscious or over intellectual…The challenge is to do the thing you have to do because you’re in love with it and can’t do anything else.”

– Warren Mackenzie, potter, qtd. in the 1990 issue of The Studio Potter, told by Gerry Williams, editor of The Studio Potter Journal.

23 January, 201623 January, 2016

The Next Generation: Asteroid Cups and Meteorite Mugs

Just in case you don’t follow our Instagram, here are some pics of the newest cosmic pots I’ve been busting out, including Asteroid Cups and Meteorite Mugs:

We will be stocking our online store with this new type of pottery soon, as well as offering coupons for everyone on the email newsletter list.

Our Kickstarter is way ahead of schedule! All Kickstarter pottery should ship next week. Whether you backed the project or simply gave us a “like” on Facebook, I really appreciate all of your support!

Last Call: $49 Cosmic Mugs (25 available)

Since all Cosmic Mugs and other pottery must return to full retail prices in February ($85 per mug + $15 average packing and shipping), I wanted to offer all of you just one more chance to get Cosmic Mugs at a huge discount. This link gives all of you another opportunity to get the lowest possible pricing on just a few more Cosmic Mugs:

The Last Batch of $49 Cosmic Mugs
(25 available)

What should I make next? This is your chance to request pottery. I get requests almost daily and can’t promise everything will get made, but I wanted to give all of you first priority. I’m getting back to the pottery wheel and would love to hear about any pottery you might enjoy owning:

Pottery Commission Requests

A new pottery studio can’t be built until our lease ends this summer. In the meantime, I’m making new types of cosmic pottery, researching world class pottery studios and practicing to challenge the Guinness World Record in pottery. Stay tuned!

“Why do people climb the mountain? Because it’s there.”

– Random thought from Dave, a gentleman we met on the Amtrack during my yearly trip to the Rockies.

17 December, 201517 December, 2015

1,000 Pots and 1,000 Egg Cartons

The Kickstarter is over and all of the Holiday pottery shipped globally. If you’re a backer, check out our most recent campaign update for all Cosmic Mug shipping information. If you just want to see a glimpse into the cosmic pottery process, scroll to the bottom of the update for photography and video snippets:

Three Cheers for the Backers!

Thanks again for your support!

Having no fear leaves us free to take risks and thereby learn from our failures and successes. If we produce safe, calculated pots, then that joy of discovery is lost and our growth cut short. The way to continue growing is to risk the unknown. An old Chinese proverb says it best, “Fear came knocking, faith opened the door, but no one was there.”

– Jenny Lind, “A Question of Quality,” The Studio Potter

11 December, 201511 December, 2015

Kickstarter Success! Time to Collect Your Cosmic Pottery

Whether you backed our project, posted on Facebook or simply told a friend, all of you helped make this a huge success. Thank you so much!

Getting Your Cosmic Pottery

#1.) Worldwide Shipping: If you backed an “EARLY BIRD SPECIAL” please fill out the Kickstarter Survey by Monday, December 14th 2015 at the latest. Otherwise, we cannot guarantee arrival before Christmas. Kickstarter Survey emails were sent this morning. If you cannot find your survey, please search your email for “Kickstarter Survey” and be sure to check your spam and trash folders. All remaining pottery will be shipped by March 1st at the latest, and hopefully much earlier.

#2.) Local Pottery Pickup: Wednesday 12/16 to Friday 12/19. You are invited to come pick up your pottery in person from my pottery studio in St. Joseph, Minnesota. You will receive a refund for you shipping costs in the form of extra, bonus pottery. Please follow this link to schedule a pickup time:

Cosmic Mug Pickup Schedule

Please choose one of the above options, so I know what to do with your finished cosmic pots. Thanks again for your support!

“A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP”

– Leonard Nimoy